Mackay’s Sugardrop festival line up released with Tia Gostelow on the bill

Mackay singer/songwriter and rising star Tia Gostelow may be young but she has been performing for a decade and said watching her fans sing her words was ‘a pinch me moment’. She is preparing to headline a new event in Mackay in August. Read the full line-up.

For Mackay-bred songstress and rising international star Tia Gostelow, watching fans sing her lyrics back at her as she performs – and often over the top of her own voice – was a real “pinch me moment”.

From the moment she could talk, Gostelow knew she wanted to be a singer.

“There’s nothing else I wanted to do with my life,” she said.

By age seven she was learning guitar and by 12 she was performing in pubs and venues across Mackay, sometimes every Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights as a teen.

“If I didn’t do that I don’t think I would be as resilient as I am,” she said.

And after basically a decade pushing her way through the music industry the 22 year old will return to her hometown to headline a new festival, which she said was something she had wanted to do for three years.

“I’m super excited about this festival … it’s been in the works for quite a long time,” she said.

Gostelow will be among five artists to hit the stage in Mackay for the regional town’s first ever Sugardrop festival at Harrup Park on June 18.

“Playing in your home town is always like the scariest thing just because you know so many people, but it’s honestly one of the best things ever as well,” she said.

This will be the singer/songwriter’s first performance in Mackay since she played at Mojos in 2019.

“That was my first ticketed show in Mackay and the turnout for that literally just left me speechless,” she said.

“I think it’s an artist thing as well when you’re playing shows you think ‘is anyone going to turn up’, but that just really blew me away.”

Tia Gostelow performed on day one at the Festival of Food and Wine in Queens Park. Picture: Nev Madsen.

The Indigenous artist is best known for her indie pop tracks such as Strangers, Giants and Phone Me off her 2018 album Thick Skin, the former of which has since gone platinum.

“I feel really grateful that I’ve been given the opportunities that I have and there is definitely room for other people to come into that space,” she said.

But she was also realistic about the industry and said pursuing a career in music could be tough, and she even had times where she questioned if it was the right path.

“I have been like ‘is this going to happen, is this really going to work, should I go get another job’,” she said.

“I’ve been able to pay myself a wage for the past two years, so for me I guess that’s a really big thing having a career in the music industry.”

Gostelow said she was grateful to be able to focus on her music as she worked on her third album.

In 2019, and just newly 19 years old, Gostelow spent two months touring Europe, which she said was an eye opening experience.

“At the time in Australia I was on a pretty big high, my shows were selling out here. Some of my songs were doing really well and I didn’t really know what to expect when I went overseas,” she said.

“When I went over there I was literally playing to rooms with one or two people and for me that felt like a big disappointment, but I had to shift my perspective … and it’s so cool even going overseas and one or two people even knowing who you are.

“And it was pretty unreal to be playing shows over there and people singing along to songs.”

When asked what it was like watching people sing her words back to her as she was performing, Gostelow became lost for words for a moment.

The Beddy Rays will be one of the five acts performing at the Sugardrop music event. Picture: Contributed

“There’s something really special about hearing people pretty much singing, over the top of you, your lyrics back at you,” she said.

“A pinch me moment is the only way I can describe it.”

What she loved most about music was its special way of connecting with people and how others have found some solace through her words.

Gostelow, who now lives in Brisbane, will be joined by The Beddy Rays, who recently wowed crowds at the Seabreeze Hotel on March 18, Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers, Amber Farnan and Mt Nadir for the inaugural festival.

“It’s really nice to be able to come back to Mackay and put on an event,” she said.

“I’m sure bringing bands like The Beddy Rays and Teen Jesus to Mackay is just going to accelerate that more and more people are going to be excited about it.”

Music lovers can register for pre-sale access and buy the first round of tickets on April 14 here.