The Veronicas open up about their mum’s rare cerebral disorder

Twin sisters Lisa and Jessica Origliasso discuss learning to cope with negative press and how their mother’s declining health has given them perspective and redefined their priorities.

This year marks a milestone for chart-topping twins Lisa and Jessica Origliasso: two decades since the musicians made their first demo recordings at a studio in their hometown of Brisbane.

It would take a few years of experimentation and hustle before the performers – who branded themselves The Veronicas – would end up signing a global record deal that was christened by 2005’s breakout hit single ‘4ever’.

They would go on to score 13 ARIA top-20 singles and at least two globally recognised hits (‘Untouched’ and ‘You Ruin Me’), but despite enduring success in the ruthless world of pop music, Jess tells Stellar, “We’re still the same two girls from Brisbane who were so excited to get into the studio and create for the first time. We relive that same feeling every time we go into the studio.”

“When our mummy became sick, we made a commitment to be there for her, no matter what.” (Picture: Damian Bennett)

When Lisa recently sold her Brisbane home, the obligatory clean-out unearthed Veronicas memorabilia she had been hoarding for 16 years.

She says, “I found some of our old clothing line we did for Target – a home-made singlet Jess wore that was a big hit on Myspace at the time. And every video recording our parents ever took of us… so much footage.”

They’ve since squirreled the archival video content away for a future documentary, which has been placed on their lengthy to-do list.

Their mother Colleen has long been their biggest champion, not only filming them pre-fame, but also going on tour with them once they hit it big.

But it’s no accident the more than six-year gap between 2014’s self-titled album The Veronicas and their upcoming double-whammy releases of Godzilla and Human correlates with Colleen’s diagnosis with rare progressive supranuclear palsy, a cerebral disorder that affects her cognitive ability and motor function.

She has difficulty being able to walk, talk, think and swallow; her declining health means she is currently in palliative care. Lights, temperature and sound need to be monitored to stop Colleen suffering a seizure from sensory overload.

While the duo has kept The Veronicas machine ticking over in order to fuel a passionate but patient fanbase, becoming carers for their mother has given them a reality check miles away from the glitz and glamour of their night jobs.

“Once you’ve had what everyone thinks is the golden ticket, it’s a blessed position to know it can corrupt you if you let it.” (Picture: Damian Bennett)

“We’re so close with our mummy, she’s our best friend,” Jess says.

“She’s been our greatest rock, support and foundation. When she became sick, we made a commitment to each other and to her that we’d be there for her, no matter what. Our love for music isn’t going to go anywhere. We needed to prioritise our commitment to her and our love for her. It was the easiest decision we’ve made in our career.”

The pandemic may have put touring on hold last year, but for the 36-year-old twins, it also provided some essential downtime. “It afforded us time to focus and prioritise being with her; we actually feel so thankful for that time,” Lisa says.

The pair signed up for this year’s version of Celebrity Apprentice Australia (which starts tonight on the Nine Network) to raise money for the Brain Foundation in order to bolster its research on neurological conditions.

Aside from their own reality show, MTV’s Blood Is For Life, it is the first major reality-show offer they’ve accepted. “It’s a show about business, but it’s also in the business of drama and entertainment,” Jess says.

“We’re well versed in the business of drama,” Lisa notes.

“The show is about collaboration. Jess and I are good at working with each other – and also fighting with each other. It’s a different dynamic when you have to collaborate with other people.”

“We know how to have to consider someone else all the time.” (Picture: Supplied)

Jess adds: “Some people aren’t used to that. We collaborate because we have to.”

Lisa explains it comes naturally to them, being twins and all. “We know how to have to consider someone else all the time.”

In 2019, Blood Is For Life aired internationally. As well as capturing them recording songs that would finally end up on their new albums, it followed Lisa and actor husband Logan Huffman planning to buy and renovate a house they’d live in with Jess.

“Plot twist,” Lisa says. “We sold the house and decided not to all live together.”

“The upside is the band is still together,” Jess adds, “because renovating a house could have ended badly.”

While they had final say on the edit of the MTV show, it still delved briefly into their personal lives. At the time Jess was still making headlines after a bitter split from actor Ruby Rose in 2018; she’d get engaged to musician Kai Carlton in October 2019, only to end it a year later.

The song that opens their new album Human, ‘Without You’, features lyrics that fans who first heard snippets of it back in February 2019 presumed were about Rose.

“You told me I’m sick and I’m not ever getting better without you,” it states, before noting “I finally see that I’m enough, without you I have learned to love myself.”

Jess has maintained a dignified silence about its inspiration.

“We’re well versed in the business of drama.” (Picture: Damian Bennett)

“If I’m honest, it’s probably one of three songs we’ve written in our long career that even when I sing it now, I still find it difficult,” she reveals to Stellar.

“We’re singing it on [our] upcoming tour; I don’t know how many shows it will take me to get it out without crying. I wrote it at a time when I was going through something incredibly difficult to express and process. It’s like this little piece of time where I was reflecting for the first time in my life on something that felt so surreal for years.”

Jess admits she’s enjoying being single after two relationships that played out in both mainstream and social media.

“Given the experiences I’ve had, I think right now what I’m really craving is to feel safe and secure in myself,” Jess says.

“Dependability is so important with what we’re going through. There are so many changes; I crave safety and security and self-love. I can depend on myself and my family. Until I can guarantee that again, I’m done taking too many risks for a little while.”

“Our passion for music has always been real. That’s what touched people.” (Picture: Getty)

While the duo became more selective with their live work due to their role as carers, they have also found themselves with the kind of diverse career that comes with time and can’t be manufactured.

They’re just at home singing with their hero John Farnham at a benefit for farmers and songwriting inspiration Kasey Chambers at Bluesfest as they are singing with rapper Allday at an indie festival and performing at pride events with their childhood friend, drag queen and singer Courtney Act.

“We adapt to different genres,” Lisa says. “We have such an appreciation for all kinds of music.”

Jess continues: “We’ve always aspired to be the kind of artist who can play a massive sporting event [they’ll be the musical guests at the opening game of this year’s State Of Origin], a rock festival, a blues festival or wherever. We love a challenge. We love to be able to step into any arena and create a ‘Veronicas presence’.”

Their biggest hit, 2007’s ‘Untouched’, holds the rare position of being able to soundtrack both dance parties as well as the “wall of death” moment at rock festivals, when mosh pits split down the middle and punters run directly towards each other.

“The transcendence of ‘Untouched’ blows my mind,” Jess says.

“When we released ‘4ever’ and ‘Everything I’m Not’ there were so many metal bands covering those songs, more than pop bands covering us. That’s the exciting thing about music, the thing we find so much pride in.”

The twins, with Huffman, remain focused on non-musical ventures, too. They are in the planning stages for Planted, a sustainability-based business venture they hope to launch this year.

“We’re developing prototypes right now,” Jess says. “It will encompass all things from permaculture to everyday health and wellness.”

Planted was inspired by how they live their own lives, and a desire to leave the glitz of their chosen industry behind in favour of something more spiritual.

“Once you’ve had what everyone thinks is the golden ticket, it’s really a blessed position to know it can corrupt you real quick if you let it,” Jess says.

The Veronicas star on the cover of this Sunday’s Stellar.

“You meet a lot of people on the way who become corrupted by it. The whole point of life is to live a fulfilling life. The dream of what is fulfilling versus the reality of it is something we explore a lot.”

After 20 years in the industry – a solid 16 of those in the public eye – they have managed to navigate their way through (and out of) dramas that would have felled many.

“I still vividly remember our first bad headline in the newspaper after 18 months of nothing but good press,” Jess says. “It switched up real quick – we started to get controversial headlines out of nowhere. You realise there’s this whole other side to life you deal with: how much do you take on, how much is real?

“Our passion for music has always been real. That’s what touched people. Even though after so long your band, your brand, your image gets touched by headlines, a collaborative narrative of media and public opinions, The Veronicas is still our baby. That can never be taken away from us. We’ll always have our music.”

Godzilla is out May 28, Human is out July 2. Godzilla V Human national tour starts June 3, see theveronicas.com.