The Aussie TikTok crooner with a ‘weapons-grade’ talent
By Jonathan Seidler, Frances Mocnik, Damien Woolnough, Barry Divola and Nicole Abadee
SPOTLIGHT / Smooth operator
Grant Perez, aka Grentperez, writes love songs influenced by classic 1970s R&B.
If you’ve recently found yourself despairing of the listening habits of the à la carte TikTok generation, Grentperez may just be music to year ears. The Filipino-Australian crooner (real name: Grant Perez) has been singing his heart out since he was 13, posting covers to YouTube of everyone from Adele to Olivia Rodrigo and organically building up what’s now a sizable international fan base. “They’re incredibly talented,” says Perez of his fans. “I often receive handmade gifts when I meet them, whether something crocheted or a drawing. They’re very wholesome.”
This direct approach paid dividends when his career launched in earnest a few years ago, his success made all the more sweet by the winsome, old-fashioned nature of his music. Perez, who writes pillowy love songs with modern production stylings, is perhaps best known for his show-stopping voice, which features what one reviewer called “weapons-grade melisma”.
As much indebted to classic 1970s R&B as it is to more contemporary exponents – such as Britain’s Rex Orange County or Dutch troubadour Benny Sings – Perez’s long-awaited debut album, Backflips in a Restaurant, channels Herb Alpert and The Carpenters. Independently released, it comes off a banner year for Perez that includes back-to-back tours of the US, fashion magazine features and an ARIA debut at No.3. Not a bad showing for music that your kids will dig as their grandparents tap their toes to it, too. Jonathan Seidler
READ / Past imperfect
Kate Grenville’s latest is a confronting retelling of Australian history.
What do we do, now that we know? That’s the question Kate Grenville, one of our finest writers and author of the iconic The Secret River (2005), poses to non-Indigenous Australians in Unsettled ($37), her new non-fiction book. How do we respond to the knowledge that we live on stolen land which the original owners fought a bloody war of resistance to defend? Grenville (once again) delves deep into her own family’s history in her search for an answer as she drives north from Sydney, retracing the steps of her forebears. An unforgettable reimagining and retelling of history that is, in turns, intimate, unsparing – and confronting. Nicole Abadee
LISTEN / When dads go bad
How misinformation can tear a family apart: a subject that brings together a New York-based son and his dad.
Reporter Zach Mack’s dad has gone down a rabbit hole and now believes a whole lot of QAnon conspiracy theories and doomsday predictions. It’s tearing the family apart. Zach’s mum is seriously considering leaving him and he and Zach’s sister are estranged because he believes her homosexuality is a “choice”. And then there’s Zach himself, who’s desperate to connect with his father and bring him back to reality. So he makes a bet with his old man: for each of 10 wild predictions that don’t happen within 12 months, Mack snr has to fork out $US1000. What ensues is Embedded: Alternate Realities, a podcast documenting a year of personal conversations between father and son that reveal how an intelligent man can be duped by misinformation. Question is, when the elder Mack inevitably loses the bet, will he give up his beliefs? Barry Divola
WEAR / The long and the short of it
The “car coat” is a new way to look cool – and stay warm – this winter.
For the past few winters, the trench coat has been winning the style war when it comes to cool-weather cover-ups, but more streamlined solutions are now gaining ground among those who abhor being engulfed by excess fabric or dealing with extraneous buttons and belts. Enter the cropped Assembly Label “Archer” car coat ($300, above), which offers protection against the elements while allowing greater freedom of movement, its lambskin trimmings adding a degree of refinement that leaves other winter alternatives, such as the puffer jacket, on the sidelines. Damien Woolnough
SHOP / Drink up
Huskee has broadened its reusable cup range with the HuskeeRenew.
At Upfront, we’ve been fans of Huskee and its unique, opt-in, cup-exchange system for quite some time. Now, the Original HuskeeCup has a new sibling, the premium-range HuskeeRenew (in four sizes from 6oz, $26), made from durable, 50 per cent, post-consumer recycled plastic and available in elegant Amber and Smoke; we love the sleek saucers, too ($53 for four). The Renew may be gorgeous, but it’s just as hardworking: snap on a matching lid and your Renew instantly transforms, like the famous Original (fashioned from coffee-husk waste), into a reusable vessel you can use outside the home. Frances Mocnik
TUNE IN / Noise works
Auracast, tech that helps people with hearing loss, has been installed in the Sydney Opera House.
The Sydney Opera House has become the first major cultural venue in the world to roll out Auracast broadcast audio, a game-changer for people with hearing loss. Developed in collaboration with GN Hearing Australia, Hearing Australia and the National Acoustic Laboratories, the technology, which is free to use, streams clear, direct sound to compatible hearing aids and earbuds, no fiddly extras needed. It’s a bold step towards breaking down barriers and making live performances truly accessible (consult your audiologist for settings details or check with the cloakroom to borrow a receiver). To learn more, click here. Frances Mocnik
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