After six years to the month since her last performance in metro Detroit, Grace Shaw, better known by her stage name Mallrat, just wrapped up her set at the Royal Oak Music Theatre on a Tuesday night in September supporting MARINA (FKA Marina and the Diamonds).
The Australian singer, rapper and songwriter released her second studio album, Light Hit My Face Like a Straight Right, last February. The last time I spoke to Mallrat, she had just released her third EP Driving Music in 2019 and was headlining the Pike Room in Pontiac — riding off the momentum of her song “Groceries” that was an alt rock radio favorite at the time.
Listen: Mallrat talks new album, dealing with loss and more
“Lately I’ve just been feeling really comfortable with myself and really confident in myself,” explained Mallrat on how she’s changed over the last six years. “I was still…growing into myself. It’s not that I’m necessarily like a very different person. I think I’m just a lot more confident and comfortable with who I am, and able to express myself better — just a more fully realized version of myself.”
That confidence is on full display when you listen to Light Hit My Face Like a Straight Right. Songs like “Hideaway” allows Mallrat to blend vulnerable lyrics with a drum and bass beat. “Pavement” features excellent samples from Memphis rap icon DJ Zirk and Shaw’s countrymen in Cub Sport.
“I think that everything I do now is pretty much just a version of that where it’s maybe a bit elevated,” Shaw said. “I have a bit more experience or understanding of why I do some things onto my belt, or a bit more confidence behind the decisions.”
Listen to the entire interview using the media player above, where Mallrat also speaks on dealing with the loss of her sister Olivia, introducing herself to MARINA fans and more.
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