Video Transcription

Rebecca Hatch on charting her own path

You don’t need a father. Anybody’s pathways, anyone’s journeys. I guess, like, running New Age, you can just set your own, say your own rules, and do what makes you happy. Hi, my name is Rebecca Hatch. I’m 18 years old and I’m a singer-songwriter from Western Sydney. When I was 16, I went to Blue Jays on a TIE Indigenous initiative at the National Indigenous Music Awards.

It was when I got the phone call from… every day, it was pretty crazy. I remember like I ran to my brother’s room, my mom’s emails were like, “Way to go, Rebecca!” I think guys, did you see people? Jay, they’re playing with love. It really showcased me and got me a lot of opportunities, like doing tours. I’ve done a lot of shows since then.

I think being in Year 12, like you’re still really young and it’s really hard to make decisions for what you want to be and like the next few years. I remember just stressing out because I was like, “What if I don’t get into uni? What if I can’t do this?” But I was like, if I can’t get into uni, that’s not the end of the world. My life will still go on.

If you can’t do those things right now, that’s okay. There are so many other pathways to get where you want to be. I know in the end where I want to be. I never want to be doing these shows. I know I want to be this kind of artist, but I guess the pathway to get there is a bit hard to figure out, and I guess it’s different for everyone.

The past two years, I wouldn’t have predicted any of that to happen. I could have said, like, I wanted this to happen, or like, my path went this way, but I still ended up where I am now, which is a really good thing. It can be quite hard, but I feel like if I were to work hard enough for what I wanted and if I knew, like, if I can say this is what I want, this is what I’m gonna do, like, no one can bring me down because I know I’m gonna get where I want to be in the end.

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