"Writing the song felt like a big exhale" - An Interview With Zara Chantelle on "Good Man"
The Adelaide singer-songwriter opens up about her new single "Good Man", songwriting growth, studying Popular Music, live performance, and building a future on her own terms.
Photo credit: Flynn Turley
At just 18 years old, Zara Chantelle is already navigating the music world with clarity, drive, and a strong sense of identity. Based in Adelaide, South Australia, the singer-songwriter blends pop-rock energy with open, diary-like songwriting, drawing inspiration from artists such as Missy Higgins, Gracie Abrams, Taylor Swift, and Lizzy McAlpine. Her latest single, "Good Man", captures the relief and freedom that come with finally stepping into a healthy relationship.
Alongside a rapidly growing live résumé that includes over 200 professional gigs since the age of 15, Zara has been developing her songwriting through formal studies in Popular Music at the Conservatorium of Adelaide, balancing structured learning with the realities of performing night after night, shaping both her sound and her confidence as an emerging artist.
In this interview, Zara reflects on writing through vulnerability, the pop-rock foundations behind "Good Man", the challenges of building an audience in an ever-changing social media landscape, and what success means to her at this stage. She also shares her dream collaborations, her live performance goals, and her thoughtful take on how music blogs are evolving from critics into curators in today’s streaming-led ecosystem.
Chris Roditis, Musicngear: Hi Zara, welcome to Musicngear! “Good Man” reflects that powerful shift from surviving a relationship to finally feeling safe and loved. When writing the song, what feeling were you most excited to hold onto - relief, joy, freedom, or something else?
Definitely relief, writing the song felt like a big exhale but also a celebration in moving on and finally feeling free!!
Musicngear: Your songs often sit at that sweet spot between vulnerability and confidence. How has your songwriting evolved as you’ve grown, both emotionally and musically, over the past few years?
When I first started songwriting, I was embarrassed of being vulnerable and having to play that in front of people I knew, so that’s definitely something I had to overcome.
Analysing other songs has also definitely helped me develop my songwriting lyrically and melodically loll to create a catchy pop song.
Musicngear: You’ve studied Popular Music at the Conservatorium of Adelaide. How has that formal training shaped the way you write, arrange, or think about songs compared to learning on stage and through real-world gigging?
The formal training has shaped how I discover and use chord progressions in my songs, helping me create more catchy and intricate melodies in a formulaic way, but gigging and learning my craft on stage is definitely the most important to me as it moulds my stage presence and the way I am able to interact with my audience live.
Musicngear: If you ever wrote a song called "Adelaide", what would it be about - the place, a person, a feeling, or a specific moment that shaped you?
Definitely a concept similar to "Getaway Car" by Taylor Swift. I feel like Adelaide is an amazing place to get away from all the noise if you are famous.
Musicngear: Let’s talk gear. What instruments, pedals, software, or production tools do you usually gravitate toward when writing and performing and was there anything specific you relied on while creating “Good Man”?
Definitely a rock electric guitar and some pop drums!! I love a good pop-rock classic!!
Success to me is touring and living comfortably off of music with a dedicated fanbase
Musicngear: You’ve already performed over 200 professional gigs since the age of 15, which is huge. What’s been the biggest challenge you’ve had to overcome as an artist so far, and what advice would you give to other young artists facing similar hurdles?
Understanding social media trends and capturing an audience’s attention is definitely a challenge as social media is constantly evolving.
What helped me was understanding and analysing other artists similar to me, and seeing how they connected to their fanbase definitely inspired me!!
Musicngear: What does “success” look like for you right now? Are you focused on streams, live shows, media coverage, fan growth or something less measurable? And how do you plan to get there?
Right now, success to me is touring and living comfortably off of music with a dedicated fanbase, and I plan to get there by supporting other artists and growing my fanbase on social media.
It seems to me that the role of blogs has changed from being used as critics to now curators of music.
Musicngear: Your influences span artists like Missy Higgins, Gracie Abrams, Taylor Swift, and Lizzy McAlpine. Are there any artists you’d love to collaborate with, and are there venues or festivals that sit high on your personal wish list?
I’d definitely love to collaborate with Aleksiah, she’s an Adelaide artist that writes really catchy songs and our genres and writing structure are definitely similar!
A big goal of mine in the future is to song-write with Amy Allen, an award-winning songwriter. She’s so inspiring, and I’ve learnt a lot from her as a songwriter!!
Venues like the Entertainment Centre and Wembley Stadium are definitely on my bucket list, but a closer goal would definitely have to be the Lion Arts Factory!!
Musicngear: What’s your take on the role of music blogs today, and how do you see it evolving, especially with platforms like SubmitHub, Groover, Musosoup, and Wallstream that connect artists with curators and writers?
I think music blogs are an amazing way to get in front of an audience and reach engagement; however, the pay for blog content needs to be kept in mind for artists.
It seems to me that the role of blogs has changed from being used as critics to now curators of music.
Additionally, the role of blogs in discovering new music needs to blend with digital streaming platforms who now recommend songs to the audience.
Musicngear: If you could travel back in time, which musical era would you choose and why?
I love the 2000s and 2010s music era, I feel like the pop songs back then were unmatchable!!
Musicngear: Looking ahead, what’s next for Zara Chantelle?
Definitely releasing music and live shows!! This year, my focus ison building a repertoire for myself and cementing my live shows to start building a fanbase so they go and see them.
Connect with Zara Chantelle
Website / Instagram / Facebook / YouTube / Spotify
About Chris Roditis
Chris Roditis has been an active musician since 1995 in various bands and projects across a variety of genres ranging from acoustic, electronic to nu metal, british rock and trip hop. He has extensive experience as a mixing engineer and producer and has built recording studios for most of the projects he has been involved with. His passion for music steered his entrepreneurial skills into founding MusicNGear in 2012.
Contact Chris Roditis at chrisroditis@musicngear.com
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