With a multifaceted career spanning music, screen and stage, Barry Conrad possesses an undeniable talent. He’s opened for the likes of Brian McKnight, Craig David and Eric Benet, toured both locally and internationally, and vocally produced and penned songs for an array of artists. No stranger to the screen, Conrad landed a role on FOX’s Power Rangers: Ninja Storm, before taking his first leap to feature films in the #1 box office hit, The Sapphires. Barry made his theatre debut in the Australian premiere production of Broadway hit, VIOLET, enjoying award-winning, critically acclaimed seasons in Sydney and Melbourne.
Hot on the heels of VIOLET, an unbroken streak of touring roles followed, including Hairspray, Grease, five-time Helpmann winning BEAUTIFUL: The Carole King Musical and MADIBA. In 2019 Barry reached a new career milestone, originating the role of Kane Jones on Australia’s longest-running TV drama series, Neighbours.
He recently signed on as Mitsubishi Australia’s newest ambassador, representing the brand at the ARIA Awards 2020. And away from entertainment, he’s a proud ambassador for suicide-prevention charity, R U OK?.
Conrad’s rise to public recognition was cemented after being named one of the Final 12 on Channel 7’s The X-Factor, winning over a legion of new fans and solidifying himself as one of Australia’s most exciting talents.
Hi Barry welcome to OLC! You have quite the resume’, so tell me where your passion for the arts and entertainment began and who inspired you growing up?
Thanks for having me! Ever since I can remember. My dad sang and played guitar, and mom sang on an album with her church choir, so I was always around music. I’d do school plays, write poems that eventually became songs and I’d watch movies dreaming of one day being on screen too. I have a few, but growing up, one of my biggest inspirations as an artist was definitely Brian McKnight.
You were a contestant on Australia’s The X-Factor, what made you want to go audition for that?
It’s funny, I was actually mentoring a couple of boybands for that season of the show and went to their audition to support them. That turned into a situation where the producers asked me to audition. I initially said no, then yes, but didn’t show up to my audition!
I was at a bit of a crossroads, working away behind the scenes and dealing with a lot of self-doubt. At the time, my second mother Audrey was also terminally ill with cancer, but she encouraged me to go for it. Driving home from the studio one night, that Coldplay song Fix You came on the radio, which I’d heard a thousand times before. But for some reason that line, “But if you never try then you’ll never know just what you’re worth”, hit in a whole different way. I actually had to pull over to the side of the road, because it was the moment I knew that I’d regret it if I didn’t take a chance. I asked the producers if I could still audition, they flew me out to Melbourne on the very final day of the audition tour and I got in. It was crazy.
How did you know what song you were going to perform at the audition?
I actually didn’t! We’re given a list of a few songs and have to sing one of them.
So how did you go from X-Factor to appearing on stage and the silver screen?
I’d already done Power Rangers and The Sapphires, but knew I wanted more. I went on to do five musical theatre shows in a row (Violet, Hairspray, Grease, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical and Madiba) over a period of about 5 years.
You’ve opened for some huge names in R&B music including Craig David, Eric Benet, and the legend that is Brian McKnight, how did those opportunities arise?
I’d just released an EP called Epitome (re-released in January this year) and was a finalist in the NA2R (New Artist 2 Radio) competition, so I was working the radio circuit a bit and doing live showcases. The promoters of those tours got in touch, which was super exciting.
I’m genuinely a big fan of all those artists, but I’d have to say I was most excited about Brian McKnight. That man was my vocal hero growing up. I remember spending so many afternoons in my room after school, studying his voice and the way he’d layer his vocals. If you’d told me that we’d one day get to talk music over steaks, and that I’d be touring Australia opening for him, I’d say you were crazy! It really was such an incredible experience and is still one of the biggest highlights for me.
You’ve recently returned to the Australian hit show ‘Neighbours’, what brought you back and how much does it mean to you to be working on such an incredible long running show like this?
After the last time I filmed, there wasn’t really anything to hint that my character, Kane Jones, would be coming back again. So when I got the call that they wanted me back for a third time, I was super excited! To have a recurring role on Australia’s longest-running TV series is pretty humbling and an amazing experience. I’m super grateful. Have to say a big thanks to Jason Herbison and Thea Mcleod for believing in me.
What are some of your fondest memories you’ve had being on the show?
All of them so far! Playing Kane’s always a lot of fun, because we’re different in so many way. It’s been cool getting to flesh him out as a character more and more.
Now you have a new single called “Ocean Road”, what inspired this song and who helped you work on it?
It’s inspired by someone very special to me and came after a long time of not making any music. I’d been on the road for so long, touring with theatre, that music took a big backseat. There were definitely days where I was like, “Can I even still write songs?!”. But I was home cooking one day, right in the middle of lockdown, and almost the entire chorus came to me, including the title. Any songwriters out there will tell you that doesn’t always happen. I do think that because it’s inspired by something so real in my life, that the song was practically bursting to come out! I knew it was something special and that I had to finish it.
I wrote and arranged it all, then had my good friend Rika Setu-Galo play piano on the track. Grammy winner Chris ‘TEK’ O’Ryan (Justin Bieber, Mariah Carey) and Joe Bozzi (U2, Prince) did such an incredible job of mixing and mastering it over in the US, and taking it to that next level.
Where did the idea for the music video come from?
Pretty early into writing Ocean Road, I knew that I wanted people to experience it for the first time by hearing and seeing it at once. It’s such a visual song. And so many of the ideas I had for the music video, Matt Sharp (ARIA Award winning director) had too – and more! There wasn’t ever a moment where I felt that what he was doing didn’t compliment the song. Matt just took it to a place that far exceeded any expectations I had, and he captured the essence of the song so perfectly.
Can we expect an EP or album to follow? and if so what can you tell us about it?
Not sure of what it will look like just yet, but you can definitely expect more music.
Given the opportunity who are some artists you’d love to work with and why?
How long do we have (haha)? There are way too many for me to list in this one chat!
Which artists or songs are you currently listening to?
Currently Robin Thicke’s new album. I’m also kinda embarrassed to say that I’m only now properly discovering Dua Lipa (haha). She’s great!
What future projects do you have coming up in 2021 that you can tell us about?
Make sure you give me a follow on social media and stay tuned.
What advice do you have for people that want to make it in the entertainment industry?
There’s no substitute for hard work. Surround yourself with people you can trust, who genuinely have your best interests at heart. Have a very strong “why” behind what you’re doing. Fill your life with other things that bring you joy too, because trying to find your self-worth in your talent and what you do is very dangerous. Lastly, I’ll say that life is very unpredictable and we’re never going to be perfect, so be as kind to yourself along the way as you can.
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