She’s had her fair share of pinch-me moments interviewing some of the biggest names in entertainment but for Angela Bishop, seeing her daughter collaborate with Kasey Chambers is up there as one of her most cherished memories.
“It was such a special day,” Ange, 54, says of the time her 14-year-old daughter Amelia participated in a writing camp with the country music superstar earlier this year.
“Kasey was just so nurturing, and she gave such great advice on how to navigate this industry and how to stay true to yourself.”
“It was such a special day.”
(Image: Phillip Castleton)Talking of the camp, Amelia, a singer-songwriter who has dreams of one day pursuing a career in music, says it opened her eyes to the industry and made her fall in love with the craft even more.
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“It was so much fun. We learned a lot about the structure on how to make songs. We learned how [Kasey] made Not Pretty Enough, and how it’s not just about making songs that people want to hear, but to make it really unique,” she tells Woman’s Day.
“She said, don’t try and be like someone else and don’t try and sound the same as someone else, just make something that’s really you.
“I feel like it was such a good piece of advice not just in music, but in life in general.”
“It was so much fun. We learned a lot about the structure on how to make songs.”
(Image: Phillip Castleton)Ensuring she applied Kasey’s advice well after the camp, Amelia, who also cites Taylor Swift and Katy Perry as major influences, says she’s constantly writing music at home and is trying to complete a song to take back to Kasey, 45, for feedback.
“I’d love to have a song that I can share,” she says.
“I just love music. I love singing. Probably a little too much. But you can be so creative and it’s a great way to express your emotion.”
Proud mum Ange says she loves that Amelia is passionate about the arts, but concedes she didn’t really have a choice in the matter after exposing her to the business at a very young age.
Angela, Amelia, and Kasey posed for a selfie together.
(Image: Supplied)“I took her to her first Midnight Oil concert when she was nine,” she laughs.
“It was important to me to expose her to as much music and art as possible. Honest to god, I’d be devastated if she didn’t love it.”
The Studio 10 personality also adds that Amelia’s late father Peter Baikie, who tragically passed after a long battle with cancer in 2017, would be “super proud”.
Angela gushes her late husband would be “proud” of their daughter.
(Image: Getty)“Pete loved to hear her sing,” Ange tells. “She’s done a lot since she was a little girl and he loved that, he was always front row at her concerts. He never missed them, he loved it so much.”
Having been Australia’s go-to entertainment reporter for more than three decades, Ange has witnessed how challenging the industry can be.
But if Amelia does choose to venture into her mum’s world, she’ll have the best of the best standing right behind her.
“She’d certainly be going in with her eyes open as she’s been able to see the highs and lows of it through me,” says Ange.
“But I think the main thing about this business – and she seems to have picked it up already – is that sense of integrity and authenticity. It’s important to be yourself at all times.
“And no matter what she chooses to do, I’ll back her 100 per cent. I like to say Amelia can do anything she puts her mind to, and whatever she ends up choosing to do, will be wonderful to watch.”
