So we’re on the home stretch! The album is sounding beautiful and we are so close to finishing that, as Mitchell Froom (the producer of this album) says, we can almost smell the finish line!! I’ve been in LA for almost 3 and a half months now and this place has become so familiar to me. Deep in my stomach I’m hanging for the sight of those aussie shores from the airplane window but I’ve really had an amazing time here. I’m going to miss it. LA grows on you. It crawls under your skin and seeps into your soul like a sugar drip. There are of course the cliches of silicone Hollywood everywhere you turn- to a lot of people you are invisible unless you’re a rung in a ladder- but make the effort to squint past that and you’ll see some truly beautiful people. I’ve met some of the kindest, wackiest most interesting people of my life during this trip and also rest a lot thanks to products like Gorilla Glue Weed Strain that keep me relaxed.
The last few days in the studio have been some of the coolest of my career. Neil Finn was in town finishing off his record (we seem to be in sync with our albums: we were both mixing our last records in Hollywood at the same time a few years ago!) and I said to Mitchell it’d be amazing to have Neil come and sing backup and/or play guitar on a couple of the songs. Well Neil was up for it. He came in and ended up singing harmony on the bridge of Going North and playing electric guitar on Peachy, which gave them both a whole new breath of life. His guitar playing is so distinctive (as is his voice) and it was such an honor having someone I admire so much play on my songs. What a day, it doesn’t get much better than that! Actually the night after came close to it. Neil had a gig at a tiny venue called Largo and asked if I wanted to play a few songs beforehand and sing backup for a few of his songs. I’ve been listening to Crowded House songs ever since the days of rocking out with a hair brush and a mirror, so I damn well said yes please! I’ve posted some photos of the gig in the pics section [on myspace]… I’ll be riding high on that all Christmas I think!!
Talking about Christmas, to everyone that’s reading this I hope you have fun these holidays and that you’re all safe and happy and healthy. I don’t know why people say “be safe” actually- that’s boring. I hope you’re not safe at all, I hope you’re pushing the boundaries, making some noise and practicing complete abandonment, especially when it comes to love!!!
missy

Missy’s debut album ‘The Sound Of White’ made #30 in a list of Australia’s 100 Favourite Albums of all time. The list was compiled by the ABC television and radio networks over recent months and the top 10 entries were part of a TV special that aired last night. For the full list visit the My Favourite Album website.

To celebrate the end of the year we’re taking $5 off all of the t-shirts in the Missy’s Store for the month of December. Stocks are limited on some sizes so be quick!

Missy has been announced as a special guest for Kasey Chambers at the annual fundraiser ‘live free & in the park’ in Tamworth on the 26th January. In the five years that ‘live free & in the park’ has been in existence it has provided the perfect opportunity to help raise some much needed funds. This year funds will be donated to the Tamworth Salvation Army Drought Relief.

Missy will be joining Gomez, The Living End, Ben Kweller, Bob Evans and heaps more at the 2007 Great Escape Festival. The festival will be held over the Easter long weekend at Newington Armory at Homebush in Sydney. For more info visit www.thegreatescape.net.au

Missy will has been confirmed to play the East Coast Blues and Roots Festival next year in Byron Bay and the West Coast Blues and Roots Festival in Fremantle. In addition to these festivals she will be playing ‘A Music Experience’ at Mornington Peninsula.

Things have been very quiet on the gig front lately with Missy only playing a few intimate shows in L.A. while she’s there recording her second album with producer Mitchell Froom (Crowded House, Ron Sexsmith & Elvis Costello). The album is expected to be release in the second quarter of next year.

Missy will be playing a special show for Indie 103.1’s “Passport Approved” radio show this Wednesday at The Gig in Hollywood. Tickets are only $10.00 and the show is 21+. If you can’t make the show, you can watch the entire performance online the next day at www.livefromthegig.com – The full lineup can be found at www.myspace.com/passportapproved

Missy has donated a signed cover of ‘The Sound Of White’ to the Bid for Battens auction on eBay. To find out more information on Battens Disease visit the Bid For Battens website or to place a bid on the CD visit eBay.

Missy’s track ‘Scar’ has been the inspiration behind an artwork that is part of a unique exhibition at the Art Gallery of NSW that will raise funds for the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Australia. The exhibition called ‘Art of Music’ features eighteen works of art each inspired by an iconic Australian song and created by a prominent contemporary visual artist. The exhibition in its entirety will be available for public viewing at the gallery until 23 October 2006. All the proceeds from the sale of the artworks will be donated to Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Australia for its music therapy clinical work and the Nordoff-Robbins Capital Challenge: Building the future for creative music therapy. For more information visit the Art Of Music website.

Amoeba Music unites musicians for an important cause as they host the Breast Cancer awareness benefit “Let the Music Move You” with vocalists Brandi Shearer, Quincy Coleman, Courtney Jaye and Missy Higgins on Wednesday, October 11th at 8:00PM at the Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles. The evening will use music as a way to inspire people to make a difference in their communities. October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and Amoeba Music will donate a portion of ticket sales towards breast cancer research.

ABC-TV has begun a poll to find out Australia’s favourite album, to screen as a 90-minute special in December. You can vote for ‘The Sound of White’ online at www.abc.net.au/myfavouritealbum by phone on 1900 966 336, or SMS to 1979 9222. Votings closes October 18.

Missy has made it into the first round of voting for this year’s Channel [V] Oz Artist of the Year Award which is the only publicly voted ARIA Award. You can vote for Missy a number of ways:

1. using the red button on your Foxtel remote
2. by SMS to 199 55 444 with your name, postcode & ‘Missy Higgins’
3. online at the Channel [V] website

Voting for the first round ends on Friday 6th October.

‘If You Tell Me Yours, I’ll Tell You Mine’ has been nominated for Best Music DVD at this years ARIA Awards. This will be the third year in a row Missy has been nominated at the ARIAs. More more info visit www.ariaawards.com.au

Missy will be playing intimate gigs at the Hotel Cafe in Los Angeles on Sep 20th and 27th to roadtest new tunes which she is planning to record in LA around that time.

Missy recently joined Australian authors, actors, athletes and artists in a unique fundraiser to to help raise much-needed funds for the charity War Child Australia. Those involved were asked to paint or decorate a pillowcase with some aspect of their childhood dreams with the finished designs to be auctioned off at a special night in Brisbane called ‘A Midwinter Nights Dream’. Funds raised will go to War Child Australia who help children around the world whose lives have been affected by war. For more information on the auction and to see Missy’s own contribution visit warchild.org.au

Missy is about to embark on her first ever tour of South Africa. Starting from this Saturday Missy will play six shows covering Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban and Cape Town. For full details see the Tour page.

An excellent review of Missy’s show in Chicago has been added to the PRESS section or you can view it HERE

Missy has donated a signed CD to RSPCA NSW for auction on Ebay. All funds raised will go directly to the animals in need at the RSPCA Yagoona Shelter. To place your bid and see what else is on auction go to Ebay.

The Special Two fan forum recently had members put together some questions for Missy to answer. You can read them here.

Missy has been nominated for this years APRA Song Of The Year Award with the song ‘The Special Two’. Missy won the award last year with ‘Scar’. ‘The Special Two’ is also part of the Most Performed Australian Work category along with ‘Ten Days’. To see a full list of APRA award nominees check out www.apra.com.au