Friday*

No artist works in a vacuum — and so often, the most fertile creative periods are the ones spent surrounded by collaborators. Which is exactly the kind of atmosphere that the Generations creates.

Presented by Sound NSW, Powerhouse and Blacktown Arts, Generations provides artists with a dedicated studio space — a vital resource that allows them to focus fully on their music. Combined with funding and connections to industry mentors over a six month period, the initiative gives space for emerging artists to develop their practice.

One of the recipients of 2025's Generations is Eora-based FRIDAY*.

In this diary of his fellowship, FRIDAY* outlines the inspirations and influences that shaped his new music, and writes about everything from the power of Frank Ocean to his thoughts on "the idea of African alternative music, and what that can sound like."

I moved into the space on the tenth. I spent January planning and filming the music video for the first single of my next project. I had spent the two months prior to that touring with my friend Nick Ward. (opens in new tab)

I didn't know it at the time, but I was experiencing heavy creative burnout. I celebrated my birthday on the sixteenth. I used the money to buy speakers and a microphone and called over my friends PJ and Cat (opens in new tab) to help record some vocals for a song I was working on.

March was when things really started rolling. I began the month with one more show with Nick and further video editing sessions for my music video. I’d gotten an offer to play at the Street University’s block party at the end of the month, so I began the process of building the live show for the year and converting the space into a rehearsal room.

Once the room was ready, my band and I began rehearsing.

In April I did a shoot in the space with Jacinthe Lau (opens in new tab), assisted by Nick Ward, followed by the Street University show the week after. With more time set aside to finally start creating some music, I began to gather inspiration.

Surrounded by musicians SOLLYY, Zion (opens in new tab) and Church, who create in a very prolific manner, I realised how long it had been since I had felt inspired to write. I was energised by their ability to draw from their immediate experiences and turn them into something that felt colourful, vivid and often humorous.

I also drew heavy inspiration from the burgeoning UK underground hip hop scene and the late Ghanaian popstar Daddy Lumba.

I closed out the month by flying to Melbourne to perform with Dylan Atlantis (opens in new tab) at the APRA Music Awards, backed by our friends and bandmates Micah Williams and Jay Maaka.

I finally found my rhythm. This month saw me cranking out several demos: some self-produced and some in collaboration with fellow Sydney artists like Jack Slade (opens in new tab) and Dan+ee (opens in new tab) (Danny Rispler). I was able to explore my voice both from a melodic perspective and from a rapping perspective. I took a lot of inspiration from the urban environments that had become part of my daily commute, as well as all the live music I'd been part of as a performer and an audience member.

I was particularly struck by a performance by Inner West-based artists Maury Rum (opens in new tab) and smokeonephoenix (opens in new tab), which featured a cover of Frank Ocean’s ‘Florida’, as well a show from Chicago artist Ravyn Lenae at Vivid Sydney.

Both performances had me thinking about the idea of African alternative music and what that can sound like. When I placed these thoughts against the string of demos I had been making, the seed of an idea to make two albums with their own distinct sonic identities started forming in my head.

I started this month off shooting a music video for the second single from my project, enlisting several friends to come through and feature in it. My concept was to make the simplest music video possible, drawing inspiration from no frills fashion e-com — similar to something you’d see in a 90s–2000s GAP commercial.

We shot it in a day at Chinatown Country Club, with Tom Ward directing (opens in new tab); Jesse Campos (opens in new tab) shot it. With a clearer idea of the sonic identity of the next batch of music I was going to make, I had studio sessions with SOLLYY and Zion (opens in new tab), allowing myself to take the role of sole artist, leaving all the production up to them. The rest of the month was spent preparing a Full Circle show in Parramatta Square, where I performed stripped-back versions of my songs. I played my acoustic bass for the first time at this show.

This month I had a family trip, but I was determined to visually mark the time I’d had within the space. So me and the homies decided to film a live video to support the upcoming project. I really wanted to capture the way the room had inspired me creatively over the previous six months, and it was an opportunity to have as many of my friends as possible come through and watch.

FRIDAY* self-describes as sounding like "nothing you've heard." (opens in new tab) Ghanaian by heritage and Australian by citizenship, FRIDAY* songs refuse simple emotional binaries. These are tracks about heartache, heritage and home that are full of life. Across a string of acclaimed singles and the EP Darling (opens in new tab), FRIDAY* has crafted a sound entirely his own: glossy, anthemic, and buzzing with energy.

Generations is a fellowship program produced in partnership with Sound NSW, Powerhouse and Blacktown Arts to support artist development across the music industry in NSW. FRIDAY* received $25,000 in financial support, access to a studio space in Blacktown and industry mentoring facilitated by Vyva Entertainment.