Musician ~ Tia Gostelow
Tell us a little bit about yourself
I’m a musician that primarily grew up in Mackay in North Queensland but recently moved down to Brisbane to further my career in the music industry! I’ve been playing guitar and singing since I was 7 years old and have wanted that to be my career since then. I started out competing in country music contests and playing pub gigs every weekend all throughout high school as my job until things started picking up for me in grade 12. I uploaded my first single to triple j Unearthed when I was 16 and ended up becoming a finalist in Unearthed high which is where I guess everything kicked off for me, it was a super exciting time in my life! I’ve been lucky to be continuously releasing since I was super young and it’s provided me with such an amazing and fun career touring all around the world!
What inspires you?
I think just seeing other people kicking goals and doing well in their careers inspires me, especially this year when things have been so upside down it’s been so nice seeing people come out the other side and being super passionate about the things they love.
Can you talk us through a challenge you overcame and how you managed it?
I went on tour in Europe at the start of 2019, it was my first ever overseas tour and was something that I had only DREAMED about. A couple of weeks before the tour was about to start I was super excited but the closer the date came I could feel my anxiety and mental health declining and I remember being at the airport in Brisbane about to board my flight to London and just being on the phone to my parents in tears and having a huge anxiety attack. I was probably in the worst mental health state during this period and it just kept getting worse the longer I was over there. I was pretty much crying to my parents every night on the phone, I ended up getting extremely sick and lost my voice which lead to me cancelling shows over there and I also had this massive skin breakout right before I was meant to fly home, I literally thought I had chickenpox. When I landed back in Australia I ended up seeing a doctor in Melbourne and he diagnosed me with stress acne! STRESS ACNE! The doctor literally told me I needed to meditate.
I really let my anxiety and bad thoughts take over my whole body during this tour and it was definitely one of the lowest points in my life, but once I was home I really started taking care of myself. I stopped putting reckless pressures on myself, started taking care of my mental health and taking care of my body, feeding it the right foods etc. It took me awhile to get back to a better headspace but it was definitely something I needed to go through to know myself better.
What has been your proudest moment so far?
The proudest moment within my career is probably either when my single Strangers went certified Gold in Australia or when I won the Queensland Music Award’s ‘Album of The Year’. Both of these things are something I never imagined I would have done so it was super humbling to receive both of them.
How did you find your confidence & do you have any tips?
I still struggle with confidence, I think it’s really hard not to compare yourself to others in this day and age with all of these social media platforms. I also suffer with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome so over the past year I’ve put on more weight than I would have liked to and that has drastically affected myself esteem, especially when being on stage and in front of cameras is a part of my job. If I had any tips I think it would just be to do you. If you find outfits or makeup or anything like that that makes you feel more confident, than you do you! No one else in the world is like exactly like you, so embrace it!
What does self care mean and look like for you?
Self-care to me is a lot of things. Alone time, exercising, eating nutritious foods, being around the people you love, meditating! For me it’s taking the time for all of those things and looking after yourself.
If you could give your younger self any advice, what would it be?
Look after your body more and stop caring so much about what everyone else thinks about you! Also, listen to your parents more sister.
Your favourite thing about creating music?
It’s just my way of expressing myself and my feelings and my visions. It’s the only thing I’ve ever known and I can’t even begin to imagine what my life would be like without it.
Something that made you smile recently
My boyfriend actually just shaved his long, luscious hair and raised over $13k for a friend that passed away recently. That gave me a huge smile!