Join Cheryl Lee - That Radio Chick on STILL ROCKIN' IT for news, reviews, music and interviews with some of our favourite Australian musicians
A seven-year-old writes a song to survive the schoolyard, and that melody becomes a map. We sit down with Jordan Anthony to trace the line from first piano lessons in Perth to The Voice at fourteen, to a last-minute airport call that sent him to Junior Eurovision, and finally to an American Idol audition that reshaped his future. It’s a story about momentum, but more than that, it’s about the mindset that lets momentum become mastery.
Jordan opens up about how reality TV can be a catalyst if you define your why, how standing beside world-class vocalists forced a leap in technique, and how a bout of illness before an international final turned into a lesson in grit. We unpack the call from producer Paul Clarke, the backstage talk with his dad, and what it felt like to step onto a world stage with an original song, “We Will Rise.” Then we fast-forward to LA: producer calls at 1am, an audition in Katy Perry’s hometown, collaborations with Ajii on “Cherry,” and the quiet daily work that turns attention into a career.
At the heart of the conversation is “Hurt Me Sooner,” Jordan’s new single shaped by his first breakup. He takes us inside the lyric—those intrusive thoughts after love ends, the reflex to label time as wasted, and the steadier truth that growth needs friction.
You’ll hear how influences like Adele, Sam Smith, Lewis Capaldi, and Ed Sheeran inform his tone without swallowing his identity, and why this track finally feels like him.
Between sessions and shows, he stays grounded with soccer runs, FIFA, and family FaceTimes, and shares plans to reset at home before the next surge.
If you’re chasing a creative dream, this one brings practical insight and real heart: use pain as material, treat opportunities like training, and build a support system that keeps you human.
Stream the full conversation, share it with a friend who needs a nudge, and leave a review to help more listeners find stories like this.
What has Jordan Anthony been up to lately? Let's find out!
Get out when you can, support local music and I'll see you down the front!!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:03):
Welcome to theStill Rockin' It podcast where
we willhave news review and interviews from Australian artists.
(00:45):
All the way, actually, from LA.
Jordan Anthony.
Yay.
Thanks for joining us.
Jordan Anthony (00:58):
Hello.
Thanks for having me, Cheryl.
I appreciate it.
I'm very excited to talk toyou.
Cheryl Lee (01:02):
We've done a good job coordinating the time zones.
We might go back a little bitbefore we go forward.
You grew up in Perth.
Mum and Dad enrolled you inpiano lessons at the very young
age of five.
Jordan Anthony (01:19):
They did indeed.
And you know, they they alwayssaid, um, growing up, they were
like, you'll thank us one dayfor for doing this.
And you know, now, you know,now that I'm 20 and it's kind of
what I do for a living, playingpiano and singing and writing
songs, I do thank them.
Yeah, they pulled me intolessons super duper early.
And yeah, here we are playingpiano for for a living.
(01:40):
So it went.
Cheryl Lee (01:42):
They had good foresight.
Jordan Anthony (01:44):
Yep, kids.
That's the message.
They had good foresight, that'sfor sure.
Cheryl Lee (01:47):
Just a couple of years later, at age seven, you
wrote your very first song.
Jordan Anthony (01:53):
I did indeed.
Yeah.
I um I had a I had a tough timeat school growing up.
I was always the bigger kidwhen I was at school and growing
up.
The fat kid that sings, Iguess, was, you know, kind of a
bit of a target for bullies inthe playground.
But for me, I wasn't a kid thatreally expressed their emotions
much.
For me, songwriting was was myway of doing that.
Yeah, when I was seven, I wroteI wrote my very first song.
(02:14):
I'll never forget, you know,when I wrote that song and it
was called Wait, and it wasabout me getting bullied and
stuff like that.
But that's kind of how it allbegan.
And after I wrote that firstsong, I was like, this is what I
want to do for the rest of mylife.
And haven't really looked backsince.
Cheryl Lee (02:27):
It's a great message in that song.
Music is so therapeutic aswell.
And writing that song obviouslyhelped you through a little bit
of a tough time.
Jordan Anthony (02:36):
Absolutely, and still does now.
That's kind of what music doesfor me, and I'm sure like a lot
of other people.
It really, it's an escape fromeverything, and it's kind of
it's so healing writing aboutsituations and then hoping that
those songs resonate with withsomeone out there.
That's that's all I reallywant.
Cheryl Lee (02:54):
Absolutely.
Just seven years later, in2019, you stepped into the
spotlight, top four finalist inthe voice.
You hear good and bad, but howwas your experience on that
reality show?
Jordan Anthony (03:11):
Honestly, I don't have a bad word to say, to
be honest.
I think the key thing is whenit comes to reality TV shows,
especially singing shows, isjust your mentality going into
it.
You know, I was going in thereas a little hungry 14-year-old,
didn't know anything else butsinging, and and just knew that
I wanted to pursue it as acareer.
And mum and dad were like, Youshould go on the voice.
(03:32):
And I was like, All right.
Cheryl Lee (03:33):
Was Mum and Dad's idea?
Jordan Anthony (03:34):
It actually was.
Yep, it was their idea.
Cheryl Lee (03:37):
See, listen to your parents.
Jordan Anthony (03:39):
I feel like this is the underlying message right
now, really.
They've done a pretty good job.
So yeah, and I went into itwith little expectations and
ended up turning a chair, and Iwas on Team Delta, ended up
making it all the way to the topfour, the grand finale, and you
know, I didn't win it, but itwas such a blessing to be on
that show.
And having an experience likethat at a really young age, it
can either be very positive orvery detrimental.
(04:02):
And I was super lucky that itwas the prior.
It was amazing, and it reallyset me up for a lot of other
stuff that I've done.
Cheryl Lee (04:08):
So 14 is so, so young.
I'm glad that you had a greatpositive experience from it.
You probably learned, you know,your learning curve would have
been off the chart.
Jordan Anthony (04:19):
Yeah, it was.
I was surrounded by so manyincredible singers, and 14 is
such a malleable age.
So for that reason, I feel likeI was learning a lot about my
own voice and getting better andhow to have better runs and how
to look after my voice better.
And yeah, I learned so muchthrough that experience.
It was really cool.
Cheryl Lee (04:36):
That was a big year for you, Jordan, because you
also, congratulations,represented Australia at the
Junior Euros and Song Contestand with an original, no less.
Jordan Anthony (04:49):
I did, yeah, it was amazing.
I actually remember I wassitting at the airport, it was
the day after the voice grandfinale, and I was sitting at the
airport waiting to board myflight back to Perth, back home,
and it was Paul Clark, and Paulis responsible for all of the
Australian representatives forjunior Eurovision and
Eurovision.
He was like, Hi, Jordan, wehave, you know, we've heard so
(05:09):
much about you and we've watchedyour journey on the voice.
And I'm not sure if you heardof junior Eurovision, but we
would love for you to representAustralia this year in Poland.
And I was like, wow, okay.
Like I I'd grown up watchingEurovision and loving it, and I
feel like that's like one of themost prestigious stages to
perform on representing yourcountry.
It's like singing Olympics, youknow.
(05:29):
It was super special.
So that November, after thevoice, I went on and my original
song that I wrote, We WillRise, I got to sing that on the
world stage.
So yeah, it was it was it wasspecial, it was really cool.
Cheryl Lee (05:41):
Finishing eighth internationally, that is amazing
at such a young age as well.
Jordan Anthony (05:48):
Thank you.
Yeah, it was it was reallycool.
It was uh it was so fun, and Ihave friends all over the world
now because of that experience.
Cheryl Lee (05:54):
So yeah, it was really and I bet lots of good
lessons learned there as well.
Jordan Anthony (06:00):
Totally.
I actually got funnily enoughreally sick before the final
performance, and there was amoment there where I was
backstage and I wasn't sure if Iwas gonna be able to perform,
you know.
And I it me and my dad had atalk in the green room, and he
was like, you know, you can pullout or you can go up there and
just leave it.
Give it your best shot.
Right, and get on a planetomorrow knowing that that you
did it.
And so I did and ended upplacing eighth, and that was an
(06:23):
amazing, an amazing experience.
It was bet.
Cheryl Lee (06:26):
Congratulations.
Five short years later, stillso young, you were invited to
compete on American Idol, andthat's why we're speaking to you
now from LA.
Jordan Anthony (06:38):
Yep, absolutely.
I it was so funny because thetime I got asked to do American
Idol was a similar time thatAustralian Idol was doing their
casting.
And I was like, you know, Ithink I'm done with the Aussie
reality TV shows now.
I think it's time for me tojust grind and release music and
build a fan base and anaudience.
And so Mum sends me ascreenshot of this email.
I just skimmed over it and readAmerican as Australian.
(07:01):
I was like, Mom, like we spokeabout this, like I'm not doing
Australian Idol or anything.
And she was like, Did youactually read it?
And I reread it and it was likeAmerican Idol.
And I was like, wow, okay, thisis kind of a different cup of
tea now because the following onfor these American TV shows are
just insane.
And America is where I wantedto pursue music for the forever.
So it felt like the right fit.
(07:22):
And I I hopped on a call withthem the next week.
The producers sang them acouple songs.
It was 1 a.m.
Australian time, like Perthtime, because of the time
difference.
And I'm and I'm like, wake up,sing for these producers, and
they're like, Can you be herenext week to audition for the
judges in Katy Perry's hometown?
And I was like, Yup.
Mom was like pinching me on theside, she was like, and I was
(07:43):
like, let's do it.
And so, yeah, had the AmericanIdol experience, and that's kind
of what led me to being able tonow pursue it in in the States
in LA full time.
So it's really cool.
Cheryl Lee (07:54):
Damn, good on you, mum.
You've collaborated, haven'tyou, with one of your fellow
idol friends.
How do I pronounce their name?
Ajii?
Jordan Anthony (08:04):
RG, yes.
Cheryl Lee (08:05):
Ajji!
Jordan Anthony (08:06):
Yep, that's him.
So we yeah, after AmericanIdol, we collaborated on a song
Cherry Together.
Yeah, it was so much fun.
I mean, Archie's just one ofthe best humans.
He's such a great guy, and itwas a very different kind of
song for me, that one.
But it's one that I'm really,you know, I'm proud of, and I
love that song, and I'm I'mhappy that we got to kind of
share that together.
So yeah, it's a good one forsure.
Cheryl Lee (08:26):
So you had a couple of pretty powerful singles that
follow, Reckless and Tell Me.
That I think brings us to HurtMe Sooner, this new one.
So this one's got a little bitof a message too, hasn't it?
Jordan Anthony (08:40):
Yeah, I wrote this one last year after
American Idol, and you know, itwas funny because throughout the
whole American Idol experience,I was going through a breakup
at the same time, which whichkind of happened, like
coinciding with that, uh, whichis really hard.
And it was my firstrelationship.
So I I had never experiencedthat before.
But the breakups tend to resultin some good songs sometimes,
(09:01):
which is a positive takeaway, Iguess.
Yeah, I kind of wrote Hurt MeSooner about that feeling that I
had immediately after thebreakup of like that kind of
intrusive thought of youthinking that you wasted your
time and and wanting to have itback.
And obviously, now uponreflection, everything happens
for a reason and it's all alearning curve and you learn so
much.
But yeah, I wrote Hurt MeSooner about that kind of
(09:21):
initial feeling after thebreakup of like, wow, I've I
wasted all this time, you know,why why did I do that?
Even though that, you know, isit isn't always necessarily the
case, but it's definitely areally special song for me.
It's a very vulnerable song, Ifeel like, and one that I hope
someone out there relates to.
I'm really excited about thisone.
And I feel like justsound-wise, it just feels like
(09:42):
me, and which is cool, and it'staken me a while to get to that
point.
Cheryl Lee (09:45):
So it's a really lovely song, and we'll play
that.
I feel like, as with all thosemusical-related experiences that
have brought you to where youare at the moment, it's the same
with love.
These experiences are going toeventually bring you to the love
of your life.
Jordan Anthony (10:04):
Totally.
Yeah, totally.
It was hard to see it in thatmoment, but you're 100% right.
It always leading you to theone.
So, yeah.
Cheryl Lee (10:12):
Like you said, you got a great song out of it on
the way as well.
Jordan Anthony (10:16):
Absolutely, you gotta take the wind, you know?
I'll take it.
Cheryl Lee (10:18):
Yeah, exactly right.
Was it the long distance thatwas the tricky part?
Jordan Anthony (10:24):
Yeah, there was a lot of factors that kind of
contributed to it.
Yeah, American Idol and theprospect of me moving to the
States definitely put a lot ofstrain on the relationship.
And you know, there were someother things that happening, it
just kind of wasn't working likeit did, you know.
Ultimately, I think it I thinkit was for the best.
And in hindsight, reallyallowed me to focus on that
experience of American Idol andnow pursuing my craft full time
(10:47):
out there.
So meant it to be, yeah, andit's all part of growing up,
absolutely, it it is, and yeah,I learned a lot from from that
relationship and from theheartbreak and whatnot.
So yeah, just let us hear.
Cheryl Lee (11:00):
So, you know, exactly, it's all good.
The artist that inspired you,Jordan.
Yeah, you've got Ed Sheeran,Sam Smith, Bruno Mann, some of
the obvious ones, but Adele isin there.
Jordan Anthony (11:13):
I mean, yeah, Adele, Louis Capaldi as well,
especially was a big inspirationfor this song in particular.
But I mean, those are the guysthat I just grew up idolizing,
you know.
Adele and Ed Sheeran were myfirst ever concerts.
I remember that so vividly, andI just grew up loving them as
artists.
I think especially Ed, he hemakes being an artist feel
possible because he's just suchan ordinary guy.
(11:35):
I just I just love all of thoseartists and I look up to them
all when I'm making the musicand just sonically and
sound-wise, they're definitelysome of the ones that I look up
to the most.
Cheryl Lee (11:47):
It just seems so approachable and normal.
Jordan Anthony (11:50):
Totally.
And I think that's why peoplelove him, is because he's just
very human.
He has that just human feelabout him, which is so nice.
Love it.
Cheryl Lee (11:59):
Just aside from music for a moment, you love
sushi, PlayStation, Beach Days,and soccer.
Are you getting much of anopportunity to play soccer over
there in LA?
Jordan Anthony (12:11):
I actually have played a couple times.
There's some like casual kindof pickup games.
So I've played a couple times.
I get my fix when I need to.
And then, you know, if I can'tactually play, I'll play FIFA on
PlayStation.
That's probably the lesshealthy version of playing
soccer, but you know, I playsoccer nonetheless.
But yeah, it's always goodhaving a run around and playing
soccer.
(12:31):
Like I grew up playing soccerwith all my cousins and
everyone, so it's still such animportant like part of my life.
Yeah, for sure.
I get my fix when I need to,you know.
Cheryl Lee (12:40):
Good.
Are you in LA on your own or isthere any other family members
with you, Jordan?
Jordan Anthony (12:45):
It's just me, flying solo.
You know, it's it has its days,it's it's tough sometimes, and
I'm so fortunate to have afamily that just backs me one
million percent.
And you know, arguablysometimes it makes it harder
because I miss them so much andlove them so much, but they are
really like they champion meevery day, and I wouldn't be out
here without them.
So yeah, very lucky to havesuch an amazing support system.
(13:06):
But it's hard.
I'm coming home soon though, atthe end of November.
So I'm excited to get some hometime and reset.
Cheryl Lee (13:12):
Stay for Christmas, yeah.
Jordan Anthony (13:14):
Yep, so I'll be home for my birthday and
Christmas and then new year, andthen yeah, just reset, get my
family fix and get fired up for2026 and whatever that has to
do.
Which is crazy though.
Absolutely, yep.
That's the plan.
Cheryl Lee (13:30):
At least we have the technology so you zoom
FaceTime, so you can catch upwith all the release on the
internet.
Jordan Anthony (13:38):
Yes, all that good stuff, you know, get the
FaceTime with everyone and yeah,show face.
So it's it's it's good.
Cheryl Lee (13:44):
Would you like to say hi mum and dad?
I'll see you soon, and thenintroduce your new song for us.
Jordan Anthony (13:51):
Sure.
Hi, Mum and Dad, and whoeverelse is watching, thank you all
for watching.
Make sure you, you know, followalong, Jordan Anthony, on
social media.
And this is my new song, HurtMe Sooner, and I hope you love
it.
Cheryl Lee (14:02):
Thank you so much for that and for some spending
of some of your busy day withus.
We'll let you go write anotherhit song.
Jordan Anthony (14:10):
Absolutely.
I I will try.
Thank you for your time.
I appreciate it.
It was so lovely to meet you.
Cheryl Lee (14:14):
It's a pleasure.
I'll see you down the frontwhen you're performing in
Australia next.
Jordan Anthony (14:20):
We're working on a tour, so stay tuned.
Yeah.
Cheryl Lee (14:23):
Excellent.
You heard that first here.
Jordan Anthony (14:25):
Absolutely.
Cheryl Lee (14:26):
All the best musically, and uh, you're such a
lovely young man to speak to.
We wish you all the success inthe world.
Jordan Anthony (14:33):
Thank you.
That means the world.
So nice to speak to you,Cheryl.
Have a good day.
Cheryl Lee (14:37):
Thanks you too, Jordan.
Bye for now.
.
You're with Cheryl Lee, thatradio chick.
Thank you so much for joiningme on the Still Rockin' It
podcast.
Hope to catch you again nexttime.
Get out when you can, supportAussie music, and I'll see you
(14:58):
down the front.
Welcome to theStill Rockin' It podcast where
we willhave news review and interviews from Australian artists.
(00:45):
All the way, actually, from LA.
Jordan Anthony.
Yay.
Thanks for joining us.
Jordan Anthony (00:58):
Hello.
Thanks for having me, Cheryl.
I appreciate it.
I'm very excited to talk toyou.
Cheryl Lee (01:02):
We've done a good job coordinating the time zones.
We might go back a little bitbefore we go forward.
You grew up in Perth.
Mum and Dad enrolled you inpiano lessons at the very young
age of five.
Jordan Anthony (01:19):
They did indeed.
And you know, they they alwayssaid, um, growing up, they were
like, you'll thank us one dayfor for doing this.
And you know, now, you know,now that I'm 20 and it's kind of
what I do for a living, playingpiano and singing and writing
songs, I do thank them.
Yeah, they pulled me intolessons super duper early.
And yeah, here we are playingpiano for for a living.
(01:40):
So it went.
Cheryl Lee (01:42):
They had good foresight.
Jordan Anthony (01:44):
Yep, kids.
That's the message.
They had good foresight, that'sfor sure.
Cheryl Lee (01:47):
Just a couple of years later, at age seven, you
wrote your very first song.
Jordan Anthony (01:53):
I did indeed.
Yeah.
I um I had a I had a tough timeat school growing up.
I was always the bigger kidwhen I was at school and growing
up.
The fat kid that sings, Iguess, was, you know, kind of a
bit of a target for bullies inthe playground.
But for me, I wasn't a kid thatreally expressed their emotions
much.
For me, songwriting was was myway of doing that.
Yeah, when I was seven, I wroteI wrote my very first song.
(02:14):
I'll never forget, you know,when I wrote that song and it
was called Wait, and it wasabout me getting bullied and
stuff like that.
But that's kind of how it allbegan.
And after I wrote that firstsong, I was like, this is what I
want to do for the rest of mylife.
And haven't really looked backsince.
Cheryl Lee (02:27):
It's a great message in that song.
Music is so therapeutic aswell.
And writing that song obviouslyhelped you through a little bit
of a tough time.
Jordan Anthony (02:36):
Absolutely, and still does now.
That's kind of what music doesfor me, and I'm sure like a lot
of other people.
It really, it's an escape fromeverything, and it's kind of
it's so healing writing aboutsituations and then hoping that
those songs resonate with withsomeone out there.
That's that's all I reallywant.
Cheryl Lee (02:54):
Absolutely.
Just seven years later, in2019, you stepped into the
spotlight, top four finalist inthe voice.
You hear good and bad, but howwas your experience on that
reality show?
Jordan Anthony (03:11):
Honestly, I don't have a bad word to say, to
be honest.
I think the key thing is whenit comes to reality TV shows,
especially singing shows, isjust your mentality going into
it.
You know, I was going in thereas a little hungry 14-year-old,
didn't know anything else butsinging, and and just knew that
I wanted to pursue it as acareer.
And mum and dad were like, Youshould go on the voice.
(03:32):
And I was like, All right.
Cheryl Lee (03:33):
Was Mum and Dad's idea?
Jordan Anthony (03:34):
It actually was.
Yep, it was their idea.
Cheryl Lee (03:37):
See, listen to your parents.
Jordan Anthony (03:39):
I feel like this is the underlying message right
now, really.
They've done a pretty good job.
So yeah, and I went into itwith little expectations and
ended up turning a chair, and Iwas on Team Delta, ended up
making it all the way to the topfour, the grand finale, and you
know, I didn't win it, but itwas such a blessing to be on
that show.
And having an experience likethat at a really young age, it
can either be very positive orvery detrimental.
(04:02):
And I was super lucky that itwas the prior.
It was amazing, and it reallyset me up for a lot of other
stuff that I've done.
Cheryl Lee (04:08):
So 14 is so, so young.
I'm glad that you had a greatpositive experience from it.
You probably learned, you know,your learning curve would have
been off the chart.
Jordan Anthony (04:19):
Yeah, it was.
I was surrounded by so manyincredible singers, and 14 is
such a malleable age.
So for that reason, I feel likeI was learning a lot about my
own voice and getting better andhow to have better runs and how
to look after my voice better.
And yeah, I learned so muchthrough that experience.
It was really cool.
Cheryl Lee (04:36):
That was a big year for you, Jordan, because you
also, congratulations,represented Australia at the
Junior Euros and Song Contestand with an original, no less.
Jordan Anthony (04:49):
I did, yeah, it was amazing.
I actually remember I wassitting at the airport, it was
the day after the voice grandfinale, and I was sitting at the
airport waiting to board myflight back to Perth, back home,
and it was Paul Clark, and Paulis responsible for all of the
Australian representatives forjunior Eurovision and
Eurovision.
He was like, Hi, Jordan, wehave, you know, we've heard so
(05:09):
much about you and we've watchedyour journey on the voice.
And I'm not sure if you heardof junior Eurovision, but we
would love for you to representAustralia this year in Poland.
And I was like, wow, okay.
Like I I'd grown up watchingEurovision and loving it, and I
feel like that's like one of themost prestigious stages to
perform on representing yourcountry.
It's like singing Olympics, youknow.
(05:29):
It was super special.
So that November, after thevoice, I went on and my original
song that I wrote, We WillRise, I got to sing that on the
world stage.
So yeah, it was it was it wasspecial, it was really cool.
Cheryl Lee (05:41):
Finishing eighth internationally, that is amazing
at such a young age as well.
Jordan Anthony (05:48):
Thank you.
Yeah, it was it was reallycool.
It was uh it was so fun, and Ihave friends all over the world
now because of that experience.
Cheryl Lee (05:54):
So yeah, it was really and I bet lots of good
lessons learned there as well.
Jordan Anthony (06:00):
Totally.
I actually got funnily enoughreally sick before the final
performance, and there was amoment there where I was
backstage and I wasn't sure if Iwas gonna be able to perform,
you know.
And I it me and my dad had atalk in the green room, and he
was like, you know, you can pullout or you can go up there and
just leave it.
Give it your best shot.
Right, and get on a planetomorrow knowing that that you
did it.
And so I did and ended upplacing eighth, and that was an
(06:23):
amazing, an amazing experience.
It was bet.
Cheryl Lee (06:26):
Congratulations.
Five short years later, stillso young, you were invited to
compete on American Idol, andthat's why we're speaking to you
now from LA.
Jordan Anthony (06:38):
Yep, absolutely.
I it was so funny because thetime I got asked to do American
Idol was a similar time thatAustralian Idol was doing their
casting.
And I was like, you know, Ithink I'm done with the Aussie
reality TV shows now.
I think it's time for me tojust grind and release music and
build a fan base and anaudience.
And so Mum sends me ascreenshot of this email.
I just skimmed over it and readAmerican as Australian.
(07:01):
I was like, Mom, like we spokeabout this, like I'm not doing
Australian Idol or anything.
And she was like, Did youactually read it?
And I reread it and it was likeAmerican Idol.
And I was like, wow, okay, thisis kind of a different cup of
tea now because the following onfor these American TV shows are
just insane.
And America is where I wantedto pursue music for the forever.
So it felt like the right fit.
(07:22):
And I I hopped on a call withthem the next week.
The producers sang them acouple songs.
It was 1 a.m.
Australian time, like Perthtime, because of the time
difference.
And I'm and I'm like, wake up,sing for these producers, and
they're like, Can you be herenext week to audition for the
judges in Katy Perry's hometown?
And I was like, Yup.
Mom was like pinching me on theside, she was like, and I was
(07:43):
like, let's do it.
And so, yeah, had the AmericanIdol experience, and that's kind
of what led me to being able tonow pursue it in in the States
in LA full time.
So it's really cool.
Cheryl Lee (07:54):
Damn, good on you, mum.
You've collaborated, haven'tyou, with one of your fellow
idol friends.
How do I pronounce their name?
Ajii?
Jordan Anthony (08:04):
RG, yes.
Cheryl Lee (08:05):
Ajji!
Jordan Anthony (08:06):
Yep, that's him.
So we yeah, after AmericanIdol, we collaborated on a song
Cherry Together.
Yeah, it was so much fun.
I mean, Archie's just one ofthe best humans.
He's such a great guy, and itwas a very different kind of
song for me, that one.
But it's one that I'm really,you know, I'm proud of, and I
love that song, and I'm I'mhappy that we got to kind of
share that together.
So yeah, it's a good one forsure.
Cheryl Lee (08:26):
So you had a couple of pretty powerful singles that
follow, Reckless and Tell Me.
That I think brings us to HurtMe Sooner, this new one.
So this one's got a little bitof a message too, hasn't it?
Jordan Anthony (08:40):
Yeah, I wrote this one last year after
American Idol, and you know, itwas funny because throughout the
whole American Idol experience,I was going through a breakup
at the same time, which whichkind of happened, like
coinciding with that, uh, whichis really hard.
And it was my firstrelationship.
So I I had never experiencedthat before.
But the breakups tend to resultin some good songs sometimes,
(09:01):
which is a positive takeaway, Iguess.
Yeah, I kind of wrote Hurt MeSooner about that feeling that I
had immediately after thebreakup of like that kind of
intrusive thought of youthinking that you wasted your
time and and wanting to have itback.
And obviously, now uponreflection, everything happens
for a reason and it's all alearning curve and you learn so
much.
But yeah, I wrote Hurt MeSooner about that kind of
(09:21):
initial feeling after thebreakup of like, wow, I've I
wasted all this time, you know,why why did I do that?
Even though that, you know, isit isn't always necessarily the
case, but it's definitely areally special song for me.
It's a very vulnerable song, Ifeel like, and one that I hope
someone out there relates to.
I'm really excited about thisone.
And I feel like justsound-wise, it just feels like
(09:42):
me, and which is cool, and it'staken me a while to get to that
point.
Cheryl Lee (09:45):
So it's a really lovely song, and we'll play
that.
I feel like, as with all thosemusical-related experiences that
have brought you to where youare at the moment, it's the same
with love.
These experiences are going toeventually bring you to the love
of your life.
Jordan Anthony (10:04):
Totally.
Yeah, totally.
It was hard to see it in thatmoment, but you're 100% right.
It always leading you to theone.
So, yeah.
Cheryl Lee (10:12):
Like you said, you got a great song out of it on
the way as well.
Jordan Anthony (10:16):
Absolutely, you gotta take the wind, you know?
I'll take it.
Cheryl Lee (10:18):
Yeah, exactly right.
Was it the long distance thatwas the tricky part?
Jordan Anthony (10:24):
Yeah, there was a lot of factors that kind of
contributed to it.
Yeah, American Idol and theprospect of me moving to the
States definitely put a lot ofstrain on the relationship.
And you know, there were someother things that happening, it
just kind of wasn't working likeit did, you know.
Ultimately, I think it I thinkit was for the best.
And in hindsight, reallyallowed me to focus on that
experience of American Idol andnow pursuing my craft full time
(10:47):
out there.
So meant it to be, yeah, andit's all part of growing up,
absolutely, it it is, and yeah,I learned a lot from from that
relationship and from theheartbreak and whatnot.
So yeah, just let us hear.
Cheryl Lee (11:00):
So, you know, exactly, it's all good.
The artist that inspired you,Jordan.
Yeah, you've got Ed Sheeran,Sam Smith, Bruno Mann, some of
the obvious ones, but Adele isin there.
Jordan Anthony (11:13):
I mean, yeah, Adele, Louis Capaldi as well,
especially was a big inspirationfor this song in particular.
But I mean, those are the guysthat I just grew up idolizing,
you know.
Adele and Ed Sheeran were myfirst ever concerts.
I remember that so vividly, andI just grew up loving them as
artists.
I think especially Ed, he hemakes being an artist feel
possible because he's just suchan ordinary guy.
(11:35):
I just I just love all of thoseartists and I look up to them
all when I'm making the musicand just sonically and
sound-wise, they're definitelysome of the ones that I look up
to the most.
Cheryl Lee (11:47):
It just seems so approachable and normal.
Jordan Anthony (11:50):
Totally.
And I think that's why peoplelove him, is because he's just
very human.
He has that just human feelabout him, which is so nice.
Love it.
Cheryl Lee (11:59):
Just aside from music for a moment, you love
sushi, PlayStation, Beach Days,and soccer.
Are you getting much of anopportunity to play soccer over
there in LA?
Jordan Anthony (12:11):
I actually have played a couple times.
There's some like casual kindof pickup games.
So I've played a couple times.
I get my fix when I need to.
And then, you know, if I can'tactually play, I'll play FIFA on
PlayStation.
That's probably the lesshealthy version of playing
soccer, but you know, I playsoccer nonetheless.
But yeah, it's always goodhaving a run around and playing
soccer.
(12:31):
Like I grew up playing soccerwith all my cousins and
everyone, so it's still such animportant like part of my life.
Yeah, for sure.
I get my fix when I need to,you know.
Cheryl Lee (12:40):
Good.
Are you in LA on your own or isthere any other family members
with you, Jordan?
Jordan Anthony (12:45):
It's just me, flying solo.
You know, it's it has its days,it's it's tough sometimes, and
I'm so fortunate to have afamily that just backs me one
million percent.
And you know, arguablysometimes it makes it harder
because I miss them so much andlove them so much, but they are
really like they champion meevery day, and I wouldn't be out
here without them.
So yeah, very lucky to havesuch an amazing support system.
(13:06):
But it's hard.
I'm coming home soon though, atthe end of November.
So I'm excited to get some hometime and reset.
Cheryl Lee (13:12):
Stay for Christmas, yeah.
Jordan Anthony (13:14):
Yep, so I'll be home for my birthday and
Christmas and then new year, andthen yeah, just reset, get my
family fix and get fired up for2026 and whatever that has to
do.
Which is crazy though.
Absolutely, yep.
That's the plan.
Cheryl Lee (13:30):
At least we have the technology so you zoom
FaceTime, so you can catch upwith all the release on the
internet.
Jordan Anthony (13:38):
Yes, all that good stuff, you know, get the
FaceTime with everyone and yeah,show face.
So it's it's it's good.
Cheryl Lee (13:44):
Would you like to say hi mum and dad?
I'll see you soon, and thenintroduce your new song for us.
Jordan Anthony (13:51):
Sure.
Hi, Mum and Dad, and whoeverelse is watching, thank you all
for watching.
Make sure you, you know, followalong, Jordan Anthony, on
social media.
And this is my new song, HurtMe Sooner, and I hope you love
it.
Cheryl Lee (14:02):
Thank you so much for that and for some spending
of some of your busy day withus.
We'll let you go write anotherhit song.
Jordan Anthony (14:10):
Absolutely.
I I will try.
Thank you for your time.
I appreciate it.
It was so lovely to meet you.
Cheryl Lee (14:14):
It's a pleasure.
I'll see you down the frontwhen you're performing in
Australia next.
Jordan Anthony (14:20):
We're working on a tour, so stay tuned.
Yeah.
Cheryl Lee (14:23):
Excellent.
You heard that first here.
Jordan Anthony (14:25):
Absolutely.
Cheryl Lee (14:26):
All the best musically, and uh, you're such a
lovely young man to speak to.
We wish you all the success inthe world.
Jordan Anthony (14:33):
Thank you.
That means the world.
So nice to speak to you,Cheryl.
Have a good day.
Cheryl Lee (14:37):
Thanks you too, Jordan.
Bye for now.
.
You're with Cheryl Lee, thatradio chick.
Thank you so much for joiningme on the Still Rockin' It
podcast.
Hope to catch you again nexttime.
Get out when you can, supportAussie music, and I'll see you
(14:58):
down the front.
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