Who is Newport? Uncovering the Story behind 'INTERSTATE' and 'HONEST' – A Closer Look at the Rising Australian Artist's Journey | INTERVIEW
- Helen Rosa
- Apr 14
- 5 min read
April 11, 2025 | Online Exclusive
In this interview, I catch up with Dylon Newport, professionally known as Newport, an emerging artist based out of Perth, Australia. His roots shape his artistic identity while his songs often evoke sun-soaked pop, similar to the landscape in Australia. Each track connects listeners with heartfelt emotions and relatable narratives.
In your Instagram Q&A, you mentioned that your Mom played a key role in introducing you to music. How has her influence shaped your sound and contribution to the development as an artist?
My mum played in a band while I was growing up, they were a folk trio called “Ruby Blue” and I used to watch them play all the time, even sometimes rehearsals. I know my music is mostly pop, but I think I get a lot of folk inspiration because of them. She also put me onto a lot of folk artists like John Butler, Newton Faulkner and Florence & The Machine, all of which I was obsessed with at a young age. My mum’s passion for music genuinely shaped me and continues to inspire me to this day. From watching her perform concerts all around the south west to now using music therapy to help troubled kids through their problems. My mum is truly a special person and I am so grateful for her.
Your lyrics often tell vivid stories. Do you have a specific writing process, or does inspiration strike at random moments?
Not at all, there is no structure to pretty much anything I do creatively, in fact when I first started writing music I did not care for lyrics at all. I was purely melody focused. It’s only later in life after experiencing heartbreak and a whole plethora of emotions that I started to be passionate about writing how I felt and what I was going through. There still is no method or structure to the songwriting but it has definitely become more important to me as I have progressed creatively. To answer the question I would say it all comes through moments of inspiration, whenever I feel intense emotions is the only time I really write potent music.
In ‘HONEST,’ the phrase “confidence is waiting on you,” is repeated throughout the song; what does confidence mean to you in the context of love and relationships?
I would love to be able to tell people what confidence in a relationship looks like but to be completely honest I am still figuring that out. I was very self conscious in my last relationship. But in terms of self confidence I think a lot of confidence comes from your ability to trust your gut. When people are trying to tell you how to act or liking certain things is cringe or embarrassing, It takes a really confident person to stand their ground on things they believe in.
With ‘INTERSTATE,’ out now, how do you think this song contributes to the bigger picture of your upcoming music? Where do you see your sound heading next?
I think moving forward I will be experimenting vocally more. Getting out of my comfort zone expressively. I want to create songs that make you feel like you’re floating. I want this next EP to feel like a forest. Almost like the forest in the movie “Avatar” but the earth version. Very thick, deeply green but also very nurturing and zen. I enjoy bodies of work that make you feel like you are in their world, and I hope to do that with every body of work I create.
Your music blends indie-pop with elements of electronic production. Who are some of your biggest musical influences right now?
Production wise I take a lot of inspiration from people like Aries and Sebastian Paul, they are definitely where the electronic influence comes from. But melodically my biggest influence to date has to be Daniel Caesar. I think his melody’s are always incredible and I have been such a big fan of his since I was 17. Also I think it’s important to mention artists like Dominic Fike, Bakar, Dijon and Role Model as I am a huge fan of all of them and for sure take inspiration from them too.
I’ve recently discovered your music back in January with the release of ‘love, Dylon.’ As you’re expanding into new markets like the United States, I saw on your Apple Music Profile that you’re listed as a Hip-Hop/Rap artist - is that where you first started with your music journey? If so, what created the change in genres?
I actually never knew that Apple Music categorizes me as a Hip Hop artist, I guess some very early works such as ‘Understand’ and ‘onemoretime’ have more hip hop influence than my recent music. I definitely listened to a lot more hip hop back then so that may be why. I think the shift in genres really just happened because of who was inspiring me. Early in my Career I was really inspired by the ‘DAMN’ album by kendrick Lamar. But as soon as I found artist’s such as Daniel Caesar & Dijon I became obsessed with melody and tones and that whole indie folk world. It is possible that I will make another genre change in the future but I try not to control these things and instead just follow what inspires me the most.
You're gaining traction in the U.S. how has that shift impacted your approach to music and performing? Can U.S. listeners expect any live shows from you within this next year?
I haven’t played a show this entire year and I’m absolutely itching to get back on stage. It’s always so fun to see how people resonate with the music in real time. I feel so honored that people even want to watch me perform. It's so crazy to think about. From the last show till now there has been a big jump in supporters which I am so grateful for, but I am also very curious to see how that will impact the shows in the future as the last show I did was only a support act and no one but my friends and family really knew who I was — Hopefully after this run of Australian shows we can make the flight to the U.S. as I have gotten so much love over there recently and it would be a dream to perform there!
With more eyes on you, is there anything specific you want fans to take away from your artistry as you grow internationally?
I am like my mum In a lot of ways. She helps people through music therapy and she is very spiritual in her approach. At the very start of 2024 my mum took me to a clairvoyant who she really believes in. I have never been to anything like this and I’ve always been sceptical but almost immediately I was taken back with the sheer accuracy and effect he had on me whilst he was talking. He told me that my soul's purpose is to help heal others, it really resonated with me and ever since then I’ve committed to this idea. I just hope people take what they need from my music, and use my music as an outlet to process your emotions.
Newport's latest singles 'HONEST' and 'INTERSTATE,' are just the beginning of what promises to be an exciting year for the artist. Be sure to stream them, here, and stay tuned for whats next!
Keep up with Newport:
Instagram (8,039 followers)
Spotify (1.4m+ streams)
SoundCloud (4,000+ streams)
