Ellery Cohen has released Demons, a single that reflects facing the challenges in life head on. With looking at the last few years in the rear view mirror, the song comes across totally relatable, but with an extreme positivity. Accompanying the song is an energetic music video showing two people who refuse to give up in the face of adversity. We caught up with Ellery for a quick Q+A

Hi, thanks for taking the time to chat with Hear 2 Zen, what have you been up to today?

Today I woke up at 7am and did a radio interview for the new single and I’m currently sitting in the sun.

Tell us about yourself, how long have you been performing/creating music for? 

I started playing violin when I was 6 and I was awful but always had a passion for music. It wasn’t till I was 11 and started playing drums at church that I fell in love with music.

I picked up a guitar at 14 began writting my own music which was terrible at that age.

Thankfully my songwriting has improved  

Who are your greatest inspirations?  Why?

 I have a massive man crush on Ryan Tedder of one republic and it’s my greatest goal in life to one day work with him, he’s a huge inspiration to me.

How do you create music?  Are you lyrics/story driven, or does the music/melody come first?  Explain your process.

I work with my amazing producers ENTENTE and will always start with something different. Sometimes it’s lyrics, sometimes it’s a melody or sometimes I just have only the concept and we work from there.

Each song is like it’s own special piece of art and I approach it in a different way.

What has been your greatest challenge so far in performing/creating music?

Comparison is the thief of joy. For me it is being thankful for what I have in life and what I have achieved in music, I’m only ever competing with myself.

Tell us about your new release Demons, how did it come about?

I wrote demons with friends the night frill twins up in Sydney. We wanted to explore the struggles that we all experience in life, the concept is accepting the things in life we can’t change.

It sounds fun but it’s also super deep

What advice do you have to artists who are just starting out?

Keep writing and keep networking. 

Meeting and working with people and writing with others is what making music is about. My advice my father gave me growing up was always no matter what you do give it everything you have, I do that in my music.

Tell us your favourite Zen practice.

Meditation is my favourite and breathing is how I manage my anxiety and I recommend it to everyone.