If you could dedicate one or two words to the vocals of each of the artists in this group what would they be? Abbe May: blues never sounded so good; Ofa Fotu: powerful and soulful to the core; Grace Barbé: controlled and grandiose; Tara John, raw and poignant; Sarah Pellicano: tone and technique for days; Joni Hogan, bloody virtuostic! DJ Cinnamon might not sing, but she certainly will play every instrument that ends up in her hands.

Personally, gospel makes me cry (I even cried through Sister Act… ) how does it feel to be singing in this style of music and with this line-up? It’s so soulful… It just feels amazingly transcendent… The connection amongst ourselves and the room is the strongest. But mostly, we all have a great time singing together. We do have to remain focused though ‘cause it gets quite technical. (BTW, I totally feel you on Sister Act…)

Fashion – you have brought us some great looks – how is fashion (or clothing/style) important to you as part of your expression, and where do you shop or gain inspiration for your look? Thanks again! :P I’ve always loved fashion and it definitely plays a big part in my life. I’m an addict though… can’t go a month without getting something new. I guess my love for it is coming from a place of self-acceptance and self-love. We adorn the things we love, and we should start with ourselves. I shop mostly from Zara and ASOS (cause a hoe can’t afford more, even though there’s the occasional splurge) so I guess my look would be loud-boujee-bitch-on-a-budget: for me the real talent in style is to make something really cheap look lavishly expensive. Also, life is too short not to stand out, so don’t be scared to be loud AF through clothing. Give people a visual taste of what’s coming their way!

You were born on Reunion Island – how does that inform your music and your wider life? I am a Creole man from Reunion, I grew up there and all my family is there. Us islanders have a strong connection to our island and I miss it everyday. Reunion will forever be in my heart. Musically, I’d say that I am lucky to be from there because, despite its small size, Reunion has a rich culture and its own traditional music: Maloya, which came to life through the martyr of our enslaved ancestors. I get a lot of my inspiration from this source when writing songs for Soukouss. In terms of my life, being from Reunion is a blessing and a curse because racism is not a big deal there, and the shock is violent when you are first confronted with it in real life. But it definitely makes you more aware of your surroundings and of the political climate we live in.

What was your childhood like, and how old were you when you came to Perth and how was the transition? I had a good childhood (nothing to worry too hard about on the islands) as my parents have always loved and supported me. Nevertheless, I had a hard time growing up there as a gay kid. Ethnicity is not an issue in Reunion, but homosexuality definitely is. Or at least it was at the time. Homophobia is rampant and I have extensively experienced it. But, hey, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger and that shit doesn’t fly no more, no matter where I am. I’ve learnt the hard way that you should never allow anyone to disrespect you.

Australia still has a long way to go in the fight to achieve racial equality and Perth is no exception. How did you find coming to Perth as a gay person of colour? Well... here is the thing (bear with me on this one). As a gay man, coming to Australia was a liberation because being gay is largely accepted here. No-one gives a fuck, people are genuinely laid back and have better things to do than sticking their noses in other people’s business. It’s basically the complete opposite of a small island’s mentality. However, as a person of colour coming from a place where racial discrimination does virtually not occur (or if you try, you’s better run fast ‘cause everyone near enough to hear will jump you), witnessing it occur for the first time of my life here was a brutal slap to the sad reality that racism is a real issue the world is facing. But, again, I can’t complain. I cannot say that my experience as a person of colour in Australia has been terrible. It’s quite the opposite actually. I love Australia. Australians, especially our generation and the emerging generations (but not only) are becoming more and more aware of this issue, and things are slowly, but surely, evolving towards a better tomorrow.

What work needs to be done in the race space to help people of colour and in the gay/queer/trans space – what changes are you seeing? In both spaces, we need to keep up the good work, we need to be visible and never stop to proudly voice our opinions. We need to surround ourselves with an increasing number of allies and, for that, even though it can be a real pain in the booty, we have to become the best educators we can be. I have to admit that I have work to do on that because I have zero patience. But if we can make the other party understand where we’re coming from in a positive way and appeal to the human in them, nothing is impossible.

How has music shaped your life? Music has always been at the centre of my life, and since I was a kid, my dream has always been to be a singer and perform around the world. I’ve always been drawn to music, but it wasn’t a viable career option for my parents. The moment they said no was the moment it became something I was going to do in my life. I HAD to do. I’m stubborn AF, so in a way them telling me no pushed me over the edge and this is when I realised music was my calling. There is absolutely nothing else that drives me, there’s nothing else I want as bad.

We’ve been told that your partner is hearing impaired – that’s an interesting scenario for a musician. How does he enjoy your music? He can feel the vibrations and see the show, and that gets him going! He won’t admit it, but he enjoys dancing.

We’ve also heard that you can have some expletive-ridden arguments in ASLAN… it peaked our interest… Look, the first words you learn in another language are swear words. No exceptions for AUSLAN. But let’s be clear, I swear like a sailor in every language. :P

You’ve also been known to sign as you talk to those who don’t have a hearing impairment? Do you also sing and sign at the same time to serenade your partner? Haha, yeah I guess it’s just become a habit! And the serenading? I do. However, I need t o get better at it because he loses interest quite easily!

You work as an accountant (in a high-profile firm) – how do you balance being so wildly creative while being so numbers focused? I’m actually not numbers focussed at all. I started as an accountant, but now I work more on the business process side of things as opposed to hardcore number crushing. It is also a misconception that accountants are good at numbers. Without Excel, most of us are as good as 5th graders, legit… I am widely creative indeed, that’s why I keep my everyday work and my music completely separate. They do not touch and never will. I work t o eat and I make music to live.

Has your accounting helped with navigating the business side of your music? It could have, but I have an aversion for mixing the two. I’m blessed to have an incredible team helping me. I could not do it without Geraldine Rey and Nelly Reffet, my two French queens from Suzette Collective.

Do you have any other interests outside of numbers and music? Fashion, and another dream of mine would be to launch my very own shoe label. But we got time for that… I’m also extremely interested in astronomy despite lacking the technical knowledge. But I love reading about new discoveries. The universe is genuinely fascinating.

Back to Queency: what should we be excited about? I have an EP in the oven. So more news on this coming soon! ;)

Lastly, if you could sum up your music in only a few words, what would those words be? Soulful, sexy, sassy and unapologetic!

Getting personal.