TRACK-BY-TRACK: KATHLEEN HALLORAN TAKES US THROUGH 'NOBODY'S BABY'

Nobody's Baby is out now!

Image: WILK.

Melbourne guitarist, singer and songwriter, Kathleen Halloran has dropped her debut album, Nobody's Baby. To celebrate the release, she's taking us through the collection of songs track-by-track...

This weekend, Halloran will kick off a national tour in support of the album. Commencing in Canberra, the run of shows will continue on to Sydney, Perth, Brisbane, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sale, Geelong and Trentham. Tickets are on sale now.

WOLVES LIKE YOU

Wolves Like You is about the resilience, defiance and quiet power of women in the music

industry. I’ve been playing guitar professionally for 15 years, and for most of that time I rejected the idea of being defined by gender — or even allowing it into the conversation. Comments like “I’ve never heard a girl play like that” were often well-meaning, but complicated. Something has shifted for me. I realised people feel compelled to speak up because what they’re witnessing is powerful — and I’m really proud of that. Co-written with Adelaide-based producer and musician Dustyn Lee Stephensen, Wolves Like You is about staying true to the music, and to yourself.

NOBODY’S BABY

I’m surrounded by strong, independent, powerful women, and this song is for them — the

women who are told they’re “too much” of this and a little “too much” of that. Nobody’s Baby is a fun, punk-driven anthem about independence, self-belief and not belonging to anyone but yourself. It’s my dream to see women everywhere dancing and singing freely along to this track.

FIND ME AGAIN

Find Me Again came from recognising a moment where I’d lost a part of myself. It’s about that quiet decision to return to who you are — trusting that even after love, chaos or change, you can always find your way back.

FREE WITH ME

Free With Me is about inner and outer freedom — letting go of the pressure to meet other

people’s expectations and standing comfortably in who you are. It’s for anyone who feels like they’re on the run from labels and boxes. The message of the song is that the real power lies in being you. It felt like the perfect entry point to this chapter as my first single. Stolen Night. Some songs can take months to finish — if they even get there at all. Most of the time you’re sending ideas back and forth, pulling the song apart, rebuilding it, hitting walls, repeating the process and sometimes abandoning it altogether. Stolen Night was one of those rare moments where the song felt like it arrived fully formed. Very little changed after it came out of me in one night, recalling an emotional moment in time. I hope it resonates with people and takes them back to their own private moments in life that never quite leave you. Roscoe James Irwin’s beautiful string arrangement was the icing on the cake in conveying the heavy emotion of the song.

I AM HUNTED

I Am Hunted lives in that in-between moment in life — when you’re chasing big dreams, not yet settled, and everything still feels uncertain and wide open. There’s a deep hunger for love in that space, but also the sense that you can’t afford to be swallowed up by it. Danger, hope, freedom and loneliness are all woven through the song. It was co-written with bassist Jonathan Zion.

COST OF LIVING

Cost of Living is about the emotional rollercoaster of choosing a creative life. One night you can feel unstoppable, like the whole world’s in the palm of your hand — and the next day you’re back on the ground questioning everything. But despite the chaos, the doubt and the exhaustion, you wouldn’t trade it for anything. It’s an all-in kind of life, living without a roadmap — and that’s a beautiful thing. Roscoe James Irwin’s string arrangement lifts the song into a whole other cinematic space.

SHOWSTOPPER

Co-written with Melbourne-based multi-instrumentalist Jaron Jay, Showstopper leans into classic rock territory. It’s about the kind of person you can’t seem to quit, exploring the pull of a love that’s as intoxicating as it is destructive. When late-night visits turn into a familiar cycle, friends start weighing in and you swear you won’t open the door again, you know you’re in trouble. They’re a showstopper.

HEAL ME

Heal Me is a duet with Dustyn Lee Stephensen about reaching that moment where you feel ready to be vulnerable with another person. It comes from the perspective of someone who is normally very private, wanting to finally lay their cards on the table. The song also explores the other side of that moment — the nerves and responsibility that come with being the person someone chooses to trust.

OPINION

Opinion was another co-write with bassist Jonathan Zion and explores the reality of public opinion in the modern music world. As artists, we put ourselves in the firing line every time we expand and promote our work online, opening the door to criticism, trolls and unsolicited judgement. At its heart, the song is a declaration of independence — a refusal to let those voices and opinions dictate your artistic choices.

Nobody's Baby is out now.