EVEN before singer-songwriter Jarrod Grant made the move from Coffs Harbour to Newcastle last year he'd earmarked a gig on the Rogue Scholar rooftop as a feather he wanted in his cap.
On March 26 Grant will live out that dream when he launches his second EP, Give Me A Second, out on March 17. The record's first single, Kiss, is released today.
Since popping up at open mic nights at the Seven Seas Hotel, Rum Diary and Rogue Scholar, Grant has caught attention, and not just for his dyed bright pink hair.
His debut EP, Carpark Heartbreak, released in January 2022, underlined Grant's emotive indie-folk songwriting and fragile vocals.
Give Me A Second was produced by Hunter producer Alex Brollo and sees Grant expand his sonic palette while exploring his mental health battles.
"It's more full and more re-listenable," Grant said. "Carpark Heartbreak was pretty much just me and my acoustic and few little bits and pieces, trying to air out my feelings and what was going on.
"This one I wanted it to be something you could come back to a little bit more, instead of just going, 'oh that guy is pretty said, isn't he?'"
The 25-year-old is the cousin of Cormac Grant (Turpentine Babycino) and through that family link he started making connections with other musicians in the Newcastle scene.
"I came down here and went to the Rogue [Scholar] and they had a rooftop festival and I thought I wanna play a gig here," he said. "That was always the goal when I moved down here."
Fans can definitely expect to spot the pink hair too on March 26.
"It's become a part of me, which is kind of fun," he said. "It's become a brand, but it was never meant to become that."
