Artist Spotlight
Lucky

Meet Lucky, an Australian artist who writes 90s-influenced alternative rock that straddles the heavy and the delicate, with vocal melodies that feel instantly memorable. Raised on pop music in a small country town in regional Victoria, she learned to play guitar at age eight by following chords drawn on a piece of paper by her encouraging father.

Things have been moving quickly for Lucky – in the last 12 months she has found herself on NME’s Australian Acts To Watch list, supported alternative greats Garbage, travelled to Austin TX to play a number of shows during SXSW, then returned home to play her first sold-out Australian headline tour. NME described Lucky (aka Chelsea Knight) as “hard to Google but easy to love” and the team here are inclined to agree. With upcoming tours across Europe, the UK and the US still ahead in 2026, we were fortunate enough to catch Lucky for a chat about deliberate decisions in the studio, growing up in the countryside and telling personal stories with the right amount of ambiguity. Hit play on her EP Biting Heels and read on to get to know Lucky.

If someone was hearing Lucky for the very first time, which song would you tell them to start with, and why?

I think ‘Lady Beetle’ would be the most fun introduction to my sound and songwriting. It has all the things I aim for when writing - ambiguous lyrics, an energetic chorus, and 90’s flavours throughout!

You've described your music as "heavy but delicate." What does that balance mean to you, and how do you strike it?

I think it mostly comes from my influences, the heavy era of 90s rock bands, combined with the pop artists I grew up with. It’s a balance I’m constantly wrestling with in the studio. A lot of it comes down to very deliberate instrumental and melodic choices. Sometimes it’s been difficult narrowing it down, because something as simple as a guitar sound can instantly familiarise you with a certain world of music. It’s become a goal of mine to include little tastes of everything that influences me, while still making sure my music has its own identity.

It feels like your career has accelerated quickly since you released your first single “Never Know” early last year. You’ve since gone from playing small pubs to sold-out headline shows and festivals around the world. Do you still get the same nerves before walking on stage, and if so, how do you manage them?

I’m really grateful for the experiences I had growing up which exposed me to nerves, the stage, and all the feelings that come with performing in front of people. Over time I’ve learned to accept the nerves as a good thing and something that should be present, rather than something I need to overcome. That’s probably the biggest reminder I give myself when I need it, or before an important show where I feel them more frequently!

Your music comes across as very honest. Do you ever feel like there’s a point where lyrics become too personal, or that you need to pull back sometimes?

Over the past few years I’ve discovered that a constant idea or goal of mine when writing lyrics is to keep things quite open-ended, ambiguous and open to interpretation, so audiences can take away their own meanings, or even multiple meanings. It’s my favorite kind of songwriting to listen to. In some ways it also allows me to feel protected by my own personal or honest lyrics.