Meet Lanie Laynz, a misfit AuDHD mum from South-East Melbourne’s Bayside Peninsula, on a journey of self-actualisation. Defying societal expectations of motherhood, she creates music that blends indie pop and rock into an eclectic mix of melodies. As a nominee for the 2025 International Singer Songwriters Association (ISSA) awards for her song “Fallen,” Lanie is also working on an EP and her debut album. She balances her role as a caregiver for her neurodivergent children and partner while using songwriting to stay emotionally regulated in a challenging world. Her music serves as a sanctuary of hope and resilience, offering safety and escapism for herself and her listeners.
I have been following Lanie Laynz for several years, and I now invite you to learn more about her.
How did you discover your passion for music?
As a child the one thing I could always count on was escaping and fully immersing myself into whatever music I was listening to. Music has always been a constant in my life that’s showed up for me more than anyone who was supposed to be a main support in my life. I’ve always felt like a bit of a lone wolf or reject who was never enough for the people I loved, and for me when I surround myself with music whether it’s consuming or creating it everything becomes suddenly less overwhelming, and difficult, and it’s like I have a moment to step away and regroup. It’s taught me how to show up more for myself and guided me through times that I didn’t have anyone by my side and still is that space for me to feel fully free, and process things more clearly when life gets stressful, or I need to revisit emotions, and experiences from the past to help me deal with new situations. I struggle with working memory, so I often associate moments in time and with people to specific songs that hold a lot of emotion and help me remember.
How did learning an instrument complement your ability to express yourself vocally in your music?
I’m still learning all the time. I am unsure how much I can improve it with my before mentioned working memory challenges and current spoons level, but my goal is to keep working on both and push myself as far as I can. Ideally, I’d love to be self-reliant for shows so that I can take on more performance opportunities as I really love performing, but if I can’t reach my own expectation with that then that’s also ok, and I’ve made peace with that. I can play some of the songs in my catalogue, but I do think it takes a lot of time and patience to get really good at focusing properly on both guitar and singing simultaneously. I find it a little overwhelming doing at times. I think there’s still a lot of value however in it as a time saver if I found a permanent person to accompany me as a “band member” type role and co-writer, as I would be much more confident in only playing the occasional song solo and being able to focus fully on my energy and use of stage space, and vocal performance.
Who are some of the key artists or genres that have shaped your sound and musical style over the years?
I’m somewhere between millennial mum alt rock of mid 90s (No Doubt, Alanis, Natalie Imbruglia, Garbage, Veruca Salt, Hole, Letters To Cleo, Liz Phair, Tracy Bonham etc) , and 2000s-2010’s pop rock and pop punk nostalgia (think The Freaky Friday soundtrack as an example, Josie and the pussycats motion picture soundtrack , Disney pop rock influence sonically, Michelle Branch, electro pop rock and heavier pop rock styles etc). Also touches of influence from The Veronicas. Can’t not credit them I was definitely obsessed especially with The Secret Life Of era and still adore what Jess and Lisa are doing now in their most recent album Gothic Summer. Great songwriters. I also learnt a lot about hooks from Blink 182, and Good Charlotte.
Can you share a specific performance or milestone that you felt truly marked a turning point in your musical journey?
This isn’t really a flashy milestone, but one thing for me that sticks out is how much more lyrics just pour from me when I came back to myself, and started creating again after I let the old, fabricated persona end of this thing I just wasn’t and decided it was time to just do what came natural to me and create from an authentic space. I know I’m a pop rock girlie and I’m not a dance pop diva but I do enjoy and appreciate all musical styles with an artist attention span for all the details and elements that go into creating other styles because I’m just so passionate about music and anything creative. It’s my love language. I’m really proud of how much better my writing has gotten and am looking forward to all the music I have written the last 12 months slowly coming together to share with you all. I have a fantastic collaborator Stuart Smith who is helping me bring some of the ideas to life along with the new production team at Studio Blue 3K I’ve been working with for both “Christmas Sux” , and “Fallen” who are local to me and really great dudes.
How do you handle moments when you feel creatively stuck or unsure about your next step in the industry?
It’s more financial access where I am unable to perfect certain skills to record at home and get the best out of myself in the way I would in a studio. I am looking into grants though and finally met some peers who are willing to help me prepare applications so I can showcase what I know I am capable of if given the chance to do something that right now is out of reach for me as a low-income household with minor dependants. I also tend to overwhelm myself with my own to do lists, and the constant new song ideas all the time. I actually only not long ago finally used a planning tool online called milanote to organize and map out some sort of order. My mind palace (sorry Sherlock reference) is like walking into a hoarder house of creative projects. Scribbled notes, vision boards with no timeline, folders full of lyrics and music. If you knew how much music I’m sitting on and was stopping myself going to studio for because I couldn’t decide “what goes next” you’d tell me to stop overthinking it which would send me on a bigger anxiety spiral of uncertainty. But it’s done now. Took 3 hours. I have dismantled the chaos that was and reconstructed it in a way that now makes sense chronologically, and shows personal character development, as some of the stories behind the songs link to one another.
What exciting projects or goals do you have lined up for 2025, and how do you plan to push your music to new heights?
I’ve gotten involved with the team at Platform Event Management. I can’t say too much as it’s too early to tell where it will lead, (hopefully performances) but the obvious part will be releasing more music to show people what I am made of, and working with more creatives to bring those visions to life, and continue expanding my circle of my go-to’s, as well as heading to performances of peers, when I can get to them and back safely, and have childcare arrangements so I can show my support and express my gratitude.
Jump straight in to Lanie Laynz music on YouTube, and remember to subscribe to show your support. For more music interviews unearthing our Australian music community, I’ve got you covered here on TAGG.
