Brisbane hip-hop artists Megalodon and Maya Mercy have released a new single, “The Tower”. Maya is the daughter of Robert Holden who sadly passed away in the Moreton Bay Boxing Day storm. Yelo chatted with them about their first collaboration.

Yelo: How did you guys meet? 

Megalodon: We met through a mutal friend who was also into music.

Maya: Mutual friends in the Brisbane rap community. I think the first time I actually met Mega in person was a performance of his as “The Konquest” with Personal Space whom I also have a few tracks with.

Yelo: Can you tell me the process about how it was put together? 

Megalodon: I originally wrote the song to a different beat that was sold before I was able to buy it. So for a while it sat on the shelf. Until one day I found the beat it’s currently on and bought it. But the new beat actually had the addition of the pre-hook bridge (Maya’s part) that I didn’t know how to fill. So again, it sat unfinished for a while. One day I was speaking to Maya about what we could collaborate on, and I sent her my demo to see if she could come up with something to “fill in the gap”. A couple of hours later she sent me her idea and it was instantly apparent that we had something incredible.

Maya: Meg had sent me the song with his rap and chorus, and asked if I had any ideas to “bridge” between the rap and the chorus. I listened to his song on the way to work and I just immediately heard it in my mind. I waited all day to get home so I could show him my vision. He liked what I wrote and so we just rolled with it. The day before recording I decided the ending of the song should have different lyrics (the “it’s caving” part) and so I wrote an ending, and on the day of recording I just went “let me know if you like this” – it’s now probably one of my favourite parts.

Yelo: What inspired you to make it?

Megalodon: It was actually inspired by Linkin Park’s “In The End” music video. That song was a huge part of my childhood and I remember seeing the video for the first time thinking: “It’s like they know how I feel inside.”

(Chester Bennington’s death is) probably one of the saddest I’ve ever experienced from someone I didn’t know. The teenage part of me that was made stronger by him broke down and wept.

Yelo: What does “The Tower” mean?

Megalodon: The Tower is actually a metaphor about the safe space we create in our minds that we use to hide away from the outside world. Everytime we are confronted by pain, anguish, stress, overwhelming sadness, or anything of the like, we place another brick in the foundation until eventually we feel protected from these forces. But in doing so, we find ourselves isolated from all the good things. Such as friendship, love, happiness, or compassion. So this song is about struggling to find that balance.

In my mind, the tower is a prison. Old, cold, partly broken. And I end up tearing it down to rubble.

Maya: To me it’s a first person account on the phrase ‘breaking down someone’s walls. It’s a reflection on being the person who has those walls and has built them up so high that you could call it a tower. And it’s about the effort it takes to break down those anxiety barriers, and being self aware of how they came about in the first place.

Yelo: Did you know there’s a famous tarot card from 1909 called “The Tower”?

Megalodon: No, I haven’t. That is crazy how symbolism is somehow universal.

And interestingly enough, I had a tarot reading when I was 15 that drastically changed my life. The cards read that I was very susceptible to peer pressure and that my anxiety over being disregarded left me in bad situations. It hit me like a slap to the face. I changed my entire outlook on life and became the confident, self-assured person I am today.

It was my mother’s friend who was learning and used me for practice. The fact that it made such an impact on me is the only thing I took away from it.

Yelo: So it’s not all hocus pocus?

Megalodon: I guess you could say that I believe in the card’s ability to make you see yourself from a different perspective and maybe gain some insight into your own flaws.

A lot of people like to see that kind of thing as foresight or premonition. I think it has more to do with the way human history is repeated and patterns make us see connections where there are none.

Yelo: How is the song doing?

Megalodon: It seems to be doing fairly well. I’ve actually had numerous messages about it saying how inspiring it is. It’s been my most successful song since my first official release, “Climbing Mountains”, which was about overcoming depression and featured another incredibly powerful female singer. I’m starting to see a pattern haha.

Yelo: So female vocals are the magic ingredient?

Megalodon: Oh, Maya made the song 100 times better. It was at best a B side song before Maya. There’s a producer from Sydney, who is a friend of mine, that is making an EDM remix with our vocals.

Yelo: How long have you guys been creating music?

Megalodon: The past 20 years. I have been properly releasing songs since 2018 and have released two albums, during which time I have also focused on raising my three sons.

Maya: I started taking it seriously in 2022. I haven’t done much of my own mostly because I’m a perfectionist and I definitely have had setbacks with my dad passing unexpectedly. I do have about 16 finished songs I haven’t released yet.

Yelo: Where do you see yourself heading musically after this? 

Megalodon: I don’t have any plans of stopping. In fact, the rest of the year is planned out already with releases, music videos, and live performances, with no telling how many more projects may be added to that list.

Maya: I’m sitting on about 16 or so finished songs that I have written (and recorded) but I have not paid the licensing fees for the beats. I’m just working on putting money aside for my music but it’s hard when I’m only working part time due to being a full time university student. I am very excited to share all the music I have worked hard on behind the scenes.

Yelo: Have you had much success on radio?

Megalodon: It would be easy to get it on 4ZZZ. There are a couple of guys I know who run a great program on there. But I’m not really too focused on the radio aspect. I’ve been on several times and had several songs played, but it doesn’t gain much traction.

Yelo: Is it all about social media these days?

Megalodon: Yes and no. Unfortunately you do need the social media presence in order to even be seen. But with the invention of tik tok, short play media has become a problem as much as a benefit. The attention span of the average consumer is so short now that it’s very difficult to benefit at all unless you’re posting several times a day.

Yelo: So it’s mostly word of mouth?

Megalodon: Yes through fellow artists, friends, family, fans (some I have met and others I haven’t), people who have never heard of me and came across it somehow. The feedback has been very positive.

Yelo: Will we see more of you two together? 

Megalodon: Definitely.

Maya: Definitely. I have already written a chorus for a joint song I’d love to do with Megalodon. A hard-hitting rap song.

We’d love to hear that one, please make it soon guys!