Led by the breakout single “Somebody Loves You,” the four songs from Betty Who’s debut EP “The Movement” have been reaching an ever-growing audience of pop fans through myriad avenues — captivating live shows, viral videos, TV ads and of course the sparkling EP itself — since its release last April. On Apr. 8, the Australian-born pop artist will return with “Slow Dancing,” her second EP and first official release on RCA Records — and a few weeks before the project drops, the singer stopped by the Billboard studios in New York to perform two new songs.
Watch Betty Who’s acoustic performance of new single “Heartbreak Dream” below:
After the performance, Betty Who sat down to discuss the slow success of “Somebody Loves You,” her colorful follow-up EP and more with Billboard’s Jason Lipshutz. Watch the Q&A below:
“We took a couple more leaps,” Betty Who (real name: Jess Newham) says when comparing the “Slow Dancing” EP to “The Movement.” “There’s a guitar solo — a very serious guitar solo — so I think it’s kind of moments like that where we’re like, ‘No, let’s keep it, and let’s do it, and let’s roll with it.’ I think we committed a little bit harder, and I think we were a little less safe.”
 Betty Who at Billboard: Click to See Larger Photo |
The self-released “Movement” EP, which Billboard.com premiered last April, caught the attention of the pop blogosphere last spring thanks to sun-streaked jams like “You’re In Love” and “High Society.” But “Somebody Loves You” has been Who’s biggest boon to date: the bubbly single, which has topped Billboard’s Dance Club Songs chart and is currently being used in a national DSW commercial, soundtracked a wedding proposal YouTube clip last fall that went viral and has earned 11 million views to date. Soon after the video exploded online, Who finalized a deal with RCA.
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 Betty Who at Billboard: Click to See Larger Photo |
“In February I went to their wedding,” she says of Spencer and Dustin, the stars of the Home Depot-set clip. “That was probably the most rewarding and beautiful part of that entire experience, because 10 million people can watch a video with your song in it, but none of it matters if you don’t get to sit and watch and cry as these two men walk down the aisle.”
Who is currently on a U.S. headlining tour, which continues on Wednesday night (Mar. 26) in Atlanta, performing tracks from the “Slow Dancing” EP. Watch the singer deliver a searing rendition of the new song “Giving Me Away” at the Billboard studios below: