Ben Rankin is a 22-year-old singer-songwriter from Canberra, Australia who attempts to combine his rock/metal influences with his love for pop artists such as Ed Sheeran and Lewis Capaldi. His 2024 album, Welcome To My House, is an amalgamation of these influences,
containing high-energy metal tunes down to acoustic ballads.
Independent and self-produced, his new single, ”Rewind,” delves into the theme of confronting past demons, with a narrative that explores the complexities of relationships and self-discovery. Recorded in Ben Rankin’s home studio, the track exudes a sense of intimacy and authenticity, reflecting his personal journey and musical evolution. As the second single from his highly anticipated fifth studio album, In Memoriam, set to be released on February 27, Ben Rankin’s music promises to captivate audiences with its raw emotion and compelling storytelling.
With “Rewind” out now, we took some time to hear from Ben Rankin. Read below to learn more about Ben Rankin, the story behind “Rewind,” and what’s to come.
Hi Ben Rankin! Let’s start with how did you get your artist name?
Thanks for having me! Well, 22 years ago, my mother gave birth to me and it was at that point I was given my government issued name, which just so happened to be Ben Rankin, Rankin being of Scottish and English descent, though I am half Croatian. Both of my parents then signed a piece of paper to confirm that this was going to be my name and because of the two seconds that it took them to sign that paper, it now follows me everywhere I go. It’s on my passport, my license, my credit cards, it just won’t leave me alone, it’s kind of annoying to be honest. The serious answer is I’m not that creative to come up with stage names, so I just used my real name to display the rawness of the music that I create.
What city are you from, and where are you based now?
So, I’m Australian, I was born and am still based in Canberra, which most people don’t know is actually the capital city of Australia. I wish it was more well-known like Washington D.C. or Paris, but nooooo. Most people think it’s Sydney or Melbourne. I think I read somewhere that Canberra is the least-known capital city in the developed world, which is a bit annoying but what can you do?
At what point in your life did you decide to pursue a career in music? How did you get started?
Growing up, there was always music playing around the house. My dad played a lot of guitar as did my two older brothers. My parents loved entertaining, so there was always a party happening and like clockwork, the guitars would come out by around 9 pm. It wasn’t until I heard bands like My Chemical Romance when I was 7 or 8 that it just blew me away and I immediately wanted to learn how to play their songs on guitar, drums, anything, I distinctly remember air-drumming to MCR live concerts with a pair of chopsticks. I initially started writing sad acoustic songs because that was all I knew how to write at the time. So, I spent maybe 5 years writing acoustic music before going into rock and metal territory.
How would you describe your sound to readers who may not be familiar with you?
That is a tough question to answer because I don’t like holding myself to one specific style, mainly because I get bored way too easily. Right now, I just make aggressive and melodic hard rock/metal music.
Do you have any hobbies outside of music? What do you do to stay creative?
I get asked that quite a bit and I don’t really. You know, I like sports, I hang out with friends, I run but at the end of the day, music is the main thing whether I’m playing, writing, watching or just listening to it as background noise.
Who are some of your main musical influences?
I have two sets of influences. When I’m doing acoustic stuff, it’s mainly guys like Lewis Capaldi and Ed Sheeran. It’s no secret to those that know me that I think those two are fantastic songwriters. When I’m doing the heavier music, it’s bands like Asking Alexandria, Black Veil Brides, Avenged Sevenfold, I Prevail, The Devil Wears Prada, etc. My favourite kind of stuff in the metal sphere is without a doubt, Metalcore. I don’t know what it was about it, but as soon as I heard bands like Trivium and Bullet For My Valentine, I never looked back.
What’s one of the proudest moments of your music career so far?
Honestly, the ones that make me the happiest is seeing comments from people saying, “I don’t normally listen to this kind of music, but this is amazing.” I’ve had a few of those whether I’ve done the heavy music or the acoustic stuff, and it just makes me happy that I could potentially play a part in introducing someone to a new style of music.
What would you say are the greatest lessons that you’ve learned so far?
To make the music that is inspiring to me and make the music that I like, regardless of what people think. When you’re a teenager and decide you want to start making music, it can be really intimidating because of maybe what people at school think which is why I didn’t make the heavy stuff straight away because of crippling insecurity. After a couple of years and still being in high school, I just went, “screw it,” and started making heavy music without a care in the world.
Now onto your release, “Rewind.” What inspired this song?
The song is about that one person who decides to come back into your life after doing horrible things to you, about pushing them away and realising why I wanted to keep them away from my life. I honestly don’t get why people decided that they want to form something again after doing such horrible things, whatever they happen to be. It just doesn’t make sense to me so that was what inspired me to write this song.
How did the collaboration with Machine on a Break come about?
We’ve been friends for around 2 years now, and I actually play drums in her live band, it’s great! Musically we share the same favourite bands like Sleep Token, Bring Me the Horizon and I Prevail, so it was only a matter of time before we would start writing together.
What was the inspiration behind the cover artwork for “Rewind?”
I wanted it to be very simple. We were getting ready for a show and had a bit of extra time, so we just decided then and there to take the photo. We’re standing back-to-back to kind of represent trying to ignore the other person that’s trying to reach out and make their way back into your life while you’re trying not to acknowledge their existence.
What was the creative process like when making “Rewind?”
It was quick. I went over to Jessie’s place one night, and we started brainstorming about what we wanted to write about. After we confirmed what it would be about, we got writing straight away. She had lent me her 7-string guitar a few weeks before and so I had a riff that ended up being in one of the verses and we wrote the rest of the song off of that riff. We wrote and recorded a demo of the song within 2 hours.
How long did it take to complete “Rewind?”
After the initial writing process, I went home and recorded the final guitar tracks and what I was hearing before sending rough mixes over. It maybe took a little over a month and a half until we were both happy with how it was sounding. Jessie and I did sessions both in-person to record scratch vocals, guitars and all of the synth work. We also did remote sessions to do the final vocal takes so that we could get comfortable in our own recording environments.
What do you hope fans take away from “Rewind” and your music in general?
Don’t waste your time on people that don’t deserve it. If they’ve done something that you deem as truly unforgivable, just cut them out, you do not need that negativity in your life. Be your own person, the only opinion that should matter to you is your own, that’s really it. And, just have fun.
What’s next for you? Are you working on any upcoming projects, or do you have any upcoming shows that we should be on the lookout for?
I have a new album coming out on February 27th titled, In Memoriam, which “Rewind” is going to be part of. But rest assured, there will be more singles that’ll come out before the album does!
Where can we follow you on social media?
I can be found on Instagram, I have a YouTube channel and I am on every streaming platform!
https://www.instagram.com/ben.rankin
https://www.youtube.com/@BenRankinYT
Thank you for the great interview; wish you much continued success!
