I Interviewed Delta Goodrem And Accidentally Became Best Friends With Her
“Is that a Britney Spears Hit Me Baby One More Time poster [behind you]?” Is the first thing that Delta Goodrem asked me when I joined our interview. We then spend the next minute talking about the Lana Del Rey and Beyoncé posters I have in my room while she sings ‘Sometimes’ by Britney to me.
This is what I imagine heaven is like.
If we weren’t already best friends after that, we definitely were after I told Delta that I grew up around the same area as her. As a matter of fact, she went to the same school my mum did. “No! No way, that’s amazing,” she says. It was basically a little reunion, don’t be jealous.
The reason I have the pleasure to chat to Delta is because she’s starring in a new Netflix rom-com called Love Is In The Air where she plays a seaplane pilot, Dana, in far-north Queensland. Dana is trying to save her family business from being bought out by a savvy English businessman. I know, right? This is literally the perfect movie for Delta to star in. Think about it. She’s flying a plane which some people say is like ‘Sitting On Top Of The World’ and a plane has ‘Wings’. This movie feels like something she’s been preparing for all along.
“You’ve put it all together! Yes! It does feel like there is sentimental value there, yes.” Delta says as she probably wondered why this freak was interviewing her.
All fun and games aside, after I watched the movie, I was curious to know what really drew Delta to Love Is In The Air. “When I first got the script this character, Dana, stepped out to me and how strong and independent she was with running her own business,” Delta says. It was this business owner angle that really drew Delta in because she’s going through a huge change in her own life after starting her record label ATLED productions. (That’s Delta spelt backwards, very fun). “I loved the strength that she wasn’t gonna let anybody come in and take her business away from her. That was what first initially drew me to it.”
“I started to bring all my experience from being in the industry my entire life into a different phase. So when the script crossed my path, I loved that it was saying ‘If you want something done, do it yourself’ and all these strong independent [statements].” If you’re wondering how much of Delta is in Dana, I’d say quite a lot. But Delta says she worked hard to make sure Dana felt like a three-dimensional character who had an abundance of inner strength. “I wanted her to have a real centre. I wanted to make her feel really grounded and that was an important feeling I had when I started reading the script. I wanted to feel like nothing could rock her easily,” she says.
What I really appreciate about Love Is In The Air is that it showcases the beautiful landscape of tropical Queensland and shows it off to the rest of the world. Allowing viewers to escape and bask in the glory of our country is something that Delta also appreciated. “I loved the fact that there was the landscape of our gorgeous country,” she says, “I also really love escapism. When I turn on Netflix, I enjoy going on a journey to a different country … so it’s something that is natural [and] authentic that I love as a viewer.”
What helped Delta prepare for Love Is In The Air? Watching every rom-com Netflix had to offer, naturally.
“I had an excuse to watch every single rom-com on Netflix so Matt didn’t get a say for a second there on all the movies I was watching,” she laughs. By all the rom-coms, she really meant all of them. “I was just clicking on numerous rom-coms. I love all the classic rom-coms… I love all those beautiful moments and where you know that there has to be something to evolve through a challenge for the two [characters] to come together.”
Obviously, I had to ask Delta if she had any news on new music to share with Punkee. “Well ‘Back To Your Heart’ is the new song that starts off the new era of music. It’s that kind of inspiration of the Belinda Carlisle, Tina Turner era that I really enjoy. Big hair, big guitar solos, big key changes and singalongs,” she says.
“Obviously I come back to Australia after this tour to do the Innocent Eyes 20th anniversary tour. Then I have my Christmas special at the end of the year again, yay! It’s our fourth year and I’m very looking forward to pulling that together. Then I’ve got to finish up this album which will be at the start of next year. It’s all about energy, it’s all about the uplift and of course, there’s a ballad here and there but there’s a freedom to it that I’m enjoying.”
You’ll be pleased to know that Delta and I ended our interview by blowing air kisses at each other.
Love is in the Air is streaming on Netflix now.
Image credit: Zoom + Punkee