Hiatus Kaiyote frontwoman Nai Palm dropped by on Weekend Lunch ahead of her Vivid LIVE show at the Sydney Opera House. Discussing upcoming collaborations with Indigenous artists and the difference between the band and her solo work, Nai Palm explains how it feels to play at one of Sydney’s most iconic venues.

Looking back on her time as part of Hiatus Kaiyote, Nai Palm is pretty stoked.

“ It was my first band, we put it online, it blew up and my whole life and career and identity and purpose has just flourished from there. I’ve met amazing people and musicians and travelled… I’d never been overseas before the beginning of the band [and now] I’ve literally run out of passport pages.”

Nai Palm (aka Naomi Saalfield) chatted to Alex about her upcoming musical projects with Indigenous artists.

“I’ve been really fortunate to meet, interact and collaborate with indigenous artists from Australia. I’m working on an acoustic record at the moment that’s got some pretty powerful collaborations so I’ve just been really honoured to be exposed to some really beautiful artistry from Australia.”

Scheduled to appear at this year’s Dark Mofo in Tasmania, Nai Palm chats about the challenges and insights involved in playing music from a different period in her life.

“It’s like a journal – to be able to stay present, and grow and still have that line going back into your past and be able to story-tell with a new insight. Especially songs that I’d written years ago, it’s really interesting compared to the newer songs – finding a way to access the place that you are expressing when you’re writing. It’s challenging and interesting to re-engage with it and share that. It’s like time travel, you’re moving forward and moving back at the same time.”

Listen to the interview in full above.