Annika Schmarsel (born 8 July 1993) known by her stage name Alice Ivy, is an Australian electronic musician and producer. Alice Ivy was the winner of the 2016 Triple J Unearthed Listen Out competition. She has released two studio albums: '' I'm Dreaming'' (2018), and ''Don't Sleep'' (2020), which reached No. 77 on the ARIA Albums Chart.

Early life

Annika Schmarsel was born in 1993 to

West German West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

immigrants who settled in

Geelong Geelong ( ) ( Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the south eastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon ...

in 1987. Annika also has a younger brother. At the age of twelve, on a family trip to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

, Schmarsel's grandmother taught her guitar chords while her uncle taught her how to play " Smoke on the Water" by Deep Purple. During high school a year later, she was a member of a 25-member soul big band and on-going music project, The Sweethearts. In 2014, Schmarsel moved to Melbourne to study for a music industry degree at RMIT University, and was introduced to the music software Ableton. She learnt about influential electronic producers including the late

J Dilla J, or j, is the tenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its usual name in English is ''jay'' (pronounced ), with a now-uncommon vari ...

Music career

2015–2018: Early years and ''I'm Dreaming''

On 3 January 2015, Annika Schmarsel under the alias 'Alice Ivy', released her debut single "Charlie". On 14 April, she released her next single "Mean Man's Bite" featuring guest vocals from Chloe Beckwith. On 26 June, Alice Ivy released her single "Paint Me Blue" again featuring vocals by Chloe Beckwith. On 13 November, Alice Ivy released the single "Walk On" featuring Indigo Fly. On 25 January 2016, Alice Ivy released her single "Touch" featuring guest vocals by Georgia van Etten, a music video was released on 8 February animated by James Thompson and Bill Presser. On 23 June, she released "Almost Here" featuring vocals by RaRa. The two singles quickly became her most popular, having collectively amassed over 3,000,000 streams on Spotify. Alice Ivy then performed a five-date tour to promote the two singles in July. On 2 September, Alice Ivy remixed "Float" by Thomston. In March 2017, she released her single "Get Me a Drink" featuring E^ST and Charlie Threads, it became her first track to be added to high rotation on

Triple J Triple J (stylised in all lowercase) is a government-funded, national Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners of alternative music, which began broadcasting in January 1975. The station also places a greater emphasis on broad ...

. ''The Age'' placed the track at #8 in their "Best Songs Of 2017". On 21 April, she remixed "Beat the Keeper" by Taj Ralph. On 26 May, Alice Ivy remixed "Kate's Bed" by Huntly. In September, after signing a deal with Australian record label

Dew Process Dew Process is an Australian independent record label, based in Brisbane, Queensland, founded and owned by Australian music industry figure Paul Piticco. Operational The label operates in two primary areas: traditional development of Australi ...

she released "Be Friends" featuring guest vocals from Tim de Cotta and Caseaux O.S.L.O. On 22 September, Alice Ivy released a remix of "West" by Lakyn. On 10 November, Alice Ivy remixed the track "Life Goes On" by E^ST. On 12 December, a music video was released for her track "Be Friends". On 12 January 2018, she released the single "Chasing Stars" featuring ARIA award winning singer-songwriter, Bertie Blackman. Both "Be Friends", and "Chasing Stars" were also added to high rotation as well. Later that month, Alice Ivy signed onto Last Gang Records for international releases. In the middle of that year, "Chasing Stars" became the eleventh most played track on Triple J. On 9 February, her debut album '' I'm Dreaming'' was released. It contained most her previously released singles including "Charlie". To promote her debut album, Ivy performed an eight-date national headlining tour ranging from 16 February until 29 March and performing in Sydney,

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater A ...

Perth Perth is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the Australian states and territories of Australia, state of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth most populous city in Aust ...

, Panama Festival in Tasmania, The Hills are Alive in Victoria, and

Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, mak ...

. On 30 March, Alice Ivy covered Estelle's track "

American Boy "American Boy” is a song by British singer and rapper Estelle featuring American rapper Kanye West from the former's second studio album ''Shine'' (2008). The song was written by the artists, alongside Ethan Hendrickson, will.i.am, John Leg ...

" with E^ST and Miss Blanks for Triple J's Like a Version. On 6 April, Ivy remixed the track "Panopticon" by Cloud Control. On 13 April, Alice Ivy along with other remixers TOKiMONSTA, Maria Marcus, and Maya Jane Coles, all made their own remixes of "Lady Powers" by Vera Blue featuring Kodi Shane, released on ''Lady Powers , Power Ladies Remix EP''. On 8 August, she released a remix of "Clothes I Slept In" by Luca Brasi. On 7 September, Alice Ivy remixed the track "Real Love" by Flint Eastwood.

2019–2020: ''Don't Sleep''

On 9 February 2019, rain damaged Alice Ivy's equipment and she was unable to play at the Tasmanian music festival Party In The Paddock the day after as planned. The rain damaged her laptop, guitar pedals and drum pad. Ivy stated she would play in Tasmania again as soon as she was able to. On 15 February, Alice Ivy released a remix of

Amwin Amanda Linnéa Cecilia Winberg (born 20 June 1996), performing as Amwin (stylized in uppercase), is a Swedish pop singer-songwriter, model, and influencer who first came to prominence as runner-up of the eleventh season of '' Swedish Idol'' in 20 ...

's track "DeLorean". On 22 February, Alice Ivy released a new single entitled "Close to You" featuring Flint Eastwood. She also announced a "Close to You" tour starting in May with Miss Blanks, who previously collaborated with Alice Ivy for Triple J's Like a Version. The tour is slated to start in

, and then go on to

Wollongong Wollongong ( ), colloquially referred to as The Gong, is a city located in the Illawarra region of New South Wales, Australia. The name is believed to originate from the Dharawal language, meaning either 'five islands/clouds', 'ground near w ...

, Canberra, Sydney,

, Hobart,

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...

and the Gold Coast. On 22 March, a remix of "Fooling Around" by Japanese Wallpaper was released. On 30 April, a music video for "Close to You" was released. The video featured Ivy's dog "Lexie". On 10 July, Ivy released the single "In My Mind" featuring Ecca Vandal alongside an accompanying music video. On 6 November, Alice Ivy released the single "Sunrise" featuring Cadence Weapon alongside an accompanying music video. On 1 April 2020, Alice Ivy released "Don't Sleep" the titular single of her upcoming second studio album ''Don't Sleep'', set to release on 17 July. The single featured Imbi the Girl and Boi. She also released an accompanying music video for the single. On 27 May, Alice Ivy released the fourth single from her then-forthcoming album titled "Better Man" featuring Safia frontman Benjamin Joseph. A music video was released alongside starring comedian and radio personality Alex Dyson. Her sophomore studio album was officially released on 18 July. The twelve-track album contained her four previously released singles, and seven other tracks featuring guest vocals. The track "Ticket to Heaven" featured

Thelma Plum Thelma Amelina Plumbe (born 21 December 1994), known professionally as Thelma Plum, is an Aboriginal Australian singer, songwriter, guitarist and musician from Delungra, New South Wales. Her father is renowned lore-man Paul Winanga-li Gii Spea ...

, "I'll Find It" featured Odette, "Sweetest Love" featured Montaigne and Bertie Blackman, "All Hit Radio" featured Teef and Tessa (vocalist for the band Tessa & the Typecast), "Money" featured DijahSB, "All In For You" featured

Ngaiire Ngaire Laun Joseph (born 1984, in Lae), known by her stage name Ngaiire (pronounced ''ny-ree'' or /naɪəriː/), is a Papua New Guinea-born Australian-based R&B and future soul singer-songwriter. Her musical career commenced in 2003 with an enr ...

, and "Gold" also featured Bertie Blackman. ''Don't Sleep'' peaked at number 77 on the ARIA charts.

2021–present: New singles

On 28 July 2021, Alice Ivy was featured on "Someone Stranger" by Georgia Maq the singer, songwriter and guitarist for Camp Cope. Alice Ivy begun teasing a new single from 8 October, collaborating with Brisbane-based pop artist

Sycco Sasha McLeod (born August 26th 2001), known professionally as Sycco (), is an Aboriginal Australian singer-songwriter and producer from Brisbane. She was nominated for Triple J Unearthed Artist of the Year in 2020, having released the pop singl ...

and American bassist Nick Movshon. Their single "Weakness" was released on 22 October with an accompanying music video directed by Dom Gould. The single and music video were recorded separately in Brisbane and Melbourne due to COVID-19 lock-down restrictions. Airlock Studios in Brisbane, and XO Studios in Melbourne.

Musical style

Alice Ivy lists her influences as

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown (music style), Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player ...

Diana Ross Diana Ross (born March 26, 1944) is an American singer and actress. She rose to fame as the lead singer of the vocal group the Supremes, who became Motown's most successful act during the 1960s and one of the world's best-selling girl groups o ...

and

Etta James Jamesetta Hawkins (January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012), known professionally as Etta James, was an American singer who performed in various genres, including gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, rock and roll, and soul. Starting her career in 1954, ...

. Other influences include The Avalanches,

, Onra, Anderson Paak,

Mark Ronson Mark Daniel Ronson (born 4 September 1975) is a British-American DJ, songwriter, record producer, and record executive. He is best known for his collaborations with artists such as Duran Duran, Amy Winehouse, Adele, Lady Gaga, Lily Allen, ...

. Her sound has also been likened to Gramatik, L'Orange and

Curtis Mayfield Curtis Lee Mayfield (June 3, 1942 – December 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music.

. She says that

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '':wikt:soul, soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The ea ...

and

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''mot ...

music inspired her to explore music production, and these influences particularly shine through on her 2020 single "Weakness."

Discography

Studio albums

Notes

Singles

As lead artist

As featured artist

Remixes

Notes

Videography

Music videos

Awards and nominations

AIR Awards

The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. ! , - ,

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeyp ...

, "Weakness" (with

) , Best Independent Dance, Electronica or Club Single , ,

ARIA Music Awards

The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions o ...

. Ivy has received 2 nominations. , - , rowspan="2",

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in ...

, ''Don't Sleep'' , ARIA Award for Best Dance Release , , - , Alice Ivy for ''Don't Sleep'' , ARIA Award for Engineer of the Year , , -

Australian Music Prize

The

Australian Music Prize The Australian Music Prize (often shortened to the AMP) is an annual award of $30,000 given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award. The award was made by Australian Music Pri ...

(the AMP) is an annual award of $30,000 given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award. They commenced in 2005. , - , Australian Music Prize 2020 , '' Don't Sleep'' , Album of the Year ,

Australian Women in Music Awards

The Australian Women in Music Awards is an annual event that celebrates outstanding women in the

Australian Music Industry Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal ...

who have made significant and lasting contributions in their chosen field. They commenced in 2018. , - , rowspan="2",

2021 File:2021 collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: the James Webb Space Telescope was launched in 2021; Protesters in Yangon, Myanmar following the coup d'état; A civil demonstration against the October 2021 coup in Sudan; Crowd shortly after t ...

, Alice Ivy , Diversity in Music Award , , - , Alice Ivy , Studio Production Award ,

J Awards

The

J Awards The J Awards are an annual series of Australian music awards that were established by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation's youth-focused radio station Triple J and which are judged by the music and on-air teams from radio stations Triple ...

are an annual series of Australian music awards that were established by the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...

's youth-focused radio station

. They commenced in 2005. ! , - ! scope="row",

, '' Don't Sleep'' , Australian Album of the Year , ,

Music Victoria Awards

The Music Victoria Awards, are an annual awards night celebrating Victorian music. They commenced in 2005. ! , - , 2016 , Alice Ivy , Best Emerging Artist , , rowspan="3", , - ,

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

, Alice Ivy , Best Electronic Act , , - ,

, Alice Ivy , Best Producer , , - , rowspan="4",

, rowspan="3", Alice Ivy , Best Producer , , , - , Best Solo Artist , , rowspan="3", ] , - , Best Pop Act , , - , ''Don't Sleep'' , Best Victorian Album , , - , 2022 Music Victoria Awards, 2022 , Alice Ivy , Best Producer , , , -

National Live Music Awards

The National Live Music Awards (NLMAs) are a broad recognition of Australia's diverse live industry, celebrating the success of the Australian live scene. The awards commenced in 2016. , - , National Live Music Awards of 2018 , Alice Ivy , Live Electronic Act (or DJ) of the Year , , - ,

National Live Music Awards of 2020 The National Live Music Awards of 2020 are the upcoming 5th annual National Live Music Awards. The nominees will be revealed on 7 September 2020, which is when general public voting commences. The event is scheduled for 20 October 2020. The ...

, Alice Ivy , Victorian Live Act of the Year , , -

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ivy, Alice 1993 births Living people Australian people of German descent Australian musicians Dew Process artists Australian electronic musicians Musicians from Geelong 21st-century Australian musicians Australian record producers Remixers Musicians from Victoria (Australia) Australian women in electronic music