CHARLIE PITTMAN ON okay.again?

Words: Savannah Gallimore

Photography: Juno Shean

Singer-songwriter Charlie Pittman’s new EP okay.again? is a raw, emotional journey through heartbreak, self-discovery, and everything in-between. Across six tracks, the British/Australian artist blends indie-rock and unfiltered lyricism to tell a story of a transformative year in his life. Since relocating to Australia, Pittman has been building momentum, connecting with audiences across both hemispheres. With the release of okay.again?, he is on tour across Australia and the UK, playing intimate headline shows that bring his emotionally honest music to life in real time. It’s a natural extension of an artist who writes not just to process his own experiences, but to connect with the people listening.

Temper: How would you describe okay.again? to someone who's never heard it before?

Charlie Pittman: I’d say it’s six songs that all revolve around relationships—whether it’s romantic relationships, relationships with others, or even your relationship with yourself. It’s very indie rock, a bit indie pop, and has some electronic influence too.

T: You said this EP is entirely about relationships. Was this intentional?

CP: I think it wasn’t initially. When I was putting the songs together, I had around 30 tracks to choose from. I was just thinking, “How do I make a throughline through this?” And then I realised, these songs actually tell a story, from the end of one relationship to the end of another. It maps a timeline of me navigating romantic relationships and also trying to figure out where I was in life at the time.

T: Was the EP written over a long period of time?

CP: Pretty much all written within a year. It feels like a little time capsule from that year of my life.

T: You did a lot of writing and co-writing, including with a producer in Nashville. How was that experience?

CP: It was great. I wrote one song in London, two in Nashville, and three in Sydney. Then I brought all six to my producer John in Nashville, who hadn’t worked on the tracks before. I really liked that. We got to strip everything back and think about how we wanted the project to sound as a whole.

Some of the demos were fleshed out already, while others were just voice memos. It was nice to sit with the songs and ask, “How do we tie this all together?” We approached it like an album, linking songs and creating a narrative. That was important to me.

T: Do you enjoy co-writing with others?

CP: Yeah, I really love it.  I go into nearly every session with a verse or a concept of knowing what I want to write about, and collaborating helps validate those ideas. It’s a great feeling when someone says, “That’s a great lyric,” it gives me confidence. 

When I first started doing sessions, I found it really scary to be vulnerable. A lot of my songs are very personal, so I’ve learned to get comfortable with it. The best sessions I've done are with people who make me feel secure, and most are now my good friends. When I'm writing for other people as well, I try and be that person in the room that they can tell anything to, almost like a therapist. You build a really quick relationship with collaborators and form bonds that you maybe wouldn't have otherwise.

T: When you write, do you think about how the songs will sound live?

CP: Absolutely. I think about what parts of the song might get the crowd singing back, or how we can surprise the audience. For example, with “Death Row,” I wanted a chorus that would catch people off guard. The first time we played it live, I could see the audience’s faces shift, they were like, “Wait, what’s happening?” That was cool.

T: Are you excited for your upcoming tour? Do you get nervous?

CP: I get a little nervous on the day, but it’s more excitement than anything. Once I’m backstage and I hear the intro music or it hits in my in-ears, I just get hyped up and ready to go. We rehearse a lot, and the band is super locked in, so I always feel prepared.

T: Do you tour with the same band?

CP: It switches up a little. My drummer Giac and I are the constants, he’s also the one who helps build the live show with me. When we’re in the UK, I bring my best mates on tour, one on bass and one on guitar. In Australia, we have Maya on guitar and Bryce on bass. If someone can’t make a show, we bring in someone else, but Giac and I are the core team.

T: Do Australian shows feel different from UK shows?

CP: Yeah, and even within Australia, different cities feel different. Brisbane always feels like the loudest crowd, even with fewer people. I swear one person in Brisbane is as loud as three people anywhere else. The energy is unmatched.

Melbourne crowds are super respectful. Like, when I start talking about the meaning of a song, the room goes completely silent. It’s beautiful. And London always feels special because I’ve got friends and family there. So yeah, every place brings something unique.

T: If you could open for anyone, who would it be?

CP: I’m manifesting Jeremy Zucker. I’ve always been a big fan. He’s coming here in a month or two, so, fingers crossed. A dream support slot would be The 1975. That’s the ultimate. We’ll see what happens!

T: What’s your dream festival and venue?

CP: Dream festival? Everyone says Glastonbury, and that’s obviously iconic. But recently, something like Lollapalooza or Wall of Sound feels really cool. In Australia, definitely Laneway. That was the first festival I ever went to. I remember seeing Charli XCX last year and thinking, “This is the dream.”

Venue-wise, I’d love to play the O2 Arena in London. That was the first live show I ever went to. It’s a bucket list venue for sure, along with Madison Square Garden and Red Rocks.

T: Who are your biggest artistic inspirations?

CP: So many. Radiohead, War on Drugs, Coldplay, even artists like Dijon and Holly Humberstone. When I started leaning more into a rockier sound, those bands really influenced me. For this EP, John produced the whole thing and Abby Holliday sang backing vocals on all six tracks, we even wrote one of them together. 

I’m constantly listening to music. Each track had like 10 reference songs, so there’s about 60 tracks that fed into this project. I’m really influenced by artists who write vulnerably, like Julien Baker or Phoebe Bridgers. I love when people are raw and honest in their writing.

T: What do you hope listeners feel when they hear the EP?

CP: Honestly, I hope they feel whatever they want to feel. Once the songs are out there, they’re not really mine anymore. People will take their own narratives from the songs and be able to relate to them in a way I probably wouldn't have even imagined.

I've had fans come up after shows and say, “Thank you for releasing this song, it helped me through something,” and that always means the world to me.I’m excited to see how people connect with these tracks, and I hope it just like resonates in whatever way they feel.

T: Were there any songs that didn’t make the final EP?

CP: So many. For this EP, I wrote like 15 songs in 18 days during a writing trip to Nashville and L.A. We sat down with about 30 tracks and cut it down to six. There was one called “Roadkill” that almost replaced the lead single, just because they were both about the same situation. It was a toss-up, honestly. But now I’m like, “How did I almost not include this song?”

There are a couple of songs, like “Shut Me Up and Kiss My Face,” that didn’t make the EP but I’ll be playing them live on tour. There were songs that didn’t quite fit into the same narrative or sonic world we were creating for this EP that may still be released one day.

T: This EP is very relationship-focused, more so than your past work—why the shift?

CP: Honestly? Life. I went through my first real heartbreak. Before that, I’d mostly been the one ending relationships, so being on the other side of it gave me a whole new perspective.

I moved to Australia, ended a relationship to make that move, and then had to figure out who I was in a new country where I didn’t know anyone. Then I entered another relationship that didn’t work out, and I was back at square one. That definitely influenced the writing. It’s funny, when you're in a relationship, it’s harder to write about it. But when things are tumultuous, the songs just pour out.

T: Do you ever worry about the people you're writing about hearing the songs?

CP: I used to. But now? Not really. That’s just part of being an artist. People understand that some songs were tiny little moments that you blow up, and some are more real than others. I’ve had songs written about me too. It goes both ways. I think being vulnerable makes the music more relatable. If someone hears a lyric and goes, “I’ve felt that exact thing,” then I’ve done my job.

T: Lastly, how would you describe the EP in three words?

CP: Hmm… Exhausting, in the emotional sense. Dynamic, because there are big and small moments. And maybe… honest.