Olivia Marsh lights up at the mention of her birthday. The Australian musician just turned 24 on September 26, two weeks before our meeting, and she’s eagerly recounting the series of events from that day. “Let me see if I can jog my memory,” she tells Teen Vogue, clearly on the edge of her seat, calling from the Warner Music Korea office in Seoul, South Korea.
On her 24th birthday, she woke up a bit earlier than usual and grudgingly headed to the bathroom to wash up, only to find her little sister Danielle — who is one-fifth of the K-pop girl-group NewJeans — standing on a stool, hanging balloons. “We just made eye contact and she was like, ‘Oh no,’” Marsh laughs.
The surprise visit was slightly ruined, but the 19-year-old pop star and their mom treated Marsh to cake and her “favorite meal ever” for lunch: 월남쌈 (wollamssam), or Vietnamese rice paper rolls, which she prefers with shabu-shabu, thinly-sliced meat and veggies. Danielle gifted her a “really nice denim skirt, some little handmade things, and a lovely card,” she grins. “I teared up because she always has a way with words.” An admitted Myers Briggs aficionado, she’s a classic INFP, crying from birthday cards. “I only get emotional reading specific cards,” she rebuttals. “I always cry whenever I see my mom and sister’s handwriting.”
But that was only the start to a day full of festivities. Upon heading to work later that afternoon, she was “a little sus” after her manager called the team to meet in the basement — as you can guess, an unusual spot to conduct business. To cut a long story short: They did, in fact, surprise her with name-embellished balloons and a cake. “I was moved,” she says. “I don’t know if it’s just me, but I feel we’ve become such a family.” Once back home, she walked into yet another (and this time, proper) surprise from Danielle. There was another cake upon arrival and 미역국 (miyeokguk), traditional seaweed soup that’s a staple for Korean birthdays. “I had no idea Dani was still at home,” she says. So, you had three cakes for your birthday? I ask. “Yes — and she made the last one herself!” she chuckles.
In addition to an influx of cake, Marsh’s 24th year will include her debut as a musician, with her first single “42” out October 16. It’s a lot of “firsts” for Marsh, who admits that our hour-and-a-half conversation is her first-ever sit-down interview. She’s understandably nervous at the start, tugging at the sleeves of her black cutout blouse, but she quickly melts into a cool-and-calm, girl-next-door demeanor — all thick Aussie accent and friendly smiles.
Marsh’s surprise-filled birthday is an exception to her usually jam-packed schedule, spending most of her time over the past few months gearing up for her highly-anticipated solo debut. Her venture comes a month after dropping major news: She’s the first artist to sign with MPLIFY, a new Warner Music Korea subsidiary “designed to support Korean artists with global reach, focusing on English-language music to connect with international audiences,” per a press release.
Leading the label is executive producer Samuel Ku, a music producer who Marsh met at a K-pop songwriting camp while she worked as a freelance topliner at the time. The two bonded as they wrote melodies and lyrics for other artists earlier this year. After, Ku nudged Marsh to consider releasing original music. “The first thing he asked me — and he’s asked me this so many times since then — is: ‘Have you got a story to tell?’” she says. Ultimately, Marsh took up Ku’s offer, admiring his genuine passion for artistry and his long-time experience in the industry, but the decision came with much contemplation. “I sat on it for a long time because I’m a bit shy,” she says. “But I thought, ‘I’d love to write my own stuff’ and that it’d be an amazing opportunity. It’s weird because I keep thinking back like, ‘How did I get here?’”
In hindsight, Marsh’s arrival to this very moment was predestined. But up until now, she’s kept things lowkey — that is, aside from a near-skeleton artist profile, clips and cameos in Danielle’s vlogs, and a recent soundbite from a 30-second interview on what music means to her (She says: “It’s an emotion you can’t replicate in any other way.”). She’s now setting her timid nature aside to face the crowd, taking a cold plunge into the abyss — in this case, musical stardom, however it chooses to present itself.
Marsh was born in Sydney, Australia, to a Korean mother and an Australian father. At three years old, her family moved to Newcastle — a quaint coastal city in New South Wales that overlooks Lake Macquarie — to be closer to her dad’s side of the family. “Mac” is where her sister Danielle would be born five years later, a place she calls home, and what would eventually become the inspiration for “42.” In the sweet, down-tempo ballad, Marsh looks back at memories made in her childhood home as she embarks on a new journey of self-discovery and the unknown.
When she was 10 years old, her family temporarily relocated to Paju, South Korea, 30 minutes away from Seoul; her mom insisted that her two daughters learn Korean and experience the culture firsthand. Marsh’s first stint lasted three years, and much of her early memories consist of her time in primary school. Without a firm grasp of the language back then, she recounts sitting next to her mom in class to translate lessons. “It was embarrassing because I was the only kid with their mom,” she says. Still, she looks back at that time with gratitude for her parents’ decision: “Otherwise, I wouldn’t have this connection to Korea as I do now,” she says. “I’m so grateful for that period [in my life] because I ended up learning the language and falling more in love with Korean culture.”
Reality television programs, or variety shows as they’re commonly referred to in South Korea, documented Marsh’s childhood in Paju. It mainly focused on Danielle’s perspective, who modeled and acted at the time. “Dani did a lot of that stuff and loved it — she was so good at it,” she says. Marsh, on the other hand, often shied away from the cameras. She eventually made a cameo on the SBS docuseries 내 마음의 크레파스 (translating to My Heart’s Crayon) which captured the sisters adjusting to “their mom’s country” at a young age. It would also catapult the two into meme stardom 13 years later. A quick scroll through #NewJeans on TikTok features moments from the show; a 15-second clip with 2.4 million views shows a then-10-year-old Olivia crying as her mom warns her not to be late to school and a tiny Danielle, mischievously smirking, as if to further poke at her sister’s distress.
Marsh had no idea it’d gone viral. “I don’t remember exactly why I was crying — you know, kids cry about the most stupid and random of things,” she defends herself, her cheeks flushed. “I begged the producers not to use that clip because I was so embarrassed when they shot it, but obviously they’re going to use it. I would, too, if I were producing the show!”
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Marsh’s family moved back to Newcastle by her last year of primary school. During that time, she juggled piano lessons, which she started at five, and vocal lessons at 13, along with dance and art. She later attended a performing arts high school, where she discovered her passion for performing and composing. Her school’s curriculum also included frequent showcases in front of large crowds — because of it, she admits she may or may not have ditched her studies at times to focus more of her energy on them. “I just knew this is what I wanted to spend my time doing,” she says.
Marsh decided to pursue film scoring post-graduation, falling deeper in love with the whole realm of music and how it made her feel. She notes composers like Steve Japlonsky, Danny Elfman, Hans Zimmer, and Studio Ghibli’s Joe Hisaishi. While her mom and sister decided to move back to Korea, Marsh stayed put in Australia to attend the University of Melbourne in 2019, where she majored in Interactive Composition, a cross-art music course that offered classes in sound design for films, art installations, dance, and more. “I wanted to create music that could move people like they do in movies,” she says.
Her family embarked on an 11-hour road trip to Melbourne, dropping Marsh off the school’s dormitory. “I cried that day and into the next day because it was the first time on my own and I was really lonely at first,” she says. Her first year was exactly as she hoped for: collaborative and exciting, an experience that nurtured her creativity.
Marsh leaned on a diverse range of artists for inspiration in and out of the classroom, crediting musicians like Tame Impala, Kendrick Lamar, Phoebe Bridgers, John Denver, ABBA, Emotional Oranges, and Sabrina Claudio. She was also influenced by Korean artists, particularly second-gen K-pop groups including T-ARA, Girls’ Generation, Big Bang, and 2NE1 — artists that unlock a core memory from her time in Korea.
College was an opportunity to grow into adulthood in a new, bustling city. In her free time, she wandered around unfamiliar grounds, inhaling Melbourne’s coffee culture and art scene. “I would step out of the house by myself and walk around for the whole day and not get bored,” she says. She fell in love with the city.
Unfortunately, Marsh’s college experience was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Like most of the world at the start of 2020, Melbourne experienced lockdown, which forced students — and a then-19-year-old Marsh — to move to online classes. The pandemic was a period of isolation and the unprecedented, leaving Marsh feeling frustrated. “On one hand, I definitely learned a lot about myself, but I lost a bit of the drive I once had,” she says. “I thought, ‘I’m here [in Melbourne] by myself. What’s the point?’ I’m still grateful, but I don’t know — I have a love-hate relationship with that time in my life.”
What manifested from that period of uncertainty were new beginnings, and joining her family in Korea was a priority. “When I moved to Seoul [in 2021], I didn’t expect to go into the music scene at all,” she says. “I actually moved because I spent two years without any family close to me, and I realized I never wanted to spend any more time apart from them like that again.”
Marsh kicked off her move as a freelance songwriter for Korean artists. In a short time, and prior to signing with MPLIFY, she padded her resume by writing for some of Korea’s top talents. Her moniker, Livy (a nickname that those closest call her) would grace songs such as Kep1er’s “Shooting Star” and “Last Carnival,” Loosemble’s “Sensitive,” and the eponymous debut title track for K-pop rookies Bad Villain. She also composed “Emptiness” for early-aughts icon BoA, among others. (Earlier this year, she’d used her Korean name, Gyuna, for her first soundtrack single “Lava” for the Korean drama, Hide.)
Songwriting sessions “never get boring” for Marsh. She walks me through it all: After she’s given a beat, she pins down a melody and chops it up, bouncing ideas on the mic before recording a full demo version and sending it off to a producer to mix and then pitch it to entertainment agencies. It also comes with lots of late nights, delirious moments and all. She recounts a story of wrapping up six songs at 3 a.m. with two other producers. The trio were so fatigued, they scarfed down leftover chocolate cake from her mom’s birthday (without forks, she adds) and a massive box of Korean fried chicken.
The pivotal moment in her songwriting career came by chance, and in a near-desperate attempt to keep herself busy post-lockdown. One day, a producer let Marsh “have a go at top lining,” when writers provide a melody and lyrics for a beat or instrumental track, leading to more opportunities over time. “If you told me a year ago that I would be doing this, I wouldn’t have believed it,” she says. “I had a very strong interest in K-pop because my sister does it, but also I love K-pop so much, and I was always in awe of songwriters.”
The four-minute accompanying music video for “42” is a compilation of memories over the past 24 years of Marsh’s life, pieced together as if constantly hitting the rewind button on a VHS tape. An official music video version for the track comes weeks later, the musician finding herself in a trance. Her voice hums over a mellow guitar acoustic, sprinkled with melancholy as she yearns, “Through the downpour and morning dew/You’re the one I don’t wanna lose.” She then loops: “Skimming stones/When you feel the waves/Meet at 42/Unbeknown, something’s leading you home/When all the petals fall, I’ll care for you.”
“‘42’ is about how that house makes me feel warm inside,” she says. “It’s about the little memories I had as a child that are special to me and ones I cherish till this day.” The track is one of many songs written in songwriting sessions and stashed away in her phone’s notes app. She knew she wanted “42” to be part of her discography as she felt personally connected to it, imagining the track being brought to life with her vocals. “I knew that if I ever released music, I wanted to release this song.”
“42” is also a soft-launch of more tracks to come out, eventually leading up to an all-English EP (The official rollout plan is still under embargo, I’m told). “My upcoming album consists of songs that I’ve written at songwriting camp, and is a diary of my three years living in Korea,” she says. “There are a lot of different influences and genres to expect — some Hip-Hop and R&B, and — my favorite — folk.” She denies rumors of Danielle being featured on her upcoming album, though she has played her sister the EP, and she’s a fan of “42” especially. And in terms of releasing songs in Korean, it's not completely off the table. “I would love to do some in Korean if I get the opportunity,” she says. “I mean, my pronunciation isn’t the best. I’ve done Korean covers and written songs with Korean lyrics before and I’ve noticed that I always struggle with pronunciation.”
Her debut comes with tons of support from fans, and kind words from her family meant the world. “My mom — I wouldn’t say she’s critical, but I value her opinion the most,” she tells me. “I was very nervous playing my songs for her, but one thing about my mom is if she says she likes something, I know she means it, and she loved my songs on the EP.”
It’s hard to ignore that Marsh’s release also comes at a difficult time. Her sister has skyrocketed to fame following the debut of K-pop mega girl group NewJeans in 2022. The quintet was formed by ADOR, a label under the K-pop conglomerate HYBE, and a massive shake-up at the subsidiary has been the drama du jour since April. ADOR’s former CEO, Min Heejin, has been publicly publicly trading “he-said-she-saids” with HYBE executives after leaving her position; the five members aired their grievances in a now-deleted YouTube video, and member Hanni recently testified before the Environment and Labor Committee of South Korea’s National Assembly as part of an audit on workplace harassment in the entertainment industry. (Notably, the situation is moving quickly, and NewJeans is reportedly considering next steps.)
Meanwhile, Warner Music Korea, the parent company of Marsh’s label, is also embroiled in an ongoing feud in the industry. In September, fellow Korean music label Attrakt filed a 20 billion won (more than $14 million) lawsuit against WMK for allegedly attempting to poach now-former members of K-pop girl group FIFTY FIFTY, per Korea JoongAng Daily.
Marsh knows that times are heated, and not everyone will be supportive of her debut.
“Everyone has the right to their own opinion,” she says. “Not everyone is going to love you, which is something that I have to accept. I can’t say that I don’t care about it because I do — it’s human to care about those things. I personally try not to look at [the negative comments], but I do take a little peek.” When it comes to NewJeans, Marsh admits she doesn’t know much. “It’s complicated over there. I don’t even have a full grasp [of the situation], if I’m completely honest,” she says. “I can't say much about the situation. I don’t know any details, but I support my sister with whatever she does. All I want is the best for her and I’m just praying for the girls. I love her to death — that’s my baby.”
In the days following our interview, Marsh jetted off to SXSW Sydney to attend a panel and perform her single live. In between her releases, she’s uploading covers and reading books in her downtime. (She loves a good fantasy book, but she’s currently reading How to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie.) She plans to check off some of her career goals, too, many of which are in songwriting.
“I would love to get into beat making, mixing, and mastering,” she says. “At the moment, I only do my own vocal production, but I would love to get to the point where I am able to do the full production on my own songs. I also want to have a go at film scoring, but I’d be happy just to get a glimpse at the process!”
For now, Marsh is enjoying the ride. She’s just getting started in many ways, but every moment of her journey so far has felt like a rollercoaster inching closer and closer to the top. “It’s propelling forward very fast,” she says. “I’m still mentally trying to catch up to it.”
