What has Casey Barnes been up to lately? OR Not Jimmy Barnes’s Daughter

Join Cheryl Lee - That Radio Chick on STILL ROCKIN' IT for news, reviews, music and interviews with some of our favourite Australian musicians.

Ever wondered what makes an iconic Australian music festival truly unforgettable? Join me, Cheryl Lee, on the Still Rockin' It podcast as we recount the electrifying experience at the Mundy Mundy Bash in Broken Hill. 

From headline performances by James Reyne, Jon Stevens, and The Living End, to the Nutbush World Record Attempt, this episode captures the magic of a festival that celebrated music and community spirit. 

This episode features an exclusive chat with Australian country rock star Casey Barnes in the artist green room. With eight studio albums and numerous awards, including ARIA and Golden Guitar honors, Casey shares stories from his adventurous career, the thrill of performing at legendary festivals, and the camaraderie among artists. 

Whether you're a seasoned fan or new to his music, this conversation is a must-listen. 

Don’t forget to check out the fun and photos on my Facebook page and catch performance videos on YouTube!

What has Casey Barnes been up to lately?  Let's find out!!

Get out when you can, support local music and I'll see you down the front!!

Visit:  ThatRadioChick.com.au

Transcript

Cheryl Lee 0:02

That radio chick, Cheryl Lee, here. Welcome to the Still Rockin' It podcast, where we'll have music news, reviews and interviews with some of our favourite Australian musicians and artists. We have been so lucky to attend the Mundi Mundi Bash at Broken Hill with a line-up of the likes of James Reyne, Jon Stevens, the Living End, Ian Moss, Daryl Braithwaite, Diesel, Tim Finn, Baby Animals, Vanessa Amorosi, Mark Seymour, Tex Perkins, Tim Rogers, Richard Clapton, Casey Barnes, Chocolate Starfish. Other amazing activities, including the Nutbush World Record Attempt, raising funds and awareness for the Royal Flying Doctors Service. The Mad Max World Record Attempt Set in 2022, the record for the most Mad Max characters gathered in one place. The Big Blue Day, where we created a new world record and raised a lot of money for Beyond Blue, where we set the new world record for the largest human image of a country. And, of course, the Mundi Undi Run, also raising money for the Royal Flying Doctor Service and absolutely hilarious.

Cheryl Lee 1:15

We were lucky enough to catch up with Australian country rock singer-songwriter Casey Barnes between his set and his racing to sign merch with his legion of fans. What an amazing career. He has 8 studio albums, including his new one, Mayday. Check it out. He's won a couple of APRA awards, an ARIA Music Award, Country Music Awards, a couple of Golden Guitar Awards. On top of that, he's a super nice guy who we caught up in the artist green room, so it was a little bit noisy and had a great chat. You can see all the fun and photos on the Cheryl Lee Crabtree Facebook page, or go to Still Rockin' it, that Radio Chick on YouTube for some artist performance videos as well. To catch up on podcasts from other favourite artists, simply go to thatradiochick. com. au. You're with Cheryl Lee that radio chick and we are at the Mundi Mundi Bash. And I'd like to introduce everybody to a man who probably needs no introduction out here in the country Casey Barnes. Thanks for sitting down and having a chat with us today.

Casey Barnes 2:23

My pleasure. It's good to be here. This is going to be a pretty incredible day, I think.

Cheryl Lee 2:27

Yes, a Tassie boy. So this is quite different.

Casey Barnes 2:29

The weather here this is quite different, A little different, I've got to say. But I grew up in Tassie for the first half of my life. Now I live in Currumbin up on the Goldie, so I'm a little more accustomed to the warmer weather.

Casey Barnes 2:42

Oh, you're a bit acclimatised. But I must admit I totally messed up, because we just did the big red bash a few weeks ago, yep, and I thought, well, we're going out to the desert, I'm going to take my shorts and my singlets and all that sort of stuff, and it was arctic cold, absolutely frozen. So I've done the opposite. Here I'm like well, I'd better rug up, because Big Red Bash was pretty cold and it's boiling. So I'm an absolute idiot.

Cheryl Lee 3:05

But no, you weren't the only one. Let me tell you, we've all done it.

Casey Barnes 3:09

Because you never know what you're going to get. But you know it's great. I guess the weather is pretty perfect today.

Cheryl Lee 3:16

We just need a lot of sunscreen out there, us punters.

Casey Barnes 3:19

True, true.

Cheryl Lee 3:19

So is this your first, second, third, bash.

Casey Barnes 3:23

This is my first. We've wanted to play this festival, I reckon, for the last 10 years. It's one of those iconic Australian festivals that there's nothing else like it. So you know, it's been one of those ones where we're just so grateful to be part of it. Mark Krasowski and the whole team do such a great job, so we're stoked.

Cheryl Lee 3:43

Well, I'm a Mundi Mundi Virgin as well, so we're both first timers. Yeah, look out. So, from seventh season of idol in 2009 to Aria, best country album a couple of years ago congratulations, that's a bit of a journey it is.

Casey Barnes 4:01

It sure is. Yeah, man, if someone had told me that, even that as a kid, that I'd win an aria and golden guitars and that sort of thing, I've no way in the world I would have believed that was going to happen. But yeah, super grateful. It's been one of those I guess stories where you've you've just got to work at it and, um, I've been lucky enough to do it for over 20 years and overnight success after 20 years of hard work absolutely, but, yeah, very grateful.

Casey Barnes 4:24

And now we get to play these big festivals like this one. Um, we just came back from America, played the biggest festival in the world, the biggest country music festival in the world, over there called Stagecoach, and that was 75,000.

Cheryl Lee 4:36

So there's 14,000 at this day and that's massive. Yeah, oh my God, 75,000.

Casey Barnes 4:40

You get on stage and as far as the eye can see, it's just people. And it was unbelievable. It was so good.

Cheryl Lee 4:47

I just can't fathom that. It's pretty special, were you nervous?

Casey Barnes 4:50

we were shitting our pants. Yes, we were, but it was great.

Cheryl Lee 5:02

Yeah, I bet.

Casey Barnes 5:02

So I was just wondering, Casey, is music in your DNA? Are you from a musical family? Yeah, I am. Mum and Dad played musical, my mum more in particular. She played guitar and piano and sang. If we'd have a to, if we'd have like a family gathering, it would always be get the, get the guitar out and have a sing-along. And I'd get paid you know 20 cents to to get up and sing a song. And when I was you know five or whatever it was. But yeah, it had a lot to do with my family and, um, you know they had this incredible record collection of all sorts of different music. So I sort of got influenced, you know, everything from country through to pop and rock, and it's probably had a lot to do with influencing my own music.

Cheryl Lee 5:39

Now, I reckon yes, do you have any siblings? Are they musical?

Casey Barnes 5:43

I do and it's pretty cool. Both my daughters, 11 and 16 they have both gravitated to music. My wife's a singer as well, and my 16 year old has finally got up enough courage to sing with me and we actually posted something.

Cheryl Lee 5:57

I saw that.

Casey Barnes 5:58

It's beautiful. Yeah, she's going to be a little superstar, I reckon.

Cheryl Lee 6:02

So it definitely is in the family genetics, isn't it? It's somewhere in there, it's definitely in there.

Casey Barnes 6:07

But yeah, they're both really talented, so we'll see what happens.

Cheryl Lee 6:12

Maybe they'll end up on the big stage with you.

Casey Barnes 6:14

Honestly I reckon I'd cry if that happened. That song that we posted the other day we've already had a bunch of fans say you know, get her up. Next weekend we play the Gimpy Muster.

Cheryl Lee 6:24

Yeah.

Casey Barnes 6:24

And if I could get her on stage, I reckon it would make my year.

Cheryl Lee 6:28

So we'll see we'll see. Baby Steps. It could be like another famous Barnes family

Casey Barnes 6:38

Well, I've been mistaken as one of Jimmy's children many, many times, in fact, probably.

Cheryl Lee 6:43

Actually, you do look a bit like David. I'll take it.

Casey Barnes 6:46

No, probably the funniest one was the first big break I got in music. Funnily enough, it was thanks to Mark Krustowski, who's the guy who is largely to do with the Mundi Mundi Bash. And back in 2005, it was a lot to do with giving me my first big break opening for Bryan Adams. And yeah, it was a lot to do with giving me my first big break opening for Bryan Adams and, yeah, it was pretty funny he thought you were a Barnes.

Casey Barnes 7:06

Well, no, I think he got sick of me pestering him for getting a gig. But it was pretty cool because before we came out on stage, the crowd had never. They didn't know who I was, they'd never seen me, and you know, the MC's come out on stage and said ladies and gentlemen, we've got this new Australian talent, Casey Barnes, and my wife's in the crowd. There's a bunch of people all sitting around, crowd's gone wild and there's these girls in front of my wife and they're like oh, this is Casey Barnes, it's Jimmy Barnes' daughter, she's awesome, she's so good and so, yeah, that was pretty funny.

Cheryl Lee 7:49

We had to break the ice to them after the first song that we weren't Jimmy Barney not actually related, but anyway, yeah, it wasn't long enough, exactly, exactly. Oh, how are we going for time, baz, okay, um, so you're obviously a country music lover and that's quite clear. But when you're alone in your car and you can listen to whatever you like, got any secret passions. What do you like to listen to?

Casey Barnes 8:08

Oh, jeez, if I'm in the car and I'm doing a road trip and I can just sing at the top of my lungs and know that it doesn't matter if it's crap, I'll put on Toto, like Rosanna, or Hold the Wine or Africa, and I will just sing it as loud as I can. But apart from that, I've really gravitated. There's this new pop artist. Her name's Chappell Roan. Mark my words. Within the next six, 12 months, she's going to be the biggest pop star in the world.

Cheryl Lee 8:36

You heard it first here.

Casey Barnes 8:38

Chappell Roan. There it is.

Cheryl Lee 8:40

So no secret, like Tay-Tay.

Casey Barnes 8:45

No, both my daughters love Tay Tay, so we took her. Harry Styles I reckon both my daughters love Harry Styles as well. So we got tickets and we were really lucky. When we were going through the gate, somehow we got singled out by some of the staff and they gave us front row tickets to go to Harry Styles. And so, yeah, it was a pretty incredible experience and I've got to say he's yeah, he's a superstar.

Cheryl Lee 9:11

We have three daughters, so obviously I had to go to the One Direction concert. Oh yeah, and I think I like him more than the girls do.

Casey Barnes 9:20

Oh, he's just got it. He's got this X factor about him that you know doesn't happen every day. He's pretty special.

Cheryl Lee 9:27

Yeah, not bad. So you are embarking on the Mayday album and tour, so we wish you all the best from here on the tour and with the album. Yeah, and I'll see you down the front, oh thank you very much.

Casey Barnes 9:43

We're stoked yeah, new albums out. We're going to be heading all over the country touring and but, yeah, today's going to be really cool, so looking forward to it and definitely see you soon get onto the google and track down the tickets uh caseybarnes. com. au no relation to Jimmy thank you pleasure, thanks for having me.

Cheryl Lee 10:03

We don't normally dress like this, but I can't take this with me now. Do enjoy the rest of the tour.

Casey Barnes 10:08

Absolutely nice to meet you guys, no worries.

Cheryl Lee 10:13

You won't recognise us. You're with Cheryl Lee, that radio chick. Thank you so much for joining me On the Still Rockin' it podcast. Hope to catch you again next time. Get out when you can support Aussie music and I'll see you down the front.