Sibling duo
Wasia Project are shooting for the moon.
Words:
Jessica Goodman.
Photos:
Tom Pacitti."Did you see Rihanna's Super Bowl performance?!" Talking a few days after the show in question, Olivia Hardy's excitement levels are high. "I've been binge-watching Super Bowl performances recently, and they're just so crazy." Thrilled by the prospect of turning musical performance into something spectacular, her dreams for her own music are easy to convey. "Just to have a full, maximum everything," she grins.
It's a dream she shares with her brother, Will Gao – when he's not working as an actor (most recently in Netflix smash-success Heartstopper) and she's not focused on her studies or performing in an orchestra. Together they form Wasia Project, and the music they're making is magic.
Turning things up to eleven might be a philosophy more typically associated with rock acts, but Wasia Project have never been a band to work within conventions. Both classically trained musicians with a keen affinity for pop, the siblings' ethereal take on alt-pop only gets more exciting with every new song they share.
"We have quite a cool facade, I feel," Will describes of the band. "Much cooler than we actually are." What might look like self-doubt in print is something the duo wear with pride, all smiles as they describe the weird, goofy, and chaotic energy that comes to life when they create together.