Kylie Minogue reveals the secret to her longevity in the music industry
She joined Harriet Scott on Magic Radio
Last updated 29th Sep 2023
Pop Princess Kylie Minogue joined Harriet Scott on Magic Radio, for a Kylie Minogue Special on Wednesday evening (27th September), where she opened up about her brand new album 'Tension', but also chatted about her early days in the music business.
Kylie has just released her 16th album 'Tension', which features her summer anthem 'Padam Padam', along with 10 other tracks, many of which we played on the show.
As fans will know, Kylie started out as Charlene Mitchell (later Robinson), on Australian soap Neighbours, before she entered the world of pop music, with her huge hits 'I Should Be So Lucky', and 'The Loco-Motion' in 1987.
In 2020, Kylie became the first female artist to get Number 1 albums in five consecutive decades, so Harriet asked her what she thought the secret to her longevity was.
"I think what has been really helpful for me is that I just am very curious and I love to be inspired by what's around me," she explained. "I love to be malleable and adaptable and shape shift, and these are things that were perhaps spun as negatives for me for a little while and I just didn't understand that, because it's very natural to me to move through the times.
"And sometimes it's worked better than others, but I'll always give something a go. So yeah, just to try and keep pushing myself, I suppose. Sometimes it's insanity.
She added: "I love being creative and trying something new."
Who wrote the song 'Tension'?
Kylie also told Harriet about the fun process of writing the title track of the album 'Tension'. Talking about the words, she said: "They're a little frisky! When we wrote this song, it just... I was with my kind of dream team with these three guys I work with regularly and had two women join us for the day.
“So there was this crazy female energy and Kamille and Anya just brought so much to the table. And this song just revealed itself, and I actually turned to Kamille at one point, and I said: ‘Did you say “almost there?” She was like “Ah ha!”
Kylie continued: "All the kind of yelling and celebration that you hear in the song is us from the day we were writing, we're all, you know, jumping around and all going crazy.
"So it's from me, I'll always think of that day of the creation of the song and the fact that it's you know that the title track of the album, second single, again, people are loving it and just kind of diving into to what it offers. So that's ‘Tension'."
What advice would Kylie give her younger self?
With such a huge back catalogue of songs, Harriet also asked the 'Spinning Around' singer what advice she would give her younger self. "It's a good question and I kind of need to ruminate on it for longer than I ever do in an interview, I kind of panic and think of and try and think of an answer," Kylie explained.
"I can get quite emotional thinking about what I what advice I would give my younger self starting out, I think the overarching theme would be: 'You're going to be OK. Trust yourself. Listen to your voice and your thoughts and trust your instinct.'"
She continued: "We all have instinct for a good reason, and we kind of sometimes just don't listen to it enough. Stand your ground, have fun because it's going to just fly by. I'm happy with where I'm at, I don't think I actually would have listened to anything... I was pretty feisty, or you know you, you just learn things at the rate you're meant to learn them.
"So yeah. But I would probably just want to say ‘you're going to be right, have fun’, and ‘don't spend anymore time than you need to being anxious’."
When was Kylie Minogue on Magic Radio?
Kylie was on a special show with Harriet Scott, which was on air at 7pm on Magic Radio. Listen again here.
You can hear songs by Kylie Minogue on Magic.
Take a look through celebrities who started out on Neighbours:
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue needs no introduction. After appearing in Neighbours as Charlene Robinson (née Mitchell) between 1986 and 1988, she went on to become a hugely successful pop star, as well as appearing some films along the way.
Kylie's first UK single was 'I Should Be So Lucky' in 1987 which was an instant hit with fans going to Number 1. Many albums and Top 10 hits followed over the years, including 'Especially For You', her duet with former co-star and on-screen husband Jason Donovan.
As of 2023, Kylie has now announced her 16th studio album called 'Tension', and released the first single from it called 'Padam Padam'.
Jason Donovan
Like his former co-star Kylie Minogue, Jason Donovan appeared on Neighbours in the late 80s playing the role of Scott Robinson.
He then went on to release several albums and had Top 10 hits with 'Nothing Can Divide Us', 'Too Many Broken Hearts', 'Any Dream Will Do' and of course 'Especially For You', with Kylie.
Jason went on to pursue a career in musicals playing the role of Joseph in the West End hit Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, which he performed at the 2022 Jubilee celebrations outside Buckingham Palace.
The actor has also worked as a radio presenter and appeared on the 13th series of Dancing on Ice, paired with Alexandra Schauman, however he withdrew from the competition due to injury in week six.
Chris Hemsworth
Best known as the Hollywood actor who played Thor, Chris Hemsworth actually appeared in Neighbours for 18 episodes back in 2002.
After leaving Neighbours he went on to star in Home & Away for a massive 189 episodes as Kim Hyde, before moving onto Hollywood blockbusters such as Thor, Avengers and other Marvel films.
He's also worked as producer, on the Netflix film Extraction where he played the role of Tyler Rake, a sequel of which is due for release this year.
Liam Hemsworth
Starring as Josh Taylor in Neighbours for just 19 episodes in 2007/2008, Liam Hemsworth went on to star in several main film roles including Gale Hawthorne in The Hunger Games film series, and Jake Morrison in Independence Day: Resurgence.
He is also set to take over the role of Geralt of Rivia from Henry Cavill in The Witcher, when it returns for a fourth season.
Margot Robbie
Playing the role of Donna Freedman in Neighbours between 2008 and 2011, Margot Robbie went on to become a hugely successful actor, on both TV and film.
Some of Margot's biggest roles include starring as Harley Quinn in Suicide Squad and several other films, Tonya Harding in I, Tonya, and the upcoming film Barbie, where she will play the lead role Barbie.
Guy Pearce
Guy Pearce, who played the role of Mike Young in Neighbours between 1986 and 1989, reprised his role for the finale in 2022, but has now been announced to reprise his role once again in the new series.
After leaving Neighbours the first time, Guy went on to become a successful film actor appearing in The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert, Memento, The Time Machine remake and The King's Speech.
In 2011, Guy won a Primetime Emmy Award for his work in Todd Haynes' limited series Mildred Pierce as Monty Berago.
Away from acting, he has also released two albums, the most recent in 2018.
Natalie Imbruglia
Natalie Imbruglia played the role of Beth Brennan on Neighbours in the early 90s.
Three years after leaving the soap, Natalie released her debut song 'Torn' which was incredibly popular, being a Top 5 hit around the world and even receiving a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.
Natalie continued to have success into the 2000s with songs such as 'Big Mistake', 'Smoke', 'Shiver', and 'Glorious' all Top 40 hits.
She's also appeared on several TV shows, including joining The X Factor UK and Australian editions, and taking part in The Masked Singer in 2022, which she won as Panda.
Holly Valance
Holly Candy, better known as Holly Valance, appeared as Felicity Scully on Neighbours between 1999 and 2002.
In the year that she left Neighbours she also released her debut song 'Kiss Kiss' which was a huge hit, going to Number 1 in the UK.
As well as having three Top 10 songs, Holly appeared in several TV shows including Prison Break, and Strictly Come Dancing, as well as the film Taken which starred Liam Neeson.
Russell Crowe
Russell Crowe appeared in just four episodes of Neighbours back in 1987, when he played the former cellmate of Henry Ramsey.
He later went on to be a hugely successful actor appearing in films such as Gladiator, The Mummy, Les Misérables and Thor: Love and Thunder.
Alan Dale
Alan Dale played the role of Jim Robinson for many years, the first time between 1985 and 1993, then returning in 2018 and 2019.
After leaving Neighbours the first time, Alan appeared in several TV shows and films such as The X-Files, Ugly Betty, Dominion, Dynasty, Star Trek: Nemesis and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
Delta Goodrem
Despite being signed to Sony Music at the age of 15, Delta Goodrem joined Neighbours three years later and starred as Nina Tucker between 2002 and 2005, 2015, then reprising her role 2022.
Outside of her Neighbours role, Delta is a well-known singer and songwriter having releasing seven albums and 40 singles including 'Born to Try', 'Lost Without You', and 'Almost Here', all Top 5 hits in the UK.
In recent years she continues to release music and have success in her native Australia. She's also appeared in a number of TV shows, mainly as guest roles or judges, such as on Australian Idol, The Voice and The Celebrity Apprentice Australia.
Jesse Spencer
Jesse Spencer starred as Billy Kennedy on Neighbours from 1994 to 2000, and later in 2005 and 2022. After leaving Neighbours he took on the lead role of Robert Chase in the American medical drama House, starring Hugh Laurie.
Following his departure from House in 2012, Jesse went on to star as Captain Matthew Casey in Chicago Fire, and its spin-offs.
Most recently, he is set to appear in Last Days of the Space Age, a Disney+ series about three families who live in Perth, Australia in 1979. Jesse will be starring alongside former Neighbours actor Radha Mitchell.
Radha Mitchell
Starting off in Neighbours back in 1996/1997 as Catherine O'Brien, Radha Mitchell went on to star in several other TV shows and films, most notably Red Widow, Phone Booth, Silent Hill, Olympus Has Fallen and its sequel London Has Fallen.
She is also set to appear in the new Disney+ series Last Days of the Space Age, alongside Jesse Spencer.
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