Cover Olivia Marsh in West Kowloon (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong/Zed Leets)
Olivia Marsh in West Kowloon (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong/Zed Leets)
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South Korean Australian singer-songwriter Olivia Marsh talks about her musical dreams, relationship with her sister Danielle of NJZ, and creating her own unique sound
While they may be sisters, singer-songwriters Olivia Marsh, 24, and Danielle June Marsh, 19, have very different personalities and tastes in music. The younger sister is a member of one of NJZ, the hugely popular K-pop groups formerly known as NewJeans. The older Marsh is a solo artist and performs English songs across musical genres, including pop, contemporary R&B and funk.
And while she may only have released her first digital single, 42, in October last year, the older Marsh is in no rush to catch up. She’s enjoying exploring different cultures and genres as she develops her own voice and style. “I’m still looking for it, and I haven’t settled on what that is yet,” she says.
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Above Olivia Marsh in West Kowloon (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong/Zed Leets)
Olivia Marsh in West Kowloon (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong/Zed Leets)
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She was in Hong Kong to perform at West Kowloon on March 19 as part of her Meanwhile in Asia tour, which also included stops in Bangkok, Taipei, Kuala Lumpur and Seoul. As well as performing songs from her EP Meanwhile, which was released in February, she sang a cover of a Canto-pop song. “I haven’t had much experience with the Hong Kong music scene, but I’m so interested in diving in, because I’m interested in music from different cultures,” she says. “What I love about this tour is how I’m learning different songs from the places I go to.”
Her cosmopolitan background meant she was exposed to music across cultures and genres from an early age; she was born in Sydney to an Australian father and Korean mother, who both love music. “[Being of mixed heritage] definitely has an impact on my music, but I feel I don’t realise it, because being Korean and Australian is just who I am,” she says. She spent her early childhood listening to Swedish pop group Abba, American country and folk singer John Denver and Australian psychedelic band Tame Impala, whose music her parents would constantly play at home.
Above Olivia Marsh (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong/Zed Leets)
Olivia Marsh (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong/Zed Leets)
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At 10, Marsh and her family moved to South Korea, where she reconnected with her mother’s family and culture. She began listening to K-pop, citing T-ara and Big Bang as some of her favourite discoveries. Then, of course, when her sister joined NewJeans in 2022, she was a huge supporter, and became a fan of musicians the band worked with, such as American R&B and pop duo Emotional Oranges. Her interest expanded into singing and composing songs with her sister, then returning to Australia to study composition at the University of Melbourne.
Marsh finds inspiration for her music from daily life, her family and relationships, and other musicians she admires. “When I listen to music that I love, I gain a lot of energy, especially when I’m feeling down. I find hope and healing through different songs,” she says. “I always hope that, through my music, people can find that similar connection and be able to [process] their thoughts or calm down if they’re feeling stressed.”
After graduation, she started working as a K-pop songwriter, and contributed to tracks such as Kep1er’s Happy Ending (2023), BoA’s Emptiness (2024), Whee In’s Coco Water (2024) and Oh My Girl’s Sway (You & I) (2024). In March 2024, she lent her voice to singing Lava for the K-drama Hide, under the alias Gyuna.
Above Olivia Marsh (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong/Zed Leets)
Olivia Marsh (Photo: Tatler Hong Kong/Zed Leets)
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Then in September 2024, when Warner Music Korea unveiled its new label Mplify, set up to support Korean artists, she became the first artist to sign with it. This gave her the space and resources she needed to explore her own style beyond K-pop. Her debut single 42, released in October 2025, is a dreamy, warm tribute to childhood memories. Then came her first EP, Meanwhile, in February this year, which features tracks inspired by the mid-tempo style of the early-2000s and captures the range of emotions she experienced in the two years it took to write the music.
As for what’s next: “I would love to write and sing in Korean, but my pronunciation isn’t as good as English, so I’m working on it,” she says. She also wants to continue touring. “I’m thinking of performing more in Seoul and my hometown in Australia. I’m very open at the moment and excited to experience a lot of different things.”
And she says Meanwhile is only the beginning. “This EP mixes lots of different genres and styles,” she says. “That, for me, is my starting point, because I am still finding my own sound, who I am and what I love.”
Credits
Photography Assistant: Carlos Hui
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Zabrina is the Senior Editor, Arts and Culture of Tatler Hong Kong. She specialises in performing arts, visual art and film. Her wanderlust was first fuelled by the Mighty Rovers Antarctica Expedition 2010. Over the years, she has interviewed A-list artists and filmmakers, including Oscar winners Chlóe Zhao and Tim Yip, Golden Horse winner Sylvia Chang, In the Mood for Love cinematographer Christopher Doyle, Pachinko author Min Jin Lee, and Coachella’s first Chinese solo singer Jackson Wang. She won gold at the WAN-IFRA Asian Media Awards for her 2021 feature on the waves of hate crimes targeting Asian Americans.
