16-YEAR OLD RORY PHILLIPS RELEASES NEW SINGLE AND VIDEO FOR "BECAUSE BOYS"

An insightful look into the mental health struggles of young men by the 2020 Snowy Valleys Council Young Citizen of the Year

As a general rule, young men don't like to talk about their feelings.  Rory Phillips isn't a rule-breaker by nature, but it's exactly this type of stigma that he's trying to erase with this new single, "Because Boys".

Co-written with 4 x Golden Guitar Winner, Ashleigh Dallas, and fellow graduate of The CMAA Academy, Freddie Bailey, "Because Boys", sees Phillips taking the maturity and conviction from his last offering, "The Truth", to a whole new level.

What started out as a song writing exercise during some time out at The Academy, has taken on a life of its own with Phillips at the helm, guided only by his producer, Roger Corbett (The Bushwackers).

"Ash, Freddie and I set out to write a song together back in July 2021, and this one just came together.  It kind of hit pretty close to home for me though, as I'd lost a friend to suicide about 18 months prior and I'd often wondered if he'd still be here if he'd only reached out and spoken to someone.  We don't like to do that (us boys), but we should.  There's no shame in saying that you're struggling and if this song helps just one young bloke to speak up, then I'll be happy," said Phillips.

"I think it's so refreshing to watch a young artist be confident to share and convey the important message within this song which is all a positive step in the right direction towards change and removing the stigma", says co-writer and Golden Guitar Award winner, Ashleigh Dallas.  "I am really proud of Rory, the artist he is developing into and sharing this song while embracing his own strength in sharing his vulnerability and shining a light on the importance of talking to others about how you feel".

2022 Toyota Star Maker winner and friend, Max Jackson, echoed Ashleigh's words. "I was about 25 when I first started talking about my own mental health journey on stage. The really cool thing about Rory putting this song out now, when he is so young, is that, he's able to share such an important message at a time when it's needed most, when young people are in the thick of growing up, working out who they are and navigating mountains of ever changing emotion … and messages are always best received from someone who we feel understands. Young men will hear this song from Rory and take it like a high five from a mate, rather than a lesson from a teacher".

For this, his sophomore music video, Phillips teamed up with Newcastle-based Jeremy Minett of Ears + Eyes Creative to bring the song to life with the aid of a few new mates.  The video was shot around the Maitland area and shows how boys can connect with and support each other, just by hanging out and spending time doing what they love.

Phillips claims "I probably won't create a music video for every single I release in the future, but the message behind this song was so important that I felt it deserved those extra legs.  I also received some funding through the Songs for Sam Scholarship, which is a local foundation set up by the Roddy family who lost their 18-year-old son and brother to suicide in 2006, so it felt like the video was meant to be and this journey of turning something tragic into something positive was really going full circle."

"Because Boys" is now available online