The Super Nonserious, Nonsensical Versace Boys
The Versace Boys were born in the back of a gold-plated Porsche parked at the Versace Palace on the Goldie. They grew up only eating with silver spoons and often crashing expensive automobiles their parents bought for them. They realised young that they weren’t only made for the world of fashion but that they could also write sick bangers.
The Versaces, who met at a Sticky Fingers concert in Berlin 2019, have been writing music together ever since. The VBs, Will Henderson and Alex Johnson, are the richest and most famous influencers in all of Byron Bay and the multiverses, and last week they deigned to let Seven into their inner sanctum; aka Will’s bathroom in ol’ Mullum town…
What’s happening today for the Versace Boys?
Will: We’ve just released a brand new track, ‘Perfek’. We wrote it with a really cool producer called Miggy. He’s from Sydney and we just did a film clip out near the treehouse on the front lawn. And we’re gonna make another one. Hopefully at The Banya and stuff like that. Yep. We have about 20 tracks ready to go this year. So we’re trying to get through that. We’ve got two albums ready.
Are you famous yet?
Will: We’re getting a lot of reach on our Instagram at the moment. Yeah, we’re getting like 30,000 people, we’re reaching 2,000 people a month, which is pretty cool. That’s the most we’ve ever reached. We just played three really big festivals: Party in the Paddock in Tasmania, Esoteric Festival in Victoria and Gravity Festival.
Will, you are in Mullum – where do you live Alex?
Alex: Where do I live? I moved here from Wollongong in a van. I met Will while I was living in a van in Berlin in Germany, and then we met up again here and I moved here. In my van.
You’re still living in your van?
Alex: No, I live in Suffolk Park.
Tell me about all your costumes
Will: We love dressing up. All of our clothes are costumes basically.
Alex: This one came from the tip-shop in Mullum.
Will: It immediately puts you in a different space – us AND the audience. It puts EVERYONE in really weird space. Kind of outside yourself. It’s like jumping off a springboard.
It’s like we’re satirical people. And we sort of use all of the elements of wherever we are to create songs about what’s going on in the society or whatever.
Alex: Everyone’s been giving us beautiful things to wear, which is super nice.
Will: Lots of alcohol brands have started talking to us – we’ve never been offered so many things. We have become tinfluencers you know, they give us so much beer to influence [yes you saw it first here in The Echo – TINfluencer!]
What’s awesome about the Laneway Festival?
Will: We’re excited. The biggest thing in Mullum this year is the Laneways Festival.
Alex: This is where we will launch ‘Perfek’ – launched at Laneways!
Will: And we’ve got our big band, which is gonna be really cool.
Do you like the idea of being local and playing a local festival?
Alex: Yeah we love it, we love Mullum – we’d also love a gig at the Middle Pub…
Will: …and a lifetime membership at The Banya.
Are the Versace Boys having enough fun?
Alex: Yeah, yeah, we are.
Will: I actually have been having too much. It’s been a crazy, crazy summer and I need to cool down. It’s been too much fun, which was great, but I’ve been on a bit of a detox for this month, which is really good…
You can see the Versace Boys in some pretty incredible costumes at Mullum’s Laneway Festival this weekend – visit: kaleidomullumbimby.org.au for more information.
