Natalie Imbruglia - ‘I love the wisdom of being in my 50s’
6/10/202652 min
*triggers: This episode includes discussion of depression and mental health crises. In 1997 Natalie Imbruglia released her first single, Torn, which sold more than 4 million physical copies worldwide. In her homeland of Australia, it became the most played song on the radio, being played an average of 75 times a day over the two decades following its release. She landed a part in Neighbours in 1985, when she was just 16 years old, and stayed on the hugely popular soap for two years before moving to London. Her first album, Left Of Middle, went multi-platinum. Five further albums followed but it wasn’t always easy: in 2009 she took a six-year break from music to concentrate on acting, appearing on stage and in film and also as a judge on the Australian X Factor. Since then, she has released further music, become a mother to a son and won The Masked Singer. Now she returns with her seventh studio album, Algorithm. We talk about how writing this album coincided with the perimenopause, reflect on her time in Neighbours, her experience of dating apps, going through solo IVF to have her son, the sexism she faced in the music industry, plus the wisdom she has found in her 50s. ✨ IN THIS EPISODE: 03:08 Making Natalie’s new album Algorithm 04:55 Neurodivergence and Menopause 08:59 Death Scrolling 10:47 Dropped by Label 16:07 Neighbors and Rejection 25:35 Dating in Your 30s 27:15 Rejection Builds Clarity 27:37 Choosing Love Over Biology 30:47 IVF Reality Check 34:13 Single Mother Headlines 35:48 Manifesting With Lists 38:11 Living After Torn 43:53 Sexism and Aging Power 💬 QUOTES TO REMEMBER: It doesn't matter who it is, never give your power over to another human being. Never think somebody knows you better than you know yourself. I'm quite good at being the underdog. I find it much scarier to be at the top, waiting to fall off a pedestal. Sometimes the universe is working for you, it just doesn't feel that way at the time. 🔗 LINKS + MENTIONS: Natalie’s latest album, ‘Algorithm’ is to be released on 4th September. Pre-order here: republicofmusic.lnk.to/algorithm Join the How To Fail community: www.howtofail.supportingcast.fm/#content Elizabeth’s Substack: www.theelizabethday.substack.com 📚 WANT MORE? Shania Twain - this episode reflects on a childhood marked by poverty, early fame, loss and self-doubt: swap.fm/l/JyU54nvq2muyBpNFq3B9 Lily Allen - talks about failing to be famous, body image, children, marital breakdown, addiction and songwriting: swap.fm/l/8Otj3tpmbH5SF4xjVHTJ 💌 LOVE THIS EPISODE? Subscribe on Spotify, Apple or wherever you get your podcasts Leave a 5⭐ review – it helps more people discover these stories 👋 Follow How To Fail & Elizabeth: Instagram: @elizabday TikTok: @howtofailpod Podcast Instagram: @howtofailpod Website: www.elizabethday.org Guest bookings for How To Fail only come from official @sonymusic.com emails Elizabeth and Natalie answer listener questions in our subscriber series: www.howtofail.supportingcast.fm/#content Have a failure you’re trying to work through for Elizabeth to discuss? Click here to get in touch: howtofailpod.com Production & Post Production Coordinator: Eric Ryan Engineer: Matias Torres Assistant Producer: Shania Manderson Senior Producer: Hannah Talbot Executive Producer: Alex Lawless Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts To bring your brand to life in this podcast, email podcastadsales@sonymusic.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Transcript preview
First 90 secondsNatalie Imbruglia· Guest0:00
I would get asked often, "Do you think you got to this position because of the way that you look?" I'm quite good at being the underdog. I find it much scarier to be at the top, waiting to fall off a pedestal. It, it's a real weird one for me watching Neighbors. I don't know, I have such mixed feelings 'cause I was so young. It doesn't matter who it is, never give your power over to another human being. Never think somebody knows you better than you know yourself.
Elizabeth Day· Host0:29
This episode of How to Fail is brought to you by Dove Whole Body Deodorant. Hello, and welcome to How to Fail with me, Elizabeth Day. This is the podcast where we look beneath the bonnet of success and we see the engine of failure and how it motivates us to do ever greater things. Before we get into this conversation, please do remember to subscribe, like, and follow so that you never miss a single episode.
Jonathan Hirsch0:53
[upbeat music] Fabio Santilli. Big heart, big voice, big laugh. A rockstar hairstylist who drove a Porsche. He was like a wizard behind the chair. [hairdryer blows] The killers came for Fabio in his own backyard.
Elizabeth Day· Host1:12
You can't rationalize it. You can't figure it out.
Jonathan Hirsch1:14
There was rampant speculation about everything. But every wild theory was wrong, because the truth was even more unbelievable. Well, is anyone hearing what I'm hearing? And even more heartbreaking. The uncertainty of not knowing is a form