Hitting our shores this month for her first New Zealand show at Auckland’s Tuning Fork, Priscilla Block is the internet’s favourite new country star. With a tongue-in-cheek comedic personality and an emotive, honest songwriting style, Priscilla Block is a relatable musician with plenty about her to fall in love with.
1. Her career blew up on TikTok
Like many of us, Priscilla started a TikTok account to pass time during the worst of the Covid-19 pandemic. Originally getting involved with popular dance trends and memes, she also posted plenty of covers, but her original material was what really took off. The virality of ‘Just About Over You’ saw fans crowdfund for its release, which topped the iTunes chart and landed Priscilla her first record deal with Mercury Nashville.
2. She’s a major Swiftie
Priscilla cites one of her first favourite songs as ‘Fifteen’ by the one and only Taylor Swift, and even considers her chance meeting with the starlet as the reason she still makes music today. At a low point working many odd jobs to make ends meet, Priscilla was heading home after a day selling frozen yoghurt ready to give up on music, when Taylor drove by and pulled over to talk to her. “I was leaving work, and I was wearing this Taylor Swift T-shirt. She was just driving by and saw me standing there and was like, ‘Hey! I love your shirt!’”, explains Priscilla, feeling like it was fate that her idol appeared to symbolise following her dreams.
3. Her songwriting highlights feminist lyrics
Many of Priscilla’s earliest online hits focus on the highly relatable but rarely discussed aspects of being a woman. ‘Thick Thighs’ celebrates body diversity in hilarious fashion, cheering on Priscilla’s own shape and size and quipping, “I can’t be the only one who likes extra fries over exercise”. Similarly, the quirky, upbeat track ‘PMS’ makes light of the emotional rollercoaster of the menstrual cycle, joking that the acronym might stand for “pissed, moody, stressed”, but women are still “PM-blessed.”
4. She’s been in the game for a long time
Priscilla grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina before moving to Nashville in 2014 to chase success as a solo artist. She began her career co-writing with other artists before focusing on her own material. Ten years after her big move, it seems taking a chance on the city of country music truly paid off.
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5. She has a great sense of humour
Much of Priscilla’s music emphasises her razor-sharp wit and leans into the campiest, silliest parts of country music. The title of her debut album, Welcome To The Block Party, is a wink and nudge to her unusual surname, and Priscilla describes the sound as “a little sass, a little trash and a little sad.” Plenty of her singles over the years also follow hilarious storylines, like ‘Fake Names’ suggesting she and her friends adopt alter egos for a fun night out, or ‘Peaked In High School’ poking fun at the most emotionally tough moments of the teenage experience.
6. Her sound is influenced by iconic acts
Priscilla’s polished blend of pop, country and southern rock is carefully curated thanks to an inspirational list of acts like Kelly Clarkson, Chris Stapleton, Dolly Parton, Miranda Lambert and Kacey Musgraves. As a fan of so many legends, it’s no wonder she’s able to make her music laden with such effective hooks, and an instrumental approach that equally pays tribute to the history of country.
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7. She has the approval of country legends
Many country performers have given Priscilla their seal of approval, as she’s played opening slots for Kelsea Ballerini, Dierks Bentley, Jon Pardi, Ashley McBryde and more. Most notably, her talent convinced Justin Moore to include her on his record Stray Dog after they performed together in 2022. Their duet ‘You, Me and Whiskey’ is one of Priscilla’s most high-performing tracks, showcasing a beautiful charismatic interplay between the vocalist duo.
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8. She grew up in a huge family
Priscilla Block forged her own way in the music industry without any financial support from her parents, but her massive family did fortunately offer her a great emotional support system. Growing up in a family of seven, Priscilla is the second youngest and considers her siblings her best friends in what she describes as an “imperfectly perfect dysfunctional functioning family.”
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9. YouTube taught her to play guitar
Bored by piano lessons as a teenager, Priscilla headed to YouTube to teach herself to play the old beat-up acoustic guitar she found in her parent’s attic. This inspired her to begin songwriting at age fifteen, with one of her earliest songs ‘One More Kiss’ making its way onto her debut EP Different Route in 2017.
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10. She imagines her career through vision boards
Priscilla is a big advocate for the power of a good vision board. Inspired by her mother’s own goal-setting visualisers, she lays her goals out to give her something to see everyday and guide the way, from personal to music-specific ideas. Judging by her long list of accolades from publications like Amazon Music, PANDORA, Spotify, The Boot and more, it seems this tactic is working to make Priscilla’s dreams a reality!
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