Following the success of her hit series Daisy Jones & the Six, Riley Keough opens up about how she learned to sing for the exciting role.
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While speaking to Vanity Fair about Daisy Jones & the Six, Keough stated that he wanted the role really badly because he wanted the opportunity to try something she’s never tried before. This, to her, is singing and playing music. “For me, I had never sang before. I’d sang a little bit here and there with my husband because he plays guitar, and I know that I have a sort of musical ear, but in terms of actually using my voice, I’d never done that before.”
When asked about the auditioning process for the show, Riley Keough stated she had to act first. She then said that simultaneously sent in an acting audition and something of her singing. “ I sent like a little voice note, I think of me and my husband singing together. And my voice was very soft. It was by no means like a powerful singing video.”
However, the auditioning crew came back and told Keough that while the acting portion was great, Daisy needed to be able to sing. “I think at the time they were looking at professional singers. So I sent another video in, but I was kind of hitting this wall where I was thinking that I wasn’t capable of doing what they needed in terms of vocal performance.”
Despite Audition Struggles, Riley Keough Didn’t Give Up On the ‘Daisy & the Six’ Role
After letting her know that Daisy needed to “belt” some songs, Riley Keough and her agent decided she needed to sing Shallow by Lady Gaga.
“And I was like, ‘You don’t just, like, bust out Lady Gaga,’” Keough explained. “So I was sitting in the car and I pulled over and just tried, and it just sounded so bad. It just sounded so horrible. And I sat there and I started crying because I was just so frustrated.”
Riley Keough noted that her frustration wasn’t even about getting the role. “It was that I’m not gonna be able to do something that I had an idea that maybe I could do if I put work in.”
As she continued to figure out how to nail the audition, Keough said she went to a coach. Afterward, she went home and quickly thought about Simple Man by Lynyrd Skynyrd. “I think in hindsight it was just in my key. So I went back again and I was able to belt for the first time.”
Keough went on to add that she never shied away from music due to her family’s history. She was mainly focused on film and acting. “ I don’t think I really thought about it. I loved music, but it wasn’t something that I felt drawn to in the same way that I did with film.”
