Archer Phan Expresses His Love In, "Finally Gonna Say - Reimagined"

Hailing from Perth, Western Australia, a teacher by day and musician by night Archer Phan, releases a breathtaking version of his 2020 hit, "Finally Gonna Say," with "Finally Gonna Say - Reimagined."

The transgender man and LGBTQ+ musician are sharing his self-produced songs in a long-awaited venture. Archer Phan began his solo career in 2008 when moving to Perth from the small town Carnarvon. To help him sharpen those performance skills, Archer Phan connected with his twin sister in the duo 5 Feet Short and was also the vocalist in punk rock bands Wait For Nothing and Casual Vacancy.

Now teaming up with former Causal Vacancy member Shay Ducas for Archer Phan's new single, "Finally Gonna Say - Reimagined," the song offers a more wistful and organic approach than the song's initial 2020 release. That said, Phan does an incredible job of maintaining the original song's heartfelt concept through his sweet and lush vocals.

Expanding on "Finally Gonna Say - Reimagined," the song softly opens with Archer Phan's warm acoustic guitar and his sweet Aussie accent that amplifies the song's genuineness. And to be honest, it's adorable. What's all the more wholesome are his charming yet playful lyrics like "You'll be the Fiona to my Shrek."

As we reach the hook, Archer Phan musters the courage to exclaim his profound feelings for someone close to his heart. As he finally lets them know of his undying love for them, we move into the second verse, where brilliant and reverbed electric guitar strokes float overtop to sweeten the atmosphere. The acoustic and electric guitar perfectly compliment each other and guide us toward the outro alongside Phan's sweet-sounding performance.

Find all the passion and courage you need in Archer Phan's newest single, "Finally Gonna Say - Reimagined," now available on all digital streaming platforms.

Welcome to BuzzMusic, Archer Phan. You've truly melted our hearts with your endearing and passionate ballad "Finally Gonna Say - Reimagined." What inspired your sweet and vulnerable lyrical content?

I was up late at night and I was trying to write a meaningful song about transitioning and how I felt about the journey. But everything sounded really bad, like really terrible. I was about to give up writing a song and was about to put my guitar away because it was close to midnight and I had work early the next morning. I thought I’d have one last strum and began to play some random chords on my guitar and my mind started to wander and I thought about all the things that were left unsaid. Things I never told friends, family, crushes, and what happened if I actually got the courage to say how I felt at the time and this song was born. But I also wanted to write this song in a way that the listener could make up the ending.

Why did you want to create a reimagined version of your 2021 hit "Finally Gonna Say"? What separates the new reimagined version from the original?

Originally, I had always planned to have Shay play guitar on the final version of this track. We started working on this track in 2020 during the initial Covid outbreak and thought it would be a cool idea to do a bunch of isolation-style projects where we worked on music from the comfort and safety of our own homes.

During this time I started doing more research and training in mixing and mastering tracks and decided to buy an Akai Midi Controller. I started playing around with my new musical toy on the 2021 version of “Finally Gonna Say”, I just had a lot of fun messing around and decided to release that version.

Also, the original version of the track is 5 minutes long and that is pretty bloody long for a song with not a lot of variation to the track. I chatted to Shay about shortening the track to keep it flowing and the audience engaged throughout the entire track. I wanted to be able to shorten the song, keep the audience hooked throughout while also being able to get the same story across. I am really happy with what Shay and I were able to do to this track and give it a whole new life. So far, the feedback has been great, and listeners really love this version.

What was it like working with former Casual Vacancy member Shay Ducas for "Finally Gonna Say - Reimagined"? What was that collaborative experience like?

Shay is great to work with, he understands what I’m trying to do, and I admire and respect him and his music skills and ability a lot. The collaborative experience was fun and different since we used google drive and sent recordings back and forth. It was pretty cool that we were able to create this song without ever being in the same room at the same time. Shay also understands all the random jargon I make up trying to explain what I want, it’s like we are on a similar music wavelength when it comes to creating and writing. I’m hoping to work with Shay on a few more tracks and I’m really excited to see what he can do. Whenever I send him a track I can’t wait to see what he’s come up with, he always takes the song to the next level and I’m like holy crap that’s good!

Could you tell us what you want to represent and stand for as an artist? What do you want to be known for (other than music, of course)?

As an LGBTQIA+ artist, I stand up for the right to be yourself without fear, without judgment or prejudice. I want to be able to show everyone this is me, I’m not something to fear, I’m not wrong or gross I’m just me. I want to be able to show younger Trans individuals that it’s okay to be who you are and to be proud of who you are. I want to make a difference to the lives of Trans and LGBTQIA+ kids and do that through sharing my music and stories and be unapologetically who I am, leading a new path forward.

What's next for you?

I’m currently recording and mixing two new tracks in the hopes of releasing an EP mid this year. I’ve already sent a track to Shay to add his little guitar magic to so I’m super excited about that one. I’m also hoping to get back into performing in the second half of the year once the EP is out.

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