ELLIS KING announces striking debut EP “Better Luck” on Nettwerk

Ellis King presents her remarkable debut EP “Better Luck”, due for release January 10th on Nettwerk. Accompanying the announcement is the release of the striking latest single ‘1996’.  

‘1996’ is the EP’s most intimate and insightful moment; the cool pop sound and soft strums of guitar, gentle reverb on the vocals and a rippling piano motif belies the tension simmering below its surface, as King sings about the dread of running into an ex she doesn’t want to see. 

King admits, “It’s about dating someone who didn’t care as much about me as I did about them and them knowing from the start, that they didn’t want anything more from me but continuing to see me and so dragging out the inevitable in a painful way.

“I was due to return to Australia and move in with my friends to the area I knew this person lived in, and I wrote ‘1996’ as an outlet for the anxiety building up around me going home. I feel like this song is so relevant to those early twenties heart fractures, that feel like breaks at the time and I feel like that it really plays into that trope of having so much fuel to write about someone you dated for 5 minute who felt like the entire solar system to you when you were just a blip on their radar.”

The songs of “Better Luck” showcase personal reflections and potent musical moments with poignant songs about feelings of uncertainty. It captures a universal sentiment of helplessness as King questions our constant seeking of connections while enveloped by crooning harmonies.

Producer Steph Marziano (Hayley Williams, Cassandra Jenkins, Idris Elba) allows King’s voice a clarity amidst the delicate arrangements. The vocals are unwavering, and the musicality is at times breathtaking and with Matt Wiggins (Hinds, Glass Animals, Adele) at the mixing desk, King and her team have captured her sound brilliantly on for a truly compelling introduction.   

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Blending beautiful candid lyrics and assured musicianship, the “Better Luck” EP is a powerful opening statement from an emerging singer-songwriter poised to be a breakout act of 2025.

Ellis King’s music is a must listen for fans of fellow confessional pop artists such as Gracie Abrams, Lizzy McAlpine and Maisie Peters. “Better Luck” captures a distinctly restless spirit. King herself divides her time between two continents, calling both Melbourne and London home. Both cities are renowned for nurturing vibrant music communities, their storied songbooks now added to by King.  

The release of “Better Luck” may prove cathartic for King as it pushes through a fear. “Sharing music is probably what I find the most difficult,” says King, “but I have been working on this for a long time and it has become something I’m really excited about. Having people react to my music is such a high point, and something that really motivates me to get through the reservedness of sharing it.”

Ellis King is not your typical artist, in that her aspirations are not fixed on a dream of stadium shows or million-dollar record deals. Instead, she’s determined to hone her craft, to release a debut album that tells a story “from start to finish”. “Better Luck” is a welcome first chapter.