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Stella Mozgawa

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Stella Mozgawa
Mozgawa in 2011
Mozgawa in 2011
Background information
Born (1986-02-25) February 25, 1986 (age 38)
Sydney, Australia
GenresPsychedelic rock, indie rock, art rock,
Instrument(s)Drums, bass, keyboards, vocals, guitar
Years active2007–present

Stella Mozgawa is an Australian drummer and record producer, best known as a member of the indie rock band Warpaint, with whom she has recorded four studio albums. Alongside her work with Warpaint, Mozgawa is one half of the electronica duo Belief, and is a former member the hard rock collective Desert Sessions.

A prolific studio musician, Mozgawa is a regular studio collaborator of both Kurt Vile and Cate Le Bon, and has contributed to albums by St. Vincent, John Grant, Sharon Van Etten, Adam Green, the xx, Tim Presley, Tom Jones, Kim Gordon and Regina Spektor.[1]

As a record producer, Mozgawa co-produced Courtney Barnett's third studio album, Things Take Time, Take Time (2021), and its follow-up soundtrack album, End of the Day (2023). In 2023, she produced the all-female soundtrack to the Apple TV+ historical drama TV series, The Buccaneers.

Biography

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Childhood and early life

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Growing up in Sydney, Mozgawa was raised by her Polish parents, who had moved from Poland to Australia to perform music together as a musical duo.[2][3]

At age 13, Mozgawa began playing the drums[2] and was initially influenced by the drummer Zac Hanson from the pop band Hanson. She explained, "For a lot of people who are a half-generation older than me it was Tommy Lee, but for me it was Zac Hanson from Hanson. I'm probably in a smaller group of people who were really turned on to the profession by that particular man."[4] At age 14, Mozgawa pretended to be a "20-year-old Polish immigrant with no ID" to perform at Sydney music venues.[2]

Early career

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From 2000 Mozgawa's early Sydney bands included Nick Maybury on lead guitar.[5][6] Early in 2006 Mozgawa and Maybury formed Mink in New York City alongside Neal Carlson on lead vocals, Grant Fitzpatrick on bass guitar and David Lowy on rhythm guitar.[5] The pop rock group issued a self-titled debut album in August 2007 but had disbanded by 2009.[5]

Mozgawa befriended Red Hot Chili Peppers bass guitarist Flea, who suggested she move to Los Angeles, eventually meeting the members of Warpaint. During this time she lived at Flea's house: "He was so instrumental in me meeting the Warpaint girls. He was the first person to even say their name to me and the first time I hung out with them was around him and around his friends, so he had a huge part to do with that. There’s a lot of people from that era that were raised on certain music that have so much integrity. Whether you’re a Red Hot Chilli Peppers fan or not, he really means what he does and he’s a punk at heart. He doesn’t give a shit about metrics or who’s popular, he’s just about the soul of music."[7]

With Warpaint

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Mozgawa (left) performing with Warpaint

In Los Angeles, Mozgawa befriended Warpaint vocalist and guitarist Theresa Wayman in late 2009. She was subsequently invited to join the band and replaced Shannyn Sossamon.[8] Mozgawa featured in the recording of the band's first album, The Fool (2010). In 2014, the band released its second studio album, Warpaint, with Mozgawa contributing fully to the songwriting process, followed by Heads Up in 2016.

Remixes

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Mozgawa has remixed several artists, including Daughter, Shura, Sarah Blasko, Eves the Behavior and Depeche Mode.

Soundtrack

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Mogzawa produced the all-female soundtrack of The Buccaneers (2023 TV series).[9]

Discography

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with Warpaint

Main article: Warpaint discography

with Belief

with Kurt Vile[10]

Session appearances

With Desert Sessions

Awards and nominations

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ARIA Music Awards

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The ARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of Australian music. They commenced in 1987.

Year Nominee / work Award Result Ref.
2022 Courtney Barnett & Stella Mozgawa for Courtney Barnett – Things Take Time, Take Time Producer – Best Produced Album nominated; lost to Rüfüs Du Sol for Rüfüs Du Sol – Surrender [11]

References

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  1. ^ Snook, Emma (15 December 2015). "Stella Mozgawa: "I'm musically and creatively promiscuous"". DIY. Retrieved 10 December 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "Stella Mozgawa: Artist Biography". zildjian.com. Retrieved 26 November 2015.
  3. ^ "Weird Still Spills: Stella Mozgawa Of Warpaint's Favourite Albums – Steely Dan". The Quietus. Retrieved 10 December 2016.
  4. ^ "AGOP Interview Series: Adam Christgau Interviews Stella Mozgawa". istanbulcymbals.com. Retrieved 26 November 2015.
  5. ^ a b c Leggett, Steve. "Mink Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
  6. ^ "PBS Presents: Mink". PBS 106.7FM. November 2006. Archived from the original on 10 May 2010. Retrieved 8 January 2022 – via National Library of Australia.
  7. ^ "How Stella Got Her Groove". lnwy.co. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
  8. ^ Benanti, Diana. "Warpaint's Stella Mozgawa Talks Gaga, Van Smells, Hip-Hop and the Band's New Album". Riverfront Times. Retrieved 10 December 2016.
  9. ^ "Sharon van Etten Shares Intimate Single 'Close to You'". Rolling Stone. November 2023.
  10. ^ "Weird Still Spills: Stella Mozgawa Of Warpaint's Favourite Albums". The Quietus. Retrieved 10 December 2016.
  11. ^ Lars Brandle (12 October 2022). "Rüfüs Du Sol Leads 2022 ARIA Awards Nominees (Full List)". The Music Network. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
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