TUESDAY, 8TH JULY 2025

Victoria Perry’s debut single ‘Every Wish’ sits quietly with the hardest goodbyes

Tāmaki Makaurau-based artist Victoria Perry makes her debut with ‘Every Wish’ — a gentle, emotionally layered track that doesn't overreach, yet leaves a lasting impression. Out now on all platforms, it introduces Perry as a songwriter capable of holding space for nuance, conflict, and quiet honesty.

With a background in musical theatre, photography, and fine arts, Perry brings a multidisciplinary lens to her songwriting. ‘Every Wish’ draws on that breadth, pairing stripped-back instrumentation with a measured vocal delivery that leans more toward confession than performance. The result lands somewhere between Agnes Obel’s restraint and Jeff Buckley’s emotional reach — unhurried, but deeply felt.

The track explores anticipatory grief — the strange, suspended space of knowing loss is coming, and being powerless to stop it. “It’s about watching someone suffer and wanting their pain to end, but at the same time not wanting to let them go,” Perry says. Written during her mother’s long battle with cancer, the song captures the raw contradictions of that experience. “I found myself bargaining with time, wishing for relief, and then wishing I could undo the wish.”

There’s no sweeping crescendo, no resolution — just a quiet reckoning with the ache of wanting things to be different. That restraint is what gives ‘Every Wish’ its weight.

Victoria Perry has performed in both Aotearoa and the UK, with credits including Tim Bray Productions, Breaking Sound at 13th Floor, Auckland Town Hall, and the Aotea Centre. She has worked with respected mentors such as Frances Dickinson (Lorde, Fazerdaze) and Charlotte Yates, and is currently part of the Les Mills Artist Program.

With more singles on the way in 2025 and an EP planned for 2026, ‘Every Wish’ marks a thoughtful and quietly confident first step. It doesn’t try to define Victoria Perry’s sound — but it gives you a reason to keep listening.