Rising singer-songwriter Mikayla Pasterfield today shares her debut EP Heritage Listed, along with the official music video for focus single ‘End of the World’. WATCH HERE + LISTEN TO THE EP HERE.

On Heritage Listed, childhood nostalgia meets boundless ambition as Mikayla navigates the all-too-familiar sentimentality towards a hometown that she’s outgrown. Painting vignettes of first relationships to first heartbreaks, the categorical throughline is Mikayla’s astute perception of the world around her, along with her unique ability to distill these experiences through her songwriting.

Today’s focus single, ‘End of the World’, is an allegorical counter to the devastation of feeling hidden by someone who is unable to express their love in the way you need. “End of the World was written as a hypothetical question posed to a lover (specifically LGBT) that asks ‘how high do the stakes have to be for you to show me you love me?’,” Mikayla shares. “It’s heavily inspired by the casts found in Pompeii and Herculaneum and the stories they told, specifically ‘The Two Maidens’ that were found under the ash embracing one another in a society that would not have allowed that kind of intimacy between women. (I’m unfortunately an ancient history nerd, sue me).”

Watch: ‘End of the World’ (Official Video)

Closing out the EP is the stark ‘So Bored’, with Mikayla’s weightless vocals grounded by the piercing directness of the lyrics. Where ‘End of the World’ finds parity in ‘Voodoo’ – praised by Rolling Stone AU/NZ as “a hazy slow-burn about wanting more than someone’s willing to give” – ‘So Bored’ connects to the themes of title track ‘Heritage Listed’, drawing from the feeling of “being bored of the situation, environment and people you’re around”.

Working with director Nick Sullivan, Mikayla expands upon the overarching narrative of Heritage Listed with a cohesive series of music videos for the project, culminating in ‘End of the World’ out today. Speaking on the process, Nick Sullivan shares, “After diving into the themes of each track, I was struck by the idea of exploring a relationship that was all take, no give, but setting it against the backdrop of a world in crisis. We start with the innocence of youth, explore suburban life and end with the liberation of escape and togetherness. Each video builds on the last. The juxtaposition of light and dark, joy and despair, offers a powerful exploration of life’s fragility and the pursuit of something greater — even when the world seems to be falling apart.”

First turning to songwriting due to a fortuitous “high school scheduling mishap”, Mikayla Pasterfield could never anticipate the global resonance of her debut single ‘Damage You Still Do’. Sitting at over a million streams, the track received triple j playlisting and millions of TikTok views, with comments from Gracie Abrams (“YEAHHHHHHH”), Zach Bryan (“no sike. you’re such a great writer”), Chelsea Cutler (“Wow”) and more. Second single ‘Bindi In The Dirt’, lauded as “another striking example of Pasterfield’s songwriting prowess” (SXSW Sydney), further secured her place as one of the country’s next best songwriters, captivating audiences across BIGSOUND to shows with Laurel, Nick Mulvey, GRAACE and more.

Recently announced as a special guest across select dates of Jem Cassar-Daley’s ‘Kiss Me Like You’re Leaving’ tour, Mikyala will take to the stage at The Vanguard in Sydney tomorrow night, with performances in Brisbane and Melbourne to follow later this month – for all details, see BELOW.