Jaguar Jonze

Jaguar Jonze stands out as a pop singer and songwriter whose enigmatic artistry yields brooding, word-rich anthems that echo the sensibilities of Nick Cave, Angel Olsen, and Portishead. She stepped onto the scene in 2018 and quickly drew praise for the twang-infused, atmospheric singles “You Got Left Behind” and “Beijing Baby,” both later featured on her first EP, Diamonds & Liquid Gold, issued in 2020. That same year brought a J Awards nomination, and she followed up in 2021 with the Antihero EP.

Deena Lynch entered the world in Yokohama, Japan, daughter of a Taiwanese mother and an Australian father, before relocating to Australia at age six. Her formative years involved a difficult upbringing shaped by family dysfunction along with physical and sexual abuse; she later channeled those experiences into creative outlets including music, drawing, and photography. Now based in Brisbane, she spent several years in artist management, supporting acts such as the Jungle Giants, Confidence Man, Orphans Orphans, and Last Dinosaurs. During this period she also put out two albums under the name Deena before withdrawing from the industry to concentrate on her own artistic direction.

Her first Jaguar Jonze single, “You Got Left Behind,” appeared in 2018 and introduced her distinctive dusky style. The equally atmospheric “Beijing Baby” followed a year later. In 2020 she vied to represent Australia at the Eurovision Song Contest with “Rabbit Hole,” then released the Diamonds & Liquid Gold EP, which compiled her earlier singles and secured an Australian J Awards nod for Unearthed Artist of the Year. Jonze issued her second EP, Antihero, in April 2021; the project saw her share production duties with longtime bassist Aidan Hogg and additional input from John Congleton.