Take Three Minutes To Familiarize Yourself With Australia’s Newest Female Freesurfing Prospect

“The trumpet was the king of instruments, until the electric guitar came along,” said longtime musical and literary laureate Flea, during a recent bout of eating spicy food. 

Invented in the early-mid 19th century, the electric guitar revolutionized rock n’roll — making musical performances more accessible and creating a new medium for tangibly rebellious music.

In the hands of 16-year old Juniper Harper however, the well-ranged instrument drapes a warm, refined glow over her charmed Lennox Head life. 

“My dad has always played guitar, so he kinda taught me, and then I just taught myself on Youtube videos,” she laughs. “It’s pretty fun to just cruise. I recorded the song for the clip in my room, one of my friends gave me this little fluffy mic and I plugged it into my phone and sat it near my amp. Sounded good enough. I really like Fleetwood Mac and their style. Stevie Nix is super cool. I’ve been trying to start a band for so long around home, and I can’t find anyone.”

In possibly the greatest serendipity for a regular-footed toddler, Juniper moved to Australia from New Zealand, her birthplace, when she was just a few months old. Though she spends a significant portion of her time doing comps, she sheepishly tells me that her relationship with competing has been tumultuous this past year.

“I dunno where I see myself going with it, but I’ll give it a crack and see where it takes me. This was the first go I’ve had at making a clip, and I’ll definitely continue doing that. It was so fun.”

Fortunately, between her early onset propensity for artistry, highlines, and non-pointy craft, she has all the makings of a budding freesurfer.

Above, the pairing of her thoughtful surfing, finger-picking, and Georde Grigor’s sophisticated filmmaking goes down a treat.