How Peach PRC Used Heartbreak To Pen Viral TikTok Hits Like “Josh” And “Heavy”

In Elite Daily’s I Can Explain… series, we’re asking celebrities to revisit their most memorable photos and tell us what really went down behind the scenes. In this piece, we chat with Peach PRC, a budding pop star with an affinity for wearing pink and penning beloved earworms.

When it comes to honest hit-making, Peach PRC has no problem telling the truth — even when it hurts. The rising Australian pop singer is known for writing emotional songs with an impressive amount of candor, and you’ve likely heard her February 2021 breakout track, “Josh,” which she wrote about an ex. The song has become the backdrop to countless lip-sync and duet videos on TikTok, and it’s been streamed on Spotify more than 11 million times. Peach turned angst and passion into a viral single, proving she knows how to squeeze lemonade out of life’s most sour lemons. Rapid success may have come as a surprise to the 24-year-old, but she’s ready to welcome what’s next.

“I definitely didn't expect it, specifically with that song,” Peach tells Elite Daily, reflecting on “Josh” and the ex that inspired it. “I put it on TikTok just because I was genuinely pissed off with him. And I wrote that and then I didn't think it was going to become a whole thing. I almost deleted it. But then I got a record deal.”

Peach is now signed to Republic Records — the same label as Ariana Grande, Julia Michaels, and Drake — and has since released “Symptomatic” and “Heavy,” singles that have also taken off at lightning speed. In fact, “Heavy” is about the same ex that inspired “Josh.” While she’s the mastermind behind the lyrics and melodies of her songs, she’s also the first to admit her ex has played a pivotal part in her career. She says, “It's funny because the guy that inspired Josh is the same guy that inspired ‘Heavy’ technically, because I went through that heartbreak. I think I wrote ‘Heavy’ before ‘Josh.’”

Taking her stage name from the moniker she previously used as a stripper, Peach acknowledges her music journey has been unconventional. In her former life working as a dancer, she perfected her glam by doing her own hair and makeup, which is why she doesn’t rely on a team of beauty pros. Now, her vibrant, all-pink ensembles are what truly set her apart on social media, plus the fact that her candy-colored Instagram pics are all self-edited. Peach’s colorful aesthetic has not only become part of her brand, but a way of life. “Whenever someone asks me to describe myself in one word, I always say pink,” Peach says. “It just kind of encapsulates everything.”

Below, the colorful pop singer gets real about some of her most emotional memories while revisiting several favorite IG pics.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

Nostalgia At Its Finest

Elite Daily: I love the nostalgic, 2000s-era inflatable furniture here. Where was this photo taken?

Peach PRC: My bedroom. I’ve got my whole wall [of collages], and the PRC that's behind me is from the new set of my music video. On the “Josh” music video we had a big setup that said ‘PRC News’ and I got to take home the letters, so I've got the PRC stuck up there. A lot of the posters up there are fan art as well, and stuff that people have sent me, little letters from my friends and things like that. It’s a little collage of my life.

Elite Daily: This photo showcases your tattoos. How many do you have in total, and which is your most meaningful one?

Peach: I don't know how many I've got at this point. They’re all up this arm and on my hands and stuff. My most meaningful one would be maybe the one I've got of Miles, my dog. He's my absolute little savior. I love him so much; he means the world to me.

Elite Daily: You incorporate so much pink into your wardrobe. Is it your favorite color? Will it always be part of the Peach PRC brand?

Peach: I think so. All my clothes are pink at this point. Everything that I own is pink and I might one day not love it as much anymore but, I think there's a whole rainbow of colors, so I can pick another one.

Sky-High

Elite Daily: This photo was taken on your 24th birthday, April 2, 2021. How did you spend your day?

Peach: Two of my friends flew out from Adelaide, where I grew up. They flew to Sydney, and we got a hotel together. We ended up being kicked out of that hotel, though, because I had a meltdown. Yeah, so that was fun for me and everyone involved. It started out really nice, and we went out to dinner, we had some drinks, and then, I kicked off mentally.

Elite Daily: The skyline looks really beautiful in that photo. Where in Sydney was this? And what's your favorite city to travel to?

Peach: It was in Sydney at the Harbour Bridge. My favorite city to travel to in Australia? I don't know, I haven't done much traveling within Australia. I did backpack overseas a few years ago. And then everything happened with lockdown.

Elite Daily: What about outside of Australia?

Peach: I really loved Amsterdam in Europe; that was really fun.

Elite Daily: Your birthdate makes you an Aries. Are you into astrology at all? If so, does your personality align with Aries traits?

Peach: I'm not big on it, but I love hearing about it. I don't know how much I really buy into it, just mostly because I don't relate to my star sign at all. Everything I hear about Aries is very, like, aggressive and bossy. They're leaders, and I feel like I'm very passive. I don't like being a leader. I prefer to just follow, like, I'm not very aggressive. At least I don't think so.

Seeing Pink

Elite Daily: There’s a subtle nod to the Powerpuff Girls in this IG carousel of pics. Were you a big Powerpuff Girls fan growing up?

Peach: I actually wasn't too massive on Powerpuff Girls, but I'd seen it, and I like the nostalgic aesthetic of it rather than just the actual content itself. But I use a lot of images from the early 2000s in my edits, just because it feels nostalgic and cozy. I really like pastel, bright colors from the 2000s.

Elite Daily: You look so happy and so vibrant here, but your caption says you had just cried. What cued the waterworks?

Peach: All my friends had gone to Mardi Gras without me and I thought I was going to go with them; it was a big gay Pride festival. I was super excited to go! And at the last minute, they're like, “Oh, we don't have a ticket for you.” They all went without me, so I was really bummed out. I felt a bit left out. But then I got myself all dressed up anyway. I was like, “Well, I'll just get dressed up and make myself feel good.” And then I was like, “Yeah, I'm not even sad anymore.” And then I got to my studio and just bawled my eyes out for like an hour.

Peach PRC’s latest single, “Heavy,” is now streaming on all major platforms.