The empire of Daniel Johns has kicked into an even higher gear with the announcement on Monday of a stunning new interactive exhibition, Past, Present & FutureNever to open on Friday, August 26 at the Rialto building in Melbourne.
Johns also launches the first episode of a three-part docuseries on YouTube that goes live today (Monday).
Today Daniel Johns announces two new pillars in his ever-evolving ARIA #1 FutureNever multiverse - a 'world first' immersive event experience and a revealing new docuseries.
Past, Present & FutureNever explores the height of '90s Australian grunge culture through to Johns' history-making album FutureNever. The exhibition carries curated items of Johns and his family's personal memorabilia, and an array of experiential exhibits.
"I can say without a hint of exaggeration that Past, Present & FutureNever is the most ambitious project I've ever been a part of,: Johns said in a press statement. "For 45 minutes, people can physically time-travel back to my childhood and into the FutureNever in a way that provides a greater insight into my creative process and personal life than any live concert could ever hope to achieve.
"It's literally a lifetime of work that has gone into it and I'm prouder of it than anything I've ever done."
YouTube documentary
Episode one of the three-part docuseries Inside the Mind of Daniel Johns premieres at 6pm today on YouTube.
In the first episode Johns addresses his nervous breakdown, struggles with self-medication, rehab stint, and his invitation to his former Silverchair bandmates to appear on his album FutureNever and his ultimate response to their rejection.
In the first episode, Johns details the rejection of Ben Gillies and Chris Joannou declining to play on his FutureNever album, saying, "I asked them not out of necessity, I asked them because I wanted to make it clear that I don't have an issue with them as people - I just didn't want to play under the banner of Silverchair.
"Once I'd established myself as an artist outside of Silverchair. I asked them to come again and then when they didn't want to, I didn't care. It was like, 'I asked you, it's cool, I'll play the drums with spatulas'."
Offering a rare and fascinating glimpse into the inner-workings of Daniel Johns, the three-part docuseries begins with him confiding in long-term friend, Los Angeles-based KROQ drive announcer Megan Holiday from his home in Newcastle.
Following the global smash Spotify original podcast Who Is Daniel Johns?, which quickly became the biggest Australian podcast of 2022 and a chart hit in the US, Canada, UK and New Zealand, Inside The Mind of Daniel Johns goes even deeper with Daniel answering many of the questions that people were still asking following the podcast.
The exhibition
A journey steeped in grunge nostalgia, the exhibition begins in the teenage bedroom of Johns, exploring intimate musings from the artist's adolescent diary, school reports, an extensive throwback wardrobe and original handwritten lyrics of global hits including Freak and Tomorrow, before being whisked away to tomorrow and beyond.
In a takeover of Melbourne's landmark Rialto skyscraper, the exhibition brings the creative genius of Daniel Johns to life, as his enchanting, and often haunting, vision is explored and curated through not only a treasure trove of memorabilia, but multiple interactive instalments including a custom DeLorean (aka 'DanieLorean') transformed by a FutureNever soundscape synchronised with projection mapping and an eery live pianola experience.
The exhibition was created by BMG and award-winning exhibition creators Radio Velvet who join forces with pioneering artist Johns to deliver a new experience "defying convention and boundaries", according to a press statement.
Speaking on the ambitious feat, award-winning curator and Radio Velvet creative director Eddie Zammit said, "A trip to Newcastle to spend time with the Johns family led us to discover the pristine chronicle they had lovingly preserved for 30 years. It's truly the most extensive archive of Australian music memorabilia we have ever seen!"
"Pairing this historic narrative with the infectious creativity of Daniel, alongside ground-breaking technology and special effects, has enabled us to morph fantasy and reality to create something truly special.
"If you've only listened to a Daniel Johns song or album, you've only scratched the surface. Any good exhibition uncovers something new - this is no exception!"
