G Flip loves Pitbull almost as much as she loves her new Crocs collaboration
WORDS BY ELIZA SHOLLY
“Everything before this was just a plan to get a Crocs collaboration.”
To give you a sense of just how enigmatically contagious G Flip is, allow me to set the scene by transcribing the first thing she said to me when we got on FaceTime.
“Do you want to hear the funniest thing I just did?” she asks. “Always,” I reply.
“I’ve been laughing my head off for the last five minutes. My best friend starts a new job at a bar today. She’s coming over here and then we’re going to go to the pub with some friends to have a beer for her first shift. That was the plan.
“But, I just had the idea to book a limo. She’s going to rock up to her first shift in a massive hummer limo. I don’t know what colour it is, but I just got off the phone booking it. It’s so extra and her new work people are going to be like ‘What the hell’.”
That’s the thing about G Flip (real name, Georgia Flipo). Her personality, like her music, is overtly inclusive. The joke didn’t feel personal to her and her inner circle; she wanted me to be part of it and share in the harmless happiness with her.
“We’re going out tonight and I’m feeling so excited about these new Crocs and a new song that I’m making crazy decisions,” she laughs.
The “new Crocs” in question are her own collaboration. A tie-dye summer shoe released in collaboration with the widely-known shoe brand, alongside a collection of adjoining Jibbitz charms. The shoe sits at the intersection of outrageous and fashionable, which is a pretty damn perfect place to be, if you ask me.
We’re chatting on launch day, which also co-indices with the release of an aptly titled song, ‘I’D RATHER GO TO BED’. Read her musings about both (and then some) below.
I heard that you spoke about doing this collaboration a few years ago. Tell me, do you believe in the power of manifestation?
I absolutely do. I’ve done a lot of it my whole life. A lot of my career has to do with manifestation. You’ve got to believe and then you’ll achieve, you know? I loved Crocs so I became set on my obsession and knew that I could not live my life without having a collaboration. I went hard at it, and now it’s a crazy reality. When my career started working out and I saw artists were doing collaborations, I knew I had to make myself bigger as an artist. I just kept DMing Crocs all the time and got my manager to put in a good word. And now, here we are.
So the whole musical fame thing was just a secret petition to get a deal with Crocs?
Haha! Oh absolutely, I can retire now. Music is just a little side hustle that I do now and then, but everything before this was just a plan to get a Crocs collaboration. So now I can just blow money on limos to get my best friend to work…
Do you remember the first time you developed a penchant for Crocs? Paint a picture for me…
I actually remember it like it was yesterday. The first time I saw a Crocs was on court two of Sandringham basketball stadium. I was about 12 or 13 and about to play with my teammates. One of the girls I played with, her Dad just got back from a Fiji holiday and he had Crocs on. I think they were red, and I was hypnotised. ‘What is this futuristic shoe?’, I thought. I needed to know. Everyone was like, “What the hell is that?”, but I just knew. That is where the obsession started.
2020 has been the wildest of rides. Is a Crocs collaboration the most exciting thing that has happened to you during COVID-19?
It’s definitely the best thing to happen in 2020. This year has been a wild ride for me. I moved out, and my mum no longer does my washing. Normally, on the road, I have to do my own washing but when I’m home she does everything for me. God bless her. But I’ve learnt how to be an adult – cleaning for myself and making food, which I’m really bad at. I am so bad at being domestic. I have a one-track mind. If I wake up and say I’m going to make a song, that’s all I can focus on.
You dropped this collab at the same time as your new song, ‘I’D RATHER GO TO BED’. What’s the story behind the song?
I thought it would be cool to drop it all at the same time. In the music video, I wanted to put a little teaser for Crocs in, there is a little billboard in the visuals which is fun. Then when we were talking to Crocs, they wanted to release the shoes in November so we thought we could bundle it up and make it a big day.
Speaking of what you’d rather do – would you rather never be able to sleep in a comfy bed for the rest of your life, or never be able to wear Crocs for the rest of your life?
Whoa, that’s actually impossible. You know what, I can actually sleep anywhere. I’m really good at falling asleep in cars – when I was a kid and wouldn’t sleep, Mum and Dad would just whack me in a booster seat and drive me ’round. So I could use my Crocs as a pillow and pay someone to drive me around so I can fall asleep, then I can wear Crocs always.
J Balvin and Justin Bieber have also released Crocs collaborations recently. How does it feel to be flying the Crocs flag for women?
Awesome. I’m so stoked with this collaboration, and yeah the women. We would get on zoom calls with Crocs HQ from around the world where I would share my ideas, and then I designed all the little Jibbitz myself. I was really involved with the whole process which was great.
On a scale of one to 10, how much pleasure do you derive from saying the word ‘Jibbitz’?
Literally 100 out of 10. I love when people ask me what the ‘colourful things’ are called and I get to reply, Jibbitz. It’s the best word. Also a nice name for a boy. If I have a son, I’m going to name him Jibbitz.
What are your favourite songs to dance in Crocs to?
Pitbull. Mr Worldwide. I can’t get enough. Just put it on repeat and dance. Also anything by The Pussycat Dolls.