Meet Noah daCosta, multidisciplinary creative based in Naarm/Melbourne, Australia.

We sat down with Noah to talk about his early days growing up in England and the US, and how his fascination with people and culture fuels his creative work.

Tell the LOWF community a little bit about yourself and your many creative avenues. 

I’m a multidisciplinary creative based in Melbourne. My primary field is media via radio presenting, interviewing, podcasting and content creation. I also make music, write poetry and work as a videographer (among other things).

I’m passionate about culture, community and creativity. I grew up with music, animation and stories being a massive part of my life and it was through those mediums that helped me adjust to moving around the world at a young age.

As I was growing up, my love and fascination with people and culture continued to grow as I transitioned from country to country. This fuelled my love of conversation, as both a way to connect, but also educate. 

Tell us more about the places you grew up. 

I was born in London, England and grew up nearby until 2007, at which point my family moved to Savannah, Georgia, USA. We lived there for roughly 4 years before we moved to Melbourne in 2012.

I would describe my upbringing in the UK as picturesque. I have so many fond memories of family, friends, church and the warm community that threaded all of them together. When we moved to the states, it definitely had its issues but my experience as a child was quite positive overall. We would take road trips to visit family in different cities often and I used to spend all of my free time on my bike in the streets with my friends.

Moving to Melbourne was a big adjustment - but once again the community turned it into a great experience which has continued to shape me now.

"As I was growing up, my love and fascination with people and culture continued to grow as I transitioned from country to country. This fuelled my love of conversation, as both a way to connect, but also educate."

How did you discover your passion for creativity?

The passion was present from early. My father taught animation at the time as well as a musician and my mother was a massive bookworm and lover of words (and music as well). Growing up under them meant I was always surrounded by music, stories and cartoons.

That said, it was only in my years after graduating high school that I realised that creativity was a viable path for my life, rather than just a hobby.

Your podcast Bourne & Bred is dedicated to highlighting the art, music, and culture of Naarm and beyond. What sparked the inspiration behind the concept? 

Initially the idea was to have a music show/podcast that mainly reviewed music and spoke on the culture of it from a Melbourne perspective. But as I continued to discover and explore the Melbourne creative scene, I realised that I wanted to explore as much as I possibly could, not just music alone.

The original goal was to “put Melbourne on the map”. Even though I’m open to speaking to anyone from all walks of life, I still want to represent my city on an international scale eventually.

"I was inspired by times where I’ve felt embraced, significant and safe in community with my people.... I wanted to convey the warmth, safety and vitality of good community"

 

You wrote and performed a powerful spoken word piece for our 'Breaking Bread' campaign, tell us about the process and where you drew inspiration from. 

I was inspired by times where I’ve felt embraced, significant and safe in community with my people. One of the moments that came to mind was the time when my best friend and I cried in front of each other for the first time. I already knew he was my best mate, but we became brothers at that moment. Overall, I wanted to convey the warmth, safety and vitality of good community. 

What was it like performing the poetry in one take, surrounded by real-life friends? 

It was a brilliant experience. I was excited but slightly nervous on the day because I hadn’t had much time to rehearse the poem… but being in that space with my friends was both extremely energising and long overdue for some of them.

I had been hanging with some of them the night prior and it felt like a continuation of that. However, the fact that we’re all creatives further tied the space together. It was safe, encouraging and validating.

A thought came across my mind that day, and that thought was “wow… I must be doing something right if I’ve got friends like this and I get to create with them.”

"A thought came across my mind that day: wow… I must be doing something right if I’ve got friends like this and I get to create with them”

What's next for you? 

There’s a lot coming, more conversations on Bourne & Bred are dropping soon.

At the time of writing this, I’ve also got my second live poetry performance with Footscray Community Arts at the NGV (The Ian Potter Centre). 

I'm also working with Melbourne Theatre Company as a part of their community engagement team for the upcoming production Is God Is, which is their first all black cast. 

There’s more projects I can’t speak on yet but all I’ll say for now is this…

Watch this space & remember the name!

Follow Noah on Instagram, or check out his podcast Born & Bred.