HEART-TO-HEART: Band Banta
“I’m just a punter who loves Australian music and wants to support the scene as much as possible, which is something I think a lot of other music lovers can relate to.”
Dakota Griffiths is independently championing Australian music harder than anyone I know. She owns and operates Band Banta out of Kaurna/Adelaide–spotlighting emerging artists through video interviews–and she’s only just getting started.
Published: 21/11/2025
FHR (Flaming Heart Records): Hello! It’s been a little while since my last interview, and I wanted to do something a bit different. As someone who works behind-the-scenes in music, I want to start shining the light on those who do the same. Can you tell us what motivated you to start @bandbanta?
Dakota (Griffiths, owner of Band Banta): Hey Sophie! Thank you so much for the chat, and it’s so lovely to connect with other creatives like yourself. There were so many motivating factors when it came to starting Band Banta. Some of those factors were personal, like overcoming social anxiety, developing my communication skills, and having a creative outlet for myself. But the idea really came together when I started going to more local gigs and becoming involved in the local scene during 2023. I found it hard to learn more about emerging acts that didn’t have a large presence on social media, and noticed a gap in Adelaide that could be filled. So, I decided to give interviewing local bands a go, and now the platform has expanded into what it is today!
FHR: How did you first start to build up a following, and what helped you grow to the point where you were interviewing bands such as Teenage Joans and Beddy Rays?
Dakota: I’m really lucky that the Adelaide music scene is such a tight-knit community that has backed me from the very beginning. There has been a lot of trial and error in figuring out what format and types of content my followers and unique audiences want to see and engage with. Truthfully, I’m still trying to figure it out haha! But I think ensuring my content always remains authentic to its mission of supporting Australian music is what helped build up my following. I’ve also made it clear from the inception of Band Banta that this is a passion project, and I’m just a punter who loves Australian music and wants to support the scene as much as possible, which is something I think a lot of other music lovers can relate to.
FHR: I am so impressed with how active you are on social media! How do you manage your time researching ideas and planning and creating content? What does a typical week look like for you? I can imagine a lot of work goes into what you do.
Dakota: Thank you! Honestly, I don’t even know how I manage it hahahaha. A lot of people seem to think that Band Banta is my full-time job, or there is a team behind Band Banta, but nope, just me! Because I work full-time outside of Band Banta, everything happens either really early in the morning or after work, which can make it tricky when collaborating with managers and PR agencies, but they are all super understanding, which is great. I like to try plan a week’s worth of content on a Sunday so I can be prepared for the week to come, but sometimes lineups get released or something happens in the industry, and I need to quickly write something up once I get home.
I think the main thing for me is setting aside time each night to get editing, research, and admin done, so that I can stay on top of everything. I’ve also become a little bit better at setting boundaries when it comes to my workload. At the start of the project, I would say yes to everything because I hate letting people down, but I burnt out very quickly. Now I’m really taking my health and capacity into consideration, and people are really understanding when I’m not able to do an interview.
FHR: What excites you the most about the Band Banta project? Has music journalism always been something that interested you?
Dakota: Ooooh what excites me most? It would have to be the reception the project has received from the music community. I get so many kind messages from people telling me they found their new favourite artist from my post, or I inspired them to start interviewing their local bands, and just the interactions from artists in Adelaide is so so heartwarming. It excites me that this project has introduced me to so many amazing, talented, and kind people. It’s also really exciting to watch this project grow, because I truly had no expectations for Band Banta, so seeing it develop and expand into what it is today is amazing. Every day is truly a pinch-me moment. I wouldn’t say music journalism has always interested me, more so I’ve always loved music, and I always dreamed of working in the creative industries, so I mashed the passions together! Though I never thought I would do something creative after school, I’ve actually got a Bachelor’s in Health Management, and gave developing public health projects a go for a couple of years.
FHR: It’s always so inspiring seeing women solely run their own business in this industry. What kind of challenges have you faced since starting Band Banta, and what advice would you give to others wanting to carve their own path?
Dakota: That’s so kind! There are so many inspiring women in the Aus music scene. There have been a few challenges, mostly coming down to time and resources. I really want to keep Band Banta equitable and low-cost, so that it’s accessible for those with little to no marketing budgets, but with subscriptions for editing software constantly rising, equipment being expensive, and grants out of reach, I’ve had to think of ways to keep Band Banta progressing while remaining accessible. There have also been times when I’ve felt crazy imposter syndrome, which can really get me down. But I always try to remember that I’m only feeling this way because I care about Band Banta, and it’s good to have role models to compare myself to; it helps me develop my content to a higher standard.
There are a lot of things I would do differently if I were to start over, but my biggest piece of advice would be to have everything prepared before your launch. Create a brand kit (logo, colour ways, fonts), have a few interviews ready to roll out, connect with people in your local community to build rapport, and don’t hesitate to lean on other creatives for support! Also, easier said than done, but try not to compare yourself to others. This is your project, and keeping it authentic to your vision is what’s going to connect with people.
FHR: Band Banta has grown quickly across Instagram, TikTok and Spotify–how have you seen the project evolve over time and what are you doing differently compared to early 2024?
Dakota: It has grown a lot faster than I ever imagined hahaha. But I think a lot of it is because there wasn’t really anyone else doing video interviews in the Adelaide music scene, so I had a lot of people from South Australia rally around me right from the beginning. Now that Band Banta has started branching out to a more national audience, I’ve really been trying to focus on creating polished and visually attractive content. I’m always playing around with my editing style, static and video content, to make sure I am creating content that is appealing to my current and fresh audiences.
FHR: You have become such a pivotal journalist in the music scene, not only in South Australia, but across the country. Where do you plan on taking Band Banta in the future? Are there any major goals you would love to achieve?
Dakota: That is very kind! I have so many goals and dreams for Band Banta haha, but starting with some of the more likely goals, I would really love to create a website! A website would allow me to post more Q&A articles, write more concert reviews, think-pieces, and share even more releases, and it would put everything into an accessible format, so those who don’t use social media can still be involved. Another goal of mine is to continue hosting a gig each year, similar to the one I hosted in May. Now, for the end-game goal… I would absolutely love to build up Band Banta to the point it’s my full-time job; it would be so cool to have an office space with a studio for filming interviews and to be able to hire other emerging journalists, photographers, and videographers for the project. But let’s just start with a website for now, hahaha.
FHR: And finally–who would be your dream interviewee and why!?
Dakota: There are a lot of musicians who come to mind, but the one I think of first every time is Spacey Jane. Spacey are a band I have been following since high school, they were one of the first Australian bands whose music I really fell in love with, and thanks to them, I was introduced to things like the triple j hottest 100. I think they are fantastic songwriters and performers, and outside of music, they seem like really interesting people.
