What should have been a breakout American performance left Amy Shark crying in a bathroom.

Spending her school days glued to a guitar, Amy Shark was always determined to 'make it' in the music industry.

And after nearly a decade of dedication in the studio, the singer had her breakout moment in 2016.

It was her hit song 'Adore' that led to a bidding war between major record labels, won by Sony Music Australia.

With her star quickly rising, Shark was flown to America to perform on the hottest talk shows of the time.

Her inaugural overseas performance came in 2017 on The Late Late Show with James Corden — which was the-then third top-rating show in that time slot, as per Variety.

"Everything was feeling really good," Shark told Clare Stephens on Mamamia's But Are You Happy? podcast. 

Watch Amy Shark win Album of The Year at the 2018 ARIA Awards. Post continues after video.

"I didn't have time to get nervous. I kind of was just rolling out everything," she continued.

"It was one of the very first things I got offered. It was literally like… I quit my job and then I was on The Late Show with James Corden."

But receiving her flowers wasn't without overwhelm. And, for Shark, the fame and lifestyle grew "terrifying". 

A year after Corden, the musician was due to perform on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon — which then averaged 2.46 million nightly viewers, as per The Hollywood Reporter.

"I remember I was really tired," Shark, now 38, recalled of the experience.

"I was on a tour, and just wasn't in the best place with the whole team," she continued.

"I honestly just didn't want to do it. I just felt so nervous, and I felt so much pressure; I wasn't happy."

While she pushed through the performance, any public perception that Shark was "living it up" behind the scenes couldn't be further from the truth. The reality saw the musician "crying in the bathroom".

"I think everyone does think you're just there with all your people you love and adore," the songwriter said on the podcast.

"(They think) you're just having champagne, and you're like, 'Let's go do it, life's great'. And it's like, everyone's falling apart in the background."

"I remember I was really tired," Shark told the podcast. Image: Instagram/@amyshark.

The "pressure" has certainly been immense for Shark over the past eight years.

"I can see how artists really need to check in with their mental health," she said.

"I don't know what makes me happy. I don't know. I've travelled the world. I don't even know what a holiday is," the 'Everybody Rise' songstress added, explaining she finds it difficult to separate travel from work. 

It was a sentiment shared by Blink-182's Tom DeLonge, whom Shark recalls having a poignant conversation with while on a boat in Sydney Harbour.

"I was talking to him, and I'm like, 'This is so fun.' And he said, 'You having fun?' And I'm like, 'Yeah, aren't you?'. And he goes, 'I don't know anymore. I guess so. Don't you feel that way?' And I'm like, 'Yeah, I guess.'"

After experiencing "massive highs" in the industry, the musician has learned to strip things back and find joy in the unassuming moments.

"I'll go watch my niece skate and when I see her run up to me, I'm so happy," she shared.

"The littlest things that didn't mean shit before, that's the coolest thing… The simplest things are so special."

Listen to the full episode of But Are You Happy? below

Feature Image: Getty