The meaty end of this year’s Hottest 100 countdown proved without a doubt that well-engineered, poppy tracks led by badass ladies on the mic are on trend. Sammi Constantine fits the bill and as predicted, Aussies are loving her every move.
Her recent collaboration with intercity production duo Airports, a song named Limbo, is a spellbinding track with hooks for days. Eager to chat about collabs, her recent studio time in LA and her upcoming Sydney show, we pulled up a chair for the spellbinding young vocalist.
A training dancer who pursued music after an injury, Sammi Constantine is in the business of evocative pop that’s bound to make you move.
HAPPY: Hey Sammi, how was the time in LA?
SAMMI: Hey!! LA was mental! I didn’t know there was a city that actually, legitimately doesn’t sleep. We were starting meetings and studio session at 2:00am but I loved it! It was an incredible learning experience for me!
HAPPY: Feel good to be back home in Australia? What did you miss?
SAMMI: The first few days I was back in Aus I felt like my life had no purpose because everything was so much more chill, but after getting over the jet lag I quickly got back into the swing of life and now everything has been crazy since and I’ve kept close contact with everyone we worked with in LA. I missed coffee. USA doesn’t do great coffee and I depend on it to survive everyday.
HAPPY: Your music echoes the women who are the top of the pop game right now. Who are some of your current favourites?
SAMMI: Oh man thanks so much!! I’m super stuck on HALSEY and Aurora right now! Both such different women and artists but their lyrics speak to me!!! I also really appreciate some fellow Aussies at the moment who are also killing it! Vera Blue is a massive inspiration to me as well as Troye Sivan!!! I love to see Aussies topping the charts!
HAPPY: How do you think your training as a dancer has impacted your music making?
SAMMI: Dance is a form of expression in the same way that music and writing is for me, but having a dance background has massively impacted the way I write my songs and the way that I expect people to hear and feel my music. A song isn’t compete unless it makes you move physically (and emotionally) in some way.
HAPPY: You really seem to stretch your work further across genres than most artists. Are you trying to find your place musically or do you think staying adaptable is an important part of your style?
SAMMI: I don’t really think about what genre I’m appealing to. I do believe that although it may be hard to know what to expect from me, it also means I’m releasing exactly what I’m feeling and what I think will work without being having my creativity restricted by a genre or a specific scene. I think I 100% am still finding my sound, although I’d be totally fine if I never found it and people kept loving my music regardless.
HAPPY: When we spoke to Airports they said you had been working together for many years now. How did that relationship feed into what Limbo became?
SAMMI: Aaron Lee has produced most of my previous releases so I’ve been working with him since the first single Call You Mine released in 2015. Naturally because we have been working so closely together a collaboration with Airports made perfect sense. Limbo came about pretty organically and we are super happy with the response it’s gotten in Aus and NZ!
HAPPY: Given Aaron and Mossy will be there for the show at the Metro, do you have anything special planned?
SAMMI: SUPER KEEN FOR THIS SHOW!! Yes!! As well as playing my live set at The Metro Lair, I’ll also be hopping on stage during Airports’ set to perform Limbo and maybe a few other sneaky numbers ;)
HAPPY: And what more do we have to look forward to from you in 2017?
SAMMI: LOTS OF NEW MUSIC, LOADS OF COLLABORATIONS and more tour dates are being added to the current tour and I’m so excited to share my music with more of Australia!
Catch Sammi Constantine live at the Metro on Saturday April 8, with Airports supporting. All the details here.
