1. The First Record I Bought
The first CD I ever bought was the Destiny’s Child The Writing’s On The Wall album. I think the girl power vibe of the cover really grabbed me. ‘Say My Name’ became my anthem well before any guys came into my life. I think that probably inspired my writing themes. I wanted to be as sassy, sexy and assertive as the DC ladies!
2.The Last Record I Bought
My last download was the entire Glorious Heights album by Montaigne. She’s a local Aussie artist and her album is absolutely insane! I usually listen to jazz/soul/R & B so it’s really unlike the kind of music you’d usually find me listening to. But I love how experimental all the tracks are. The only thing I dislike is the fact that I can’t take them off repeat!
3.The First Thing I Recorded
Gosh, so I unofficially ‘recorded’ my first song by myself when I was 11 and it was interesting, to say the least. However, my first official step into the industry was over in LA back in 2012 with some cool cats from the US scene, and some unofficial releases with local producer Michael Tan back in 2013. Funnily enough, I don’t actually cringe at everything pre-2015. I still like some of the writing, but my voice has definitely developed and changed a lot since then.
4.The Last Thing I Recorded
I just recently released a little window into my soul: my Lucky Stars EP, which was dropped as a follow-up to the single release of ‘Blue’ (which features on the EP). I worked with Jhay Cabrera on the production and I really don’t have good enough words to describe that guy’s talent. He’s just amazing at what he does! When it comes to playing the tracks off the EP at a live gig – you’ll get the songs you know and love, but you may find me being a lot more experimental with my vocals.
5.The Record That Changed My Life
It’s so weird to think of ten-year-old me listening to ‘Brown Sugar’ by D’Angelo, and even weirder that it was on a CD that my dad bought for me, but that was and still is one of my favourite songs in existence. It solidified my love for all things R & B, jazz and soul, which is the underlying inspiration to all of my music and writing. I have to go listen to it now!
Lucky Stars by Sonia is out independently on Friday August 19.