With two powerful albums already under her belt as Santigold, Santi White has matured personally and creatively in the three year lead up to the release of her new album 99 Cents.
With a cohesive theme and undertones regarding the mediated, filtered, impersonal nature of society, Santi’s approach to creating the strong statement of 99 Cents was more relaxed than may be expected.
“After I was about halfway through writing lyrics I took a step back and realised I was talking a lot about what it was to be an artist in this cultural climate where everything’s about marketing yourself, and selling yourself, and you’re switched on all the time.
“I wanted this record to be a commentary on that… but I also wanted it to be a fun record. I focused on the absurdity of it all, because it is crazy, and kind of scary- but it’s also really funny,” explained Santi.
Lead single ‘Can’t Get Enough Of Myself’ is a reflection on the self-assured, ironically public personal validation that social media offers, with references to paparazzi, parties, and being one’s biggest fan- but if anything, Santi speaks with a confident introspection that tells of a very different artistic persona behind the work.
“I write songs from my perspective, I write about my experiences. I’m way into that sort of statement, like in my song ‘Big Boss Big Time Business I’m calling myself ‘mama’ and I’m talking about how ‘on point’ you have to be, how focussed and how tough you have to be to face life’s challenges.”
The challenge that Santi was dealing with at the time of writing 99 Cents?
“I had a baby between this record and the last. I started making this record when he was two months old, so I was working on 99 Cents and at the same time not sleeping through the night, (laughs) and I do feel like a badass sometimes.”
‘Big Boss Big Time Business’ is undeniably a badass song, an archetypical example of Santigold’s sound- a solid bass line, a catchy hook, some sharp synth sounds, all tied together with Santi’s unmistakable vocals. With such a distinct vocal style, though, how did Santi approach exploring new sounds and styles for 99 Cents?
“I’ve had a lot of experience making records at this point and working with so many different people and producers, so I know how great it can be… but I also know how hard it can be. I decided to approach it in a playful way, so the songs sound upbeat and fun, but I’m talking about this really big stuff.”
Tracks like ‘Banshee’ and ‘Who I Thought You Were’ have a more high-spirited, top-range sound than may be expected by long-term Santigold listeners, while ‘Walking In A Circle’ has a deeper, trap-style vibe that is equally as divergent from Santigold’s past releases. The clear variance and variety of sounds are the result of a “conscious decision to just have fun! I’d just had a little baby so I had a ball of pure joy at home and I was like, I want to feel like this, I want to feel it in the music,” Santi said.
“I feel like a lot of sounds hadn’t really found their way in my songs before, but they definitely found their way on this record.”
Helping new and different sounds shine through on 99 Cents was a group of acclaimed and certifiably cool producers including John Hill, Doc McKinney, and Dave Sitek, as well as Hit Boy, Justin Raisen, ILOVEMAKONNEN, and Sam Dew, among others.
“I always need a mental break so I jump into something really quick before I start my next record.”“I worked with Patrik Berger (Robyn, Charli XCX, Lana Del Rey) on a lot of tracks and it was so much fun. He had so many interesting influences from African music to Jamaican music to punk rock, but we both love pop.”
Further explaining some of the style and genre hopscotch that 99 Cents flaunts, Santi talked about working with former Vampire Weekend band member Rostam Batmanglij: “He could jump from hip hop to old-school reggae seamlessly which is my thing! It’s great to meet producers who can just float seamlessly between genres like that and Rostam was a great collaborator. I’d go to him looking for a certain drum sound or a certain synth sound and he could always come up with exactly what I needed.”
[include_post id=”397654″]To keep things interesting, Santi pursues a host of tasks outside of her musical endeavours, saying that busy-ness draws in her because she simply “loves to try new things. You work on a record for a year and a half, you tour it for a year and a half, so that’s like three years of your life working on one thing! I always need a mental break so I jump into something really quick before I start my next record.”
Though some may consider taking a break after a major endeavour, Santi is firmly of the minority who find satisfaction from pushing boundaries of all definition- and it seems she’s a better artist for it.
[After the last record] “I climbed Kilimanjaro! I worked on a documentary to help raise awareness for the need for clean water, but this time I wanted to try other creative projects that had nothing to do with music, so I did a makeup line, I tried acting- I took a few lessons and was on a few shows (including The Office) and I loved it!”
“I actually wrote a script in that time too! I’d love there to be a way to merge my music and acting, and directing- I’ve been directing a lot of my own videos as well.”
It’s hard to imagine when Santi found time to create an album as rounded and contemplative as 99 Cents, and equally as hard to imagine how she maintains motivation to keep writing, creating, and touring. When asked about plans to revisit Australia, Santi was adamant she’s “trying to get out there, trying to make it work and hoping it will. Honestly, some of my favourite touring experiences are from Australia but… [it’s a] shame because you guys have so many less festivals now than you did over the past few years.”
With her endless drive, painstakingly well-crafted music, and engaging social commentary, 99 Cents marks the beginning of a new phase for Santi and the mountains she plans on climbing in the future.
Santigold’s latest album 99 Cents is out now via Atlantic Records.
