MEET : SACHA RUDY
Sacha was one of the first people I met out in Paris, and before I knew it I was sat around a table full of his nearest & dearest friends celebrating his birthday, after knowing him for approximately 12 hours… a pretty good welcome if you ask me.
With over 40,000 monthly listeners on Spotify and over 2 million combined streams, if you’re unfamiliar with Sacha’s work, you won’t be for much longer. Whilst his collection of singles and latest EP are all pretty different from one another, there’s one constant denominator throughout that elevates them all : spine tinglingly slick production. These tracks sound like they’ve been around for years and have strong ass legs, rooting them firmly in the pop/electro-sphere. And you don’t have to take my word for it either, the French beat maker is coming to London! Get you tickets here to see him play at the Sebright Arms on Friday 10th June.
We caught up with Sacha on a sunny day in Paris and asked him some VERY important questions….
Photos by Johan van der Voort
You’re a very talented producer, how did you get into that?
Well thank you :) When I was a kid, I wanted to be a film director, so I started making films with my friends. They were absolutely terrible, so I realized that I couldn’t make anything like my references at that age. On the contrary, I discovered music production softwares and I was like ‘mmmh that sounds ok !’ so I got more and more into that, making songs with my friends that I would actually enjoy. And here we are now.
What's your favourite part of the creating process?
I love it all! The whole creation of a song can be beautiful when you find the good idea, but also very painful when you know you’re not there yet, that can last for months, years. I love playing live because it’s way more spontaneous, direct, if you make a mistake, that mistake is inevitably part of the show, and I love that.
What was your musical childhood like? What were you brought up with?
My mom used to sing a lot of opera tunes like Carmen, and my dad is a piano player, so I’ve always been surrounded with a lot music. I quickly started to listen to electronic music, and pop artists, so I guess it’s this combination that nurtured me.
What’s your favourite instrument?
The bass. It’s strong and vibrating, in a big space that’s probably all you can hear. Otherwise the voice, because it carries the words, the melody.
Uniforms is a bop. When I first heard it, it sounded immediately like a classic. Tell us the story behind it.
I actually made Uniforms in London a few years ago, it was a very James-Blakey song, I was singing the chorus with a high pitch voice etc… I then completely lost the files so I had to remake it. I was working with Camille Jansen on her first EP at the time, and we tried to replace that part with her voice, worked way better! Spent so much time trying to get the right sound, the right structure, the right words, and I’m glad you like it.
The video is just as mesmerising as the track. What was the inspiration for it?
Thanks! I wanted to portray the whirl of the song through the video. The song is a game, a confrontation so I first thought of a tango, a theatrical dance between Camille and me. When I was recording with Camille, we were watching the video of Ellis Regina & Jobim singing ‘Aguas de Março’ a lot. So I showed that video to Ciesay, and that was the start of it all. We combined a bit of Paris, Texas, a bit of Olafur Eliasson, some dancing and here it is.
What’s a music video that stands out in your head as a proper good’un?
So many! King Krule’s Czech One is probably the one I’ve watched the most.
How would you describe your music in non-musical terms?
A glass of fresh sparkling water with a slice of lemon inside a burning house.
Who would you say your biggest support is, and in what way?
Definitely my friends, family, and girlfriend, I play them my music, discuss ideas, and they ground me when I get too crazy.
If you scroll down on Spotify, your music is featured on two SEX playlists. What makes a song sexy?
Ahahah I don’t know… I don’t particularly try to make sexy music, but if that’s what the algorithm thinks, I’m glad. I like honest songs, honesty is sexy.
Photos by Johan van der Voort
Who are you listening to at the moment?
A lot of C Tangana, Bowie, Jockstrapp, Rosalia.
Give us some new Paris bands/artists that we should get to know…
So many! Timothée Joly, Crystal Murray, Kids Return…
Your first EP is out… what’s next?
I’m currently working on the shows, visuals for the next months, and on the next songs!
You’re on the Last Bus home after a big night out. What are you listening to?
Transa by Caetano Veloso, it just works anywhere at any time.
