Charli XCX has revealed that her sixth album will feature a song that explores her relationship with SOPHIE, who she revered as an “unbelievably magic person.”
“There was a lot of distance between us because I was in awe of her and wanted to impress her,” the ‘Speed Drive’ singer told The Face.
“She believed in me in ways that I didn’t believe [in] myself. But I felt like I would never be interesting enough to operate in her world outside of the studio, which was the safe space where we could connect and bond over music.
“I didn’t feel like I was magical enough for this unbelievably magic person. And that makes me ashamed now I don’t have the opportunity to experience that anymore, because she’s gone. I feel ashamed for being a coward. It’s hard to write about. I’m sad for myself that I didn’t experience all this person had to offer.”
Charli has been vocal about her gratitude to the acclaimed DJ and producer Prior to the release of her fifth studio album CRASH, she told Zane Lowe that the late Scottish trailblazer was one of her “biggest champions”.
“SOPHIE was always pushing me to not record with autotune, which I think people would find quite interesting,” said Charli. “She was always like, ‘Just sing with your voice. You sound great. Let’s do this like that.’ SOPHIE was just a champion of people that she believed in.
“And no matter what level you were as an artist, if you were a big artist or if you were her friend who was making music with her in her studio and no one else had heard any of the songs at all. She believed in those people.
“She thinks people are stars. And when she thinks you’re a star, she’s not going to let you do yourself an injustice by not going for it.”
Charli and SOPHIE first worked together on the Vroom Vroom EP before working on tracks including ‘Trophy’, ‘Out of My Head’, ‘After the Afterparty’ and ‘No Angel’.
SOPHIE tragically passed away on 30 January 2021 following an accidental fall from a three-story balcony in Athens, Greece. According to her girlfriend, Evita Manji, she had climbed to take a picture of the full moon.
A producer for artists such as Madonna, Kim Petras and MØ, SOPHIE only released one album in her lifetime, Oil of Every Pearl’s Un-Insides, which received widespread critical acclaim and earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best Dance/Electronic Album. It also topped several year-end lists for 2018.
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