Singer of the group Hyphen Hyphen which she founded in 2009 with Adam and Line, Santa also launched solo in 2022. After “Salted Popcorn”, the title which started it all, the 31-year-old Frenchwoman continues her adventure . She released her first album “Recommence-moi” on May 24, 2024. She reveals eleven songs in French that she describes as “very intimate”.
You released your first album. Why this name, “Start me again”?
Santa: It’s a bit of a funny title because I already imagined the CD and an ode to the “repeat” button and to the idea of a title starting again. And then I thought of the album as a story that you can listen to from start to finish. I even ended with end credits. So there is this idea of starting the album again and listening to it depending on the mood. And I also almost naively want to cultivate this idea of eternal beginnings. Every day and every moment of life is a new beginning and sometimes we learn a few character traits, but ultimately we just start again forever.
What were your main inspirations for this album?
Inspirations are always a complex question because at the moment I am inspired, but I don’t say to myself “I’m going to go and write this story”. I write almost automatically. Then, there is rewriting and there is the beginning of hostilities and the choice of verb, but otherwise it is something very instinctive and a headlong flight. Each song is seen as a facet of this whole.
You recorded your vocals in the same studio as Celine Dion. How important was it for you to be able to do this?
So, I recorded this album in my bedroom. I recorded all the instruments there and made all the arrangements. And the fact of already leaving my room felt good (she laughs) because a room, especially in Paris, is narrow. And this studio, I wanted to go there because I loved the voices on the album “D’Eux” with Céline and Goldman and I had never found this crystalline in French variety. Of course, there is Céline’s instrument which is sumptuous, but there is this technicality. Since I was producing the voices, I wanted this limpid aspect in the voices which lets the emotions shine through.
The title “Salted Popcorn” was already in the EP. Why did you choose to include it in the album?
Ha, but I couldn’t make an album without “Salty Popcorn”. It is thanks to this song that the album exists. For me, the first album is one of the most important stages because we discover ourselves and we introduce ourselves. And “Salted Popcorn” is the beginning before the start again.
You only offer one duet out of the eleven titles. How did the collaboration with Christophe Willem on “Les Larmes ne cours pas” come about?
Only one! It’s already quite a duo (she laughs). It’s very fashionable to do feats. But before sharing, I still had to introduce myself. And Christophe, it came naturally because I realized during a little improvisation that our voices mixed well. I wanted to create something tailor-made for our two voices and a hymn to friendship
You will perform at various festivals including Montreux Jazz. What can the public expect when they come to see you?
This is my first solo Swiss festival, so I want to see things in a big way. I want “wow” on every level. I want a show. I’m cooking something pretty special. I want to present myself well, with pomp and intensity.
And once on stage, in front of the audience, what do you feel?
I’ve been performing since high school. It’s another thing to experience it alone, and the songs are very intimate. We will juggle between electricity and the rock that is in me and the intimate. When I face people and I often see “Salted Popcorn” being taken up in my heart, it pierces me to the depths of my soul, especially children. To see little ones, pure souls singing this title, I tell myself that it feels good to write songs, and for them to be transported like that from soul to soul.
