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Dear you!
Finally I have enough subscribers to my newsletter to make it worth my while to write this in two languages - so if you prefer Dutch, just send me an email and I'll make sure you'll get the Dutch version next time! In this past year, I hardly have had to speak English at all - no touring musicians sleeping over, no sessions to go to in my favourite Irish pub, and I quit my academic job two years ago now. I'm glad I still get to practice on you ;)
The big news of this letter
In my previous newsletter I was moping because it felt like everything I was trying was not working out. And approximately 48 hours after sending that letter I received an email from Marlous of Revanche Records that she would be happy to represent me for this new EP. Marlous made sure that my first single, Wide World, can be heard everywhere now and even made it to an official Spotify playlist! Of course that's not only thanks to Marlous, it's also because of all the Spotify-listeners among you who presaved the song. Presaving increases the number of plays of the song on release day and that in turn seems to help in making it to an 'editorial' playlist. Which then brings the song to a whole new audience! So thank you so much for helping me!
A video for Wide World
In case you hadn't heard Wide World yet - not everyone is on Spotify or the like - I have something very special for you: my very first official music video. I had never dared to make one before, but Wide World is a very special song and the version that we released sounds very different from everything I have ever made before. With a video, I was able to underline the atmosphere that the song evokes for me. Below the video I will tell you a little bit more about how this videoclip came to be!
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Wide World is about trying to say you love someone when you don't really dare to say it. On Facebook I saw the pictures taken by Victor Lacken, a friend I know from Mulligans. Victor takes beautiful pictures from his living room window. I thought it could work if I were to merge his picture series and add declarations of love into the scenery that may or may not arrive at the person who is watching from behind the window. Those declarations of love I drew myself, and my love animated them and added them in Victor's picture series. From the response to my video I've discovered that not a single person has found ALL the drawings yet. If you look closely, you will find not only a bird and an airplane, but also a few tiny, tiny people. Who discovers them all will get a free set of postcards from me!
Postcards on Bandcamp
I am so happy with the cover for Wide World that I had it printed on postcards! Many people have already ordered them, and I've shipped the sets yesterday. And I was thinking, if you know someone who could do with some love-by-postcard, I would be happy to send them a personal greeting. Of course you can also order a set of postcards for you to use - via this link. On the same website you can also pre-order my entire EP (digital or a phsyical copy), although I'm not sure yet when it will be released or even how many songs will be on it... At the moment there are only four, but I am thinking of adding perhaps just a few live versions of some of the songs, or maybe a new song... It's a process :)
A lovely intimate interview
I was called by a fairly large newspaper just before Wide World was released to see if I had time for an interview. Of course I did! Journalist Leo van Gelderen has turned our conversation into a beautiful story and there's a picture to the side made by Roosmarijn Broersen. I've translated the interview for you and you can find it below the Dutch version on this page! In addition, there has been all kinds of media attention for Wide World. The highlights for me: they played my song on KinkFM (the coolest radio station when I was in high school) and FolkRadio published a story about the song on release day. Yesterday I sent out a whole batch of emails to radio stations and fingers crossed that something else will come out of that. If you happen to be a fan of a particular radio program, you're very welcome to request that they play my song! :D I'd be happy to send them a download file.
What else is going to happen
Single number one has now seen the light of day. Today I started with the design for the cover of single number two. If I can make it work, it will be a river this time: the Colorado. To be precise, Twin Falls at Barton Creek. I was there 5 years ago when I wrote this song. I'm so happy that there will finally be an official version of this song and I can barely wait to share it with you. Jakes and Niko from Upcycled Sounds Studio made it sound really cool. There is no release date yet, but I'll share it with you when I know - first I'll have to finish that cover!
Because in the Netherlands we are still in some sort of lockdown - terraces and shops are now open (with a maximum number of people), but all places for culture are still closed. So although I would LOVE to share a real concert date with you, I decided to do one more livestream. I was supposed to have played a really cool concert this week with bouzoukiplayer Kaspar Laval. Because I love making music with him and the concert series has been completely cancelled, I contacted The Lasses' bookers Sandra and Luciano to see if they could help me set up another livestream. I don't love having to make sure the whole technical side works while I want to focus on playing music and talking with you. I'm extremely grateful that Sandra and Luciano agreed, so next week on Thursday night I'll be going live from their living room (or garden if the weather is nice!) with the fantastic Kaspar Laval! We'll broadcast it on my YouTube-channel and probably also via Facebook.
I really hope to see you next week on Thursday! And I meant that about the postcard, let me know who you think could use some attention and I'll climb in the pen, as we say in Dutch :)
Lots of love, Sophie
PS For lovers of Spotify I made a Wide World companion playlist, songs that I think go very well with Wide World and the singles that are to come. Suggestions? Send them over!
PPS Roosmarijn Broersen made the beautiful picture for the interview with the Noordhollands Dagblad. The newspaper loved it so much that it was a full-page photo... And Roosmarijn makes more beautiful things: see for example the two pictures below, and her shop with hand-formed ceramics (I have two face-cups!)
PPPS Thank you so much for reading until the very end! I'm always afraid that I've written a little bit too much and that people give up halfway. But you didn't, so thank you. And now that you're here... you're always very welcome to forward this letter to someone you think should see that amazing video..! Every little bit helps :)
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