Liverpool has always been known for its rich musical heritage but in recent years it’s house music that’s been ringing through the streets of this northern city. With house music royalty such as Camelphat & Yousef flying the flag for so long, all eyes now fall on SOSA as Liverpool’s new rising star.
Recognised for his hypnotic grooves, SOSA has been busy honing his skills in the studio, perfecting his signature dance-ready productions. His tracks have picked up support from key tastemakers in the house music scene such as The Martinez Brothers, Michael Bibi, PAWSA and Jamie Jones, with releases on Sola, Defected, Relief, Moxy Music, Repopulate Mars, Ultra & Ministry of Sound to name a few.
Outside of the studio, SOSA maintains a stacked tour diary with a plethora of performances at Forbidden Forest, Bramley Moore Dock, Printworks, Albert Hall and other key events across the UK. But SOSA’s stand out moment behind the decks arose when he was invited by Camelphat to join them at their Bodyworks night at Hi, Ibiza, where he treated the crowd to a first exclusive, listen of his track ‘Needs Out’.
As part of the celebration around his release, we sat with Liverpool based artist, SOSA to discuss life behind the headphones.
Liverpool is a city renowned for its musical heritage. What was it that drew you towards a career within electronic music?
I think the fact that Creamfields is from Liverpool was something that really helped get me into music. Like many others within the industry, whether a DJ, producer or behind the scenes worker, everyone starts out as a fan. I know I did, so from a young age, I got the music bug pretty quick.
What advice would you best give to young aspiring producers?
The advice I always give to young producers is to be patient and work hard. Sometimes people will assume that this happens overnight, and in reality, its countless hours, amounting to weeks, months and years of time in the studio. Also, another really important thing to remember, is that you don’t need to rush it. Think of it as a marathon, rather than a sprint.
What is your greatest life achievement so far and why?
So far, for me personally, it’s got to be working with huge artists and featuring on a mix of Pete Tongs on BBC Radio 1.
Since featuring on the first future stars mix of 2020, you have gone on to start your own imprint “COCO”. Can you tell us a little more about it? and the sort of music you’re looking to release?
I wanted to start COCO because I felt like the release schedules for so many of the labels that I was looking to get on were sometimes over a year away from when your demos were approved. I wanted to be able to push music more frequently, and also keep it fresh. It’s weird when you produce something, and then 14 months later it comes out. A lot happens during that amount of time. The music on COCO is very much club orientated with big chunky groovy drums and big basslines. I really love the stripped-back sound, which is what I’m pushing with the label.
What has been the most difficult moment of your musical career thus far and why?
By the far the most difficult has been the lockdown. It’s been so difficult to find inspiration and sometimes I struggle to get a groove going in the studio. But saying that, I have made 2-3 of the best tracks I’ve made to date. It’s just one of those things that’s out of everyone’s control.
What has been the best venue/party you have played at and why?
This is a tough one! There has been quite a few which have blown me away, from the biggest venues with over 2,000 capacity to tiny basements with as little as 300. The stand-out for me though is a club in my hometown called Mansion. I think it sold out in 2 days and it was the best vibe I have ever had from a gig.
If Sosa, could release a track with any artist past or present who would it be and why?
Hmmmmm very tough again. I Would have to say, Dave. I love his music and listen to him a lot and his ‘Psychodrama’ album really blew me away.
