
âWe thought Running to the Sun was the perfect name for the albumâbecause when youâre running to the sun, youâre running away from darknessâŚ.â-St. Beauty
In todayâs world, artists have the capability of capturing the eyes and ears of audiences and music execs from stages or their living rooms. Through a variety of new ideas, sounds, and creative platformsâthey can reach a multitude of people by simply being different and standing out. In a society engulfed by social mediaâmusic has become about more than just music.
Itâs about freedom and self-expression. Itâs about creating new lanes and reaching new platforms. Music is a gateway to feeling better and restoring hope. For the eclectic duo, Alex Belle, and Isis Valentino, this was the case. Starting out, the Georgia peaches found their sound in the basement of a local boutique they worked. Combining their talents from songwriting and instrumentsâthe two formed their group, St. Beauty. A name that embodies how they view themselves and their music.Â
DELUXâs Editor-in-Chief caught up with the Wondaland singers to talk about their new albumâRunning to The Sun, whose music theyâre jamming to, and whatâs next for St. Beauty.
DELUX: Hi Alex and Isis. Howâs your day so far?
ST. BEAUTY: Hello, so far so good. Thank you for having us.
DM: No problem. Letâs get started. Tell our readers how you came to be St. Beauty?
ALEX BELLE: We met at a boutique local called Poor Little Rich Girls in Atlanta. We were both employed there. At the time, the company started putting together talent showcases that we were helping with. I had written a song I really wanted to perform and thought the showcases would be a great opportunity for myself. Eventually, I asked Isis if she knew anyone who could play the guitar and she offered to learn or come up with some cords for the song. The performance was a success and from there we started writing songs, composing music, and performing together.
DM: Your name is very different, and Iâm curious about where it came from. Is there a meaning behind itâor something you came across and liked? How did you come up with the name St. Beauty?
ISIS VALENTINO: I had written a song called St. Beauty before we had gotten together. Once weâd gotten together, we were trying to think of names to call ourselves. I just remembered St. Beautyâit was feminine enoughâit was called beautyâand the saint part was like something to believe in. It just felt right for us. [Laughs] Alex didnât like it at first. We eventually took it to Twitter and did a poll to see if people liked the name. In the end, I feel like it means pure beauty and having something to believe in.
DM: What are your individual personalities like that make your duality blend so well?
AB: Hmmm. I would say Iâm more of the quirky, goofy one. Iâm always laughing at something. Yeah, I would say Iâm quirky and goofy [laughs].
IV: Iâm kind of a jokester with a little spice addedâbut Iâm still chill, cool. easy and an all-around kind of person.
DM: There are so many different genres and subgenres in music now. Can you describe your sound to our readers? What genre of music would you say your music is compiled of?
AB: Â We decided to come up with our own genre because we didnât want to put ourselves in a box when it comes to other genres. We thought the word confetti embodies our music. We decided on this word since we felt confetti has a lifeline. When it blows out, thereâs this moment of excitement. And then, when it falls, thereâs this moment of being in awe. Even after it falls, itâs still on peopleâs clothes and headsâor on the groundâor swept and throw away. We felt like all the different phases of the confettiâit embodies different moods and emotionsâwhich is what we convey throughout our music.
DM: Who would you say musically influences you individually and as a groupâyou feel you use to channel your creative energies?
IV: Itâs kind of hard to pinpoint one influence since there are so many from different decades. I would say I love Stevie Wonder. For instance, the name St. Beautyâthat name was inspired by a Stevie Wonder song called, Bird of Beauty. I always wanted to learn how to play an instrument from listening to Princeâwho inspired me to do that. I know how my voice sounds, so listening to artists who have the same voice as I do and being inspired by them too.
AB: Itâs kind of hard for me to choose. You know what, itâs not [laughs]. Well actually, Iâm very influenced by Nina Simone and the strength in her voiceâand the fact she always wrote about things she was going through. In high school, when I knew I really wanted to pursue musicâI was and still am very inspired by Kid Cudi and SantiGold. I think those three artists really influenced on how I go about making music today.
To read the rest of this interview, please download a copy of our summer issue here.
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