On Our Radar - Sopë: "My new single is a reminder not to stick to what people expect of me"

What was the inspiration behind the song?
I had just finished college during the pandemic. I was really trying to figure out what I wanted to do – I’m still trying to figure it out – but at that point, I wanted to do something for me. I was going through a lot of transformative things, rethinking so much, from my faith to my career. So it was a reminder not to stick to what people expect of me, and to remain authentic to myself.

Have you found your true sound?
At the time I wrote ‘Everything Changes’, I was just exploring if I could even write music. ‘Raise The Roof’ was really pivotal, in the sense that I moved from a very traditional sense of music that I grew up with. As time goes on, I’ve been exploring and pushing the boundaries. I knew I liked songs that were similar to ‘Breaking Free’, from artists like Samm Henshaw and Eryn Allen Kane, although I’d never put out any music like that. But this is genuinely what I enjoy.

What was it like working with Darren Bourke on the video? 
It was a match made in heaven. I had some ideas, but it was really two or three brainstorming sessions. I had the idea for the mugshot scene, and the one with chains in my hair was me too. But he knew the kind of shots we needed. I’m really proud of it, and especially for a first music video, it exceeded my expectations.

What music did you listen to growing up?
My parents listened to mainly contemporary Christian worship music – which I also still enjoy – and music in our language. There was one artist who stood out to me in secondary school, Meghan Trainor. I just thought she was so cool, and it was only when I moved to Ireland in 2015 that I had access to Spotify.

I listened to her whole album and thought, “This is amazing”. When I wrote ‘Breaking Free’ and ‘Perfect Piece’ – which is coming out later – I remember people went, “This is so new and different”. I was like, “Great, because I’ve been hiding these songs for two years.”

'Breaking Free' is out now.

The new issue of Hot Press is out now.