Promising newcomer Abby Simone has shared her sublime debut release, Same Sunrise.

After growing up in a strict household and discovering her gift for singing at an early age whilst performing at church events, singer-songwriter Abby Simone has finally ventured into the music industry. Marking the start of her solo project with the gorgeous debut offering, Same Sunrise. It’s a warm and jazz-tinged soul-pop song which conjures up images of idyllic locations, romance and reconnecting with loved ones. Up until this point, Simone has spent the last several years cutting her teeth in the Singapore music scene by playing small shows, working with Producer Cuurley, and ultimately finding her sound and vision. Same Sunrise is just the start but the musician hopes to continue her artistic vision by crafting songs that are about self-empowerment, emotional vulnerability and more.

In conversation with 1883 Magazine Abby Simone discussed the inspiration behind Same Sunrise, how her time in Singapore has helped her grow,  and the first pop song she was exposed to.

Hi Abby, congratulations on releasing your debut single Same Sunrise. Can you please tell us a bit about what inspired it and why this was the perfect track to release as your first official single?

Thank you! I was in a long-distance relationship at that time and sometimes it just got really hard to not have your person with you, a year later I moved to Europe and I had to go through it all by missing my family & all my close friends. But the feeling when you re-unite with your person, whoever it might be, is what this song is about. Also, this was the first track I wrote when my solo career started, It just felt right.

It’s been mentioned that you spent two years in Singapore refining your sound whilst working with a producer called Cuurley. How do you think your time in Singapore has helped you grow as a musician and songwriter?

Gigging in various bars, clubs, and restaurants in Singapore helped me build my stage presence & confidence. Performing in front of a crowd can get quite overwhelming. When I first started performing my originals I felt so judged. All that was going through in my head was “Ok, this is clearly shit. they hate it”. But I learnt to trust my music and myself. Some of my mates also happen to be musicians and whilst I was gigging they were regularly the most complimentary. Cuurley lives in Malaysia, so When we had our one to one sessions, I’d fly to Kuala Lumpur to record the ideas. All the confidence that I gained from performing back in Singapore helped me stay true to my sound,  whilst writing tactfully and learning throughout the process. Luckily, both Cuurley and I respected each other’s ideas/suggestions when it came to making music. in Cuurley’s words “If you’re going to hate performing this song live then I’m not gonna do it”.

Your upbringing was fairly strict in your childhood and pop music was prohibited but singing in church was your first musical outlet. I’m keen to know if you can recall the moment you were first exposed to pop music and how it impacted you? Was there a particular song that really resonated with you?

The first ever song I was exposed to was  Butterfly by Crazy town. My primary school classmate looked at me and said ” we can be friends if you memorise this song”. So guess who rejected his friendship after rapping the first verse and the chorus. A  song that impacted me and made me feel for a boy that didn’t exist: was Avril Lavigne’s Complicated.

Who are you listening to at the moment? Is there anyone you would recommend to our readers?

Parcels, Peggy Gou, Burna Boy. I would also recommend Kings of Convenience!

Once you got into the Singaporean music scene, I love that you refused to comply to certain demands such as sexualising your artistic image or covering certain chinese pop songs. Instead of doing what was demanded of you, you’ve paved your own way. You originally decided to start a band but now have gone fully solo, was this always going to be the case? And why do you think it is so important that artists maintain control of their artistic vision? 

Starting the band with those guys is another set of my core memories. Playing with a live band where everyone was having fun on stage is just a moment I loved being in. Along the way I had a different vision of how I wanted my sound to go. So going solo meant I only had myself to depend on; I had to brush up my guitar, and I had to learn to play & sing. I thank my friends who gave me a crash course on Logic Pro! Logic Pro taught me how to compose my ideas.  To answer your second question, Yes, it is important that you maintain control of your vision because thats the reason I became a musician and if I lose control of that then I’ve lost my identity.

What is one fun fact about yourself that people might not know?

I never sing Happy birthday in key. I don’t know why, it just never felt right to sing it sweetly and do vibrato or vocal runs. Plus, Im always happily distracted with the off-time claps. The song makes for the best time to discover unique time signatures.

Who’s on your dream collaboration list?

Burna boy, JUNGLE, N.E.R.D, Masego and Yussef Dayes.

Finally, what would you like to achieve in 2023?

I’ve missed performing live. and I absolutely cannot wait to get on a stage, and sing my songs. So that’s the next goal!

Same Sunrise is out now. Follow Abby Simone @abbysimonemusic

Interview by Cameron Poole