If you don’t know Leroy Clampitt by name, there’s a good chance you already know his work. The New Zealand-born, LA-based singer, songwriter and producer has spent the past decade helping shape records for artists including Sabrina Carpenter, Laufey, Madison Beer, Lily Allen, Justin Bieber, Raye, Finneas and Flo. For his debut album, Get Happy, however, Clampitt turns that attention inward, stepping out from behind the scenes to create a world entirely of his own.

Released via his independent label Sorry Susan Records, Get Happy is a deeply personal record made largely by Clampitt himself, with the majority of the instruments and vocals performed by the artist. Written and recorded over the course of just a few weeks, the album moves through love, burnout, mortality, nostalgia, work and all the strange, ordinary moments in between. There’s a warmth and playfulness to it, but beneath that sits a thoughtful songwriter constantly questioning how we move through life.

From the wistful nostalgia of ‘Ricky Martin’ and the childlike relief of ‘Sick Day’ to the timeless romance of ‘The Brighter Side Of Life’, each song offers another glimpse into Clampitt’s imagination. Together, they form a record that feels both expansive and remarkably intimate.

For 1883 Magazine, Leroy Clampitt takes us through Get Happy track by track, sharing the stories, inspirations and ideas behind each song.

‘I’m Going To Die’

Pretty immediately after writing this song I knew the most appropriate way to start my debut album would be with the lyric “I’m Going To Die”. Nip it in the bud. I wrote the song halfway, it sat around in my head for a while but it didn’t have a second verse until the morning I recorded it.

The night before I rewatched my favorite film Tampopo, there’s a vignette at the start of the film about how when you die you see your life’s movie flash before your eyes. That unlocked the rest of the song. The production is me trying to unashamedly recreate Gilbert O’Sullivans 1972 hit single ‘Alone Again (Naturally)’.

‘Easy Daisy’

This song has a very pure origin. The day I got my first 4 track tape machine I wanted to try it out and I needed a song to record so I just wrote something off the dome really quick and that was this. “Easy Daisy” is kiwi culture, it’s a classic quote from a New Zealand beer commercial from the late 90’s or early 2000’s.

I always loved that quote. I love saxophone too. When I first got into making music i’d use saxophone a lot, I went to jazz school so there was an abundance saxophonists at my disposal. I had to get back to my old ways for this one.

‘Your Boy’

I love a love song. I have a career as a songwriter for other artists and it’s surprising how seldom artists want to come and write a conventional love song. This is maybe my favorite production on the album, potentially my favorite song too. It’s not the first time i’ve used “Slide guitar” as a lyric and it won’t be the last. I don’t think I would have released this album if it wasn’t for the person this song is for.

‘Sick Day’

Another pure origin story. That day I didn’t want to be doing the work I was meant to be doing so I just stopped and started watching skate videos on youtube. Then someone popped a really nice sounding Ollie. I chopped it up into a loop and then I started adding things. I think earlier I had watched a video on youtube about how on Lou Reed’s ‘Walk On The Wild Side’ the bass player Herbie Flowers created one of the most iconic arrangement moments in pop music when he overdubbed his original bassline with a second bassline.

He says it’s not the reason why he did, but he did say he got paid double for doing the overdub haha. Anyway, I was proud that the song that came out was exactly what I was feeling at the time, usually it takes a while for a feeling to sink in the art.

‘Charlie’s Interlude’

I don’t know that most people really care for interludes in albums but as someone who makes albums they can be a really nice creative relief. Packing something beautiful into a short moment that helps add to the overall tapestry of the album can really help the creator see their vision more clearly.

‘Ricky Martin’

It’s a true story, this girl Charlie in my class when I was about 6 had a Ricky Martin CD and she would play before class. I vividly remember dancing around and she came up to me and said “Do you know what living la vida loca even means?” I had no idea, it was extremely embarrassing.

This was the hardest song to crack. I had the first verse and pre chorus but I couldn’t figure out how to land the plane. I tried so many different things, I was showing my partner and she was like “well obviously you should talk about living the crazy life” which we all know now is obvious and genius but sometimes you need the outside perspective to see the forest through the trees.

‘Puppy Dog’

Shout out Gus Clampitt, rest easy buddy. I was in LA when I wrote this, Gus (the family dog) was back in Aotearoa nursing some kind of life threatening illness. It was sad to think he might die before I got to come home and say goodbye but a few months later he was still kicking and I got back. I had a solid week with him before he went downhill. We hung out all day, I sat and played him this song on the guitar.

Then a vet came out and put him down as the sun set over Pirongia mountain. I made a little playlist of songs for him to die to, he had a beautiful life. I recorded the song later that week and it features a bunch of my family. I even got to record my dad playing Harmonica on it right as he was dropping me off at the airport to go back to LA.

‘I Used To Be A Tire’

This is one of those songs that felt like it wrote itself, so I’m not sure I can fully take responsibility for it. I was in New York for work, staying at a hotel, and they had these coasters made from recycled rubber that said, “I used to be a tire.”

For whatever reason, that phrase completely took over my brain. I got in the shower, and by the time I got out and dried off, the song was basically finished. It came out of nowhere. Now whenever I see a busted tire on the side of the road I think of this song.

‘Get Happy’

I picked up a guitar and wrote this song one night after a long day/week/month/year of work. I put the guitar down after writing it and didn’t go back into the studio for two months.

I had been on the cusp of burnout for a while and writing this was the precipice for me letting go and taking a break to lock after myself for a while. I love this recording, proud of the drums, also this is the highest I’ve ever sung, I warmed up for an hour to hit those top ones for you.

‘The Brighter Side Of Life’

Another love song, I had to. This is what I wrote about it in my press release and i’d like to repeat it here. The Brighter Side Of Life is a timeless, piano-led love song that draws on the warmth of classic pop, blending Beatles-esque melodies with the heartfelt charm of Harry Nilsson.

Group vocals soar as the lap steel guitar prows around, the song celebrates the quiet mystery of love. Through a series of questions about the natural world that have no real answers, it arrives at a simple revelation: sometimes the presence of another person is enough to make you see the brighter side of life.

‘Goodnight’

This song is me trying to capture the feeling of one of the many cherished ‘sing songs’ I was privy to growing up with my family in Aotearoa. I was lucky to belong to a family who made an effort to sing together whenever there was a gathering. Some of my fondest feelings.

The vocal harmonies are inspired by the Maori and Pacific islanders I would get to hear sing at my high school. They had a unique and beautiful way of arranging their voices.

Get Happy is out now.

Photography Taylor Morales