Renegade is an alt-rock / pop / hip hop album that features experimental electronic genre fusions. Sage is the only songwriter on any of his releases, and this album is his 4th release. Renegade is about being cool and not caring what other people think. Check out the exclusive interview below:
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?
SAGE SUEDE: I’m from Austin, TX. I started making music as a kid and since I’m not a corporate entity, it took me decades to grow as a songwriter and an artist to get to where I am today. I’ve always been a musician, but I learned to be better and started SAGE SUEDE online in Boston before founding my LLC in 2017.
2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?
SAGE SUEDE: I’ve always been writing music, lyrics and arranging beats. For the most part, I would be self-taught when it comes to electronic compositions, but I have classical training on several instruments. I dedicated myself to developing each skillset to be the person I am today and it’s disappointing when you finally get here and you realize most of the scene is too corporate to have any integrity or ingenuity.
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘SAGE SUEDE’?
SAGE SUEDE: I have a lot of musical influences. I was born in the 90s so a lot of that house, dance pop and 90s rap are influences. More recently, I’ve realized the lyrics I write are dirty south, because I’m from the south and that is my personality too. My first albums were by Deee-Lite and Madonna. Then I went through all kinds of hard rock, foreign and experimental phases in many languages, so I make these electropop fusions now.
4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?
SAGE SUEDE: You never know what will resonate and I make music in a lot of different genres and genre fusions so it depends on the listener’s taste. I have a futuristic approach to combining genres and my vocal editing. I apply a lot of vocal edits before sharing with my producer and do all my comping. I think that most fans will like my vocal lines, synths, the dance beats, or the lyrics.
5. What has been the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
SAGE SUEDE:
I think that for a lot of musicians, it can be existential dread that you are being completely ignored by your community and the democracy that is supposed to exist and allow you to be a part of the system, but instead they are constantly suppressing all original works and leaving us out of the fold completely. When you realize it’s a lie, that’s only an initial reaction but it continues to be this lingering heartache for a lot of people, because not only do these evil corporations have a monopoly, they get millions in federal tax grants every year from our pockets and are also largely controlled by Chinese investment like WeChat that has a huge share of companies like Universal and this reduces free speech. There’s nothing democratic about slamming all the doors shut and preventing Americans from being a part of their own country’s entertainment monopoly at their own tax expense. It should be illegal, but nothing has been done.
6. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative, and entertainment?
SAGE SUEDE:
I always make entertaining music. I have a lot of influences in the lyrics that would be cultural or spiritual and try to touch on some issues in songs. Like my song about possession of drug paraphernalia called Thief in Blue, or when Dazmin and I performed together in Denver, but we got caught sharing a hotel room so we were talking about how women are portrayed in the media. There are a lot of important conversations to have but often it’s just a frivolous corporate hack piece that doesn’t have any depth or do anything for society.
7. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?
SAGE SUEDE:
The music has already gone further than I expected it to, with press in many languages. To me it’s surprising because I speak a lot but I don’t even know what they’re saying sometimes when I get like Croatian press or whatever. I feel a lot of fulfillment for the works I have created but it could be a bit lackluster in terms of the reaction from the public. I did expect a lot more equality and opportunity for musicians that no longer exists with massive corporate monopolies that have ruined the scene for decades.
8. Do you think is it important for fans of your music to understand the real story and message driving each of your songs, or do you think everyone should be free to interpret your songs in their own personal way?
SAGE SUEDE: I think that often meaningful art tells a story, but you don’t have to understand what that is to enjoy a piece. I believe that art usually should have enough depth to reveal more as you become more familiar with it. That’s one reason that I like to make music in other languages, like one of my favorite bands Brazilian Girls. When I first found them, I only spoke like one of those languages and now I understand most of what they say. I think a lot of the best art is like that where it captivates for a longer time and reveals more about itself as you become more familiar. Art is also up to the interpreter, so they may be wrong about the original message but not the way that they process the art, which is the main impact.
9. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style, which is known as EDM?
SAGE SUEDE: In my opinion, the industry is too immature and music shouldn’t be created as a result of emulating others. This is often encouraged, because kids don’t know what they’re doing and they hire other producers to do it for them. It’s too common. I find immaturity in the industry to be morally bankrupt and you see how this is still the model for the entire corporate hellscape they have created with almost no opportunity for anyone else. Being Texan only gives them more of an excuse to write us off with bigotry, based solely on the state we live in. A lot of dirty south rappers talk about this and how others discriminate against the south and I have personally experienced this more than enough times. I would consider their stereotyping to be as immature as most of their artist roster at major labels.
10. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?
SAGE SUEDE: Usually, I start with my lyrics but sometimes I make the beat first and then create lyrics. It depends on how the song was created. I do both but often I start with arranging my own beats. Sometimes other producers send me beats so I start directly with lyrics. Then I do demo vox at home and studio vox at my studio Blak Marigold Pro. The studio sends me all the vox back which I comp before returning to them. I collaborate a lot with people all over the world so it differs depending on if it’s a remix, song, dance collab, etc but I usually always do editing before having the final mix & master polished.
11. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
SAGE SUEDE: I’ve already released 4 albums and have 2 live albums coming out. I’ve art directed all this and am also actively modeling with global press. My brand has been larger than life for a long time and I’m always contributing to the community and social progress, even though no one is returning the favor to artists like me and allowing us to prosper in our own communities, instead of corporate sleaze. I am thankful for all the real queers, creatives and punks that are willing to stand up for art with integrity, even when it isn’t a corporate product.
12. With social media having a heavy impact on our lives and the music business in general, how do you handle criticism, haters, and/or naysayers in general? Is it something you pay attention to, or simply ignore?
SAGE SUEDE: I don’t really care about haters honestly. Unless it is a stalker following me around at home, which has happened too many times… then they are just hating out of insecurity for perceived lack of self-worth, which is a personal problem. I usually try to give them another chance, because most people are just having a bad day.
13. Creative work in a studio or home environment, or interaction with a live audience? Which of these two options excites you most, and why?
SAGE SUEDE: I like everything about the music and process. I’m happy modeling or singing on stage. I like photo studios and music studios. Usually the demos are home recorded, then I up the quality in studio. If there are good live recordings, then I blend those with studio recordings to get a hot live release too with crowd noise. There are ways to record the live more cleanly but I’m not budgeting that yet, so I have a guerilla approach.
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