Interview: Sauti Sol's New Album 'Midnight Train'
12 June 2020
We speak to the Kenyan Afro-pop sensations about their latest album, their evolution as artists and Black Lives Matter.
Sauti Sol recently dropped their fifth studio album and it is a jubilant gift for the undeniably turbulent times the world finds itself experiencing. Midnight Train is a rich and uplifting 13-tack album with standout tracks in "Suzanna," "Nenda Lote," "Sober," and "Brighter Days," which featured the prolific Soweto Gospel Choir and was the first track to be released in the run-up to the album launch.
In what ways would you guys say Midnight Train is different from Afrikan Sauce?
Chimano: Well, Afrikan Sauce was a project that was largely a collaborative. Also, we were just at a different point in our lives then. Midnight Train is an album that totally represents what our original fans would describe as "all grown up." That's what Midnight Train is. It also just encompasses the best of us and what we've managed to learn throughout the years in terms of being able to direct our own videos, do our own mood boards, production, mixing and mastering. To an extent, this is the first album that is collaborative not just with other artists but songwriters and producers––a lot of people came together to make this album work.
Tell us about working with India Arie on the beautiful track "My Everything"?
Chimano: First of all, India Arie was and has been and still is one of our biggest inspiration when it comes to how we write our music and how we arrange our music. We used to be big, big fans of her when we were starting our music. It's a dream come true to just have her bless our album. The funny thing is we randomly met at an airport in Atlanta last year. We just bombarded her with all our love, telling her how much we love her music, where we're from and that we are also musicians. She was very gracious. She listened to us. You could feel that positive energy coming from her.
I think she went and did her research, maybe watched our music and she loved it. She was very keen on working with us. She really gave her all, even with her recording. She made time. It was actually during the Grammys because this was in January. That's one of our biggest wins as a band, to be able to be associated with someone as great as her.
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