Samantha Marie is a Los Angeles transplant, originally from Florida, releasing raw, honest, and infectious indie pop music since her debut single, When You’re Not There, in 2022. That single later went on to be remixed and synced by Pacsun for their Spring 2023 campaigns. In 2023, she released her debut album, “Summers,” led by the buzzing single Strawberry Sensation. Recently, she has performed at World Famous Whisky A-Go-Go, on acoustic sets with Dash Fm, and has gone viral on TikTok with through leveraging live videos. In this interview, we chat with Samantha Marie about her biggest challenge as an artist, inspirations, and more.
Who or what inspired you to start making music? And, when did you start?
I have always been involved with being creative and expressive though writing and performing. Growing up, I’ve always been independent. I’ve always been involved in theatre, writing, singing, performing and expressing myself through these artistic outlets. It was a no-brainer I became involved with music as my passion.
What is your biggest challenge as an artist?
Showing my “WHY” and being relatable to others. I need to cross this threshold, which also pertains to me showing the real me and not being afraid of judgement. People don’t love music because they like you, they like the way the music makes THEM feel.
What is your favorite project or single you have released?
My “Summers” album is a concept studio album and is my most recent and favorite project.
Who are your inspirations? What artists or bands are you listening to?
Beabadoobee, Neil Young, Lana Del Rey, Joni Mitchell, Tom Petty, and Smashing Pumpkins to name a few. Lyrics and their melodic structures are the most important to me. I feel these artists are really honest when it comes to lyricism, and their melodies are some of my favorites.
What’s the process behind working on a song like?
Typically driven from experiences, my writing process is different each time, but it’s almost always solely written by me, either from a guitar chord progression or from free styling a concept from an instrumental track that someone has sent me. As I polish the song, it evolves and sometimes changes from its original form to create its final form within production.
What else do you have in store for 2023?
I have the “Summers” deluxe album, an EP of remixes in collaboration with four DJs, and another EP of live recordings. Not only was I inspired to create this, but I wanted fans to be able to have more to hold onto from me. More to become attached to.
There are so many indie pop artists, but few are as talented as Samantha Marie. Her songwriting and vocal ability are levels above the competition, and we only foresee explosive growth for the artist over the next few years. Performing live at venues (and on cellphones) all over the country, fans are itching for more. Check out her debut album, “Summers,” and the rest of her discography on Spotify or wherever you stream music.