Mexican-American pop singer Sammi Sanchez is a triple threat: she grew up singing, acting, and dancing, and now she’s honing in on releasing her new EP. Here, we chat with her about what inspired her single “Girls Talk,” touring with Megan Nicole, and what it was like working with producers like Koko La Roo (Nicki Minaj) and Melanie Fontana (Justin Bieber).
Cliché: You’ve been pursuing singing, dancing, and acting since a very young age. Right now, singing seems to be the bulk of your career, but are you interested in branching out into dancing or acting more in the future?
Sammi Sanchez: Yes! Singing has always been my main focus and my passion, but I also grew up in the performing arts; acting, singing, and dancing. I plan on branching out more in the future and tackling all three forms of art.
Do you have any particular musical influences or idols?
I think I would have to say J-Lo and Rihanna are my biggest influences. I love that J-Lo has incorporated her Latin culture into her brand and how she is a true performer who sings and dances and kills the stage. I also really love Rihanna because she is so edgy and badass. Her vocals are insane and she also dances like no other.
I hear you are fluent in Spanish as well! As a Mexican-American, was it your first language, or have you picked it up over the years? Will you be releasing any original songs in Spanish as well?
Yes! Spanish was my first language and as I started school I began to learn more English and become more comfortable with speaking it. I hope to be releasing some Spanglish songs here soon… add a little Latin flavor!
You’ve said that your single “Girls Talk” was inspired by your own personal experience. Do you usually draw inspiration for your music from actual events that have happened to you? What is your usual songwriting process?
Yes, “Girls Talk” was something that I actually went through. I tend to usually write from personal experiences. I’ll let my imagination wander and come up with an idea. The process is always different. Sometimes I will think of one word that will trigger an idea or maybe I’ll get a melody first and think of chunks of words and arrange them together to form a song!
What was it like working with talented producers like Koko La Roo, Melanie Fontana, Sam Sumser, and Sean Small, who have worked with some of the biggest names in music today?
They are all such amazing people to work with; I can’t say one bad thing about any of them. They each bring their own amazing energy into the room and it makes it so fun to work with them and easy to vibe together. It’s an honor to work with them.
You have toured and sang with fellow pop singer Megan Nicole. Has she helped you in your career in any way, or given you advice that has helped you grow? What have you learned from each other?
Megan is such a talented sweetheart and I’m so thankful I got to join her on tour! It was so much fun touring with her. She helped me get my first insight into what touring is like. She guided me and taught me all about touring. We were all on a tour bus together the entire time so that was a great bonding experience.
Do you have a favorite song to perform live, and why?
My favorite song to perform live hasn’t even been released yet! Stay tuned… this new music is going to be fire.
If you could collaborate or tour with anyone else, who would it be and why?
I would love to tour with somebody like Zayn or J Balvin. Zayn is just such an amazing artist and I feel his tour would be so sick to be on, as well as J Balvin. I think it would be filled with so much energy and of course some Latin jams!
What are your plans for the near future? Is there an album in the works your fans can look forward to?
Right now I’m finishing up an EP to get ready to release soon. I’m so excited for everyone to hear my new music and I feel that people will love the new direction I’m going in.
Read more Music Interviews on ClicheMag.com
BY MEGAN PORTORREAL
Sammi Sanchez On Her New Single and Touring with Megan Nicole: Photographed by Crow + Erickson
