Aime Simone is officially the new indie-pop sensation right now: His song “Shining Light” went on repeat on the radio for months and became viral on TikTok. With the release of his new album “Oh Glory”, he serves us a bunch of amazing pop tracks which are as good as any huge American producer will produce for A-List artists. With his emo-gold aesthetic visuals and an atypical appearance, Aime Simone is having his moment and might be here for a long time. We chatted with him about this new release and the construction of “Oh Glory” while he was becoming successful. Here is our conversation with Aime Simone:
Hi Aime Simone, your new album “Oh Glory” is out now. What’s your mood having this finally out?
My new album is out and it feels weird. I am very proud of it, took my time to make it, and at the same time I know I can always do better. But I guess it’s up to the people to decide what it’s worth for them. Right now there is so much happening at the same time that it is hard to understand how I feel about it being out. I am really happy that I can perform the songs live now though, that feels amazing.
When did you start making music? And what was the main trigger when you decided that music will be your job?
I started making music seriously as a teenager. And I decided that I would make music professionally around 18 years old. But I don’t see it as a job, more like a calling.
I discovered your music with your track “Shining Light” which became successful and viral. How did you react when you discovered it was a hit?
I was surprised, I never expected this song would be a hit because it’s rather slow and soft. But it made me realize that once music is out in the world, anything can happen and you can’t control it.
Having a successful single is not that much stress for the next ones?
Not really, for me it’s motivation.
For this album, I feel that you might be a gold lover. On the cover, you have a face full of gold. What was the idea of having this shiny direction?
I wanted something modern, flashy, and somehow mythological. I wanted it to be eye-catching both digitally and in its physical form, also something you haven’t seen before. So we collaborated with AI artists to conceptualize it.
What was the most punk moment you got when creating this album?
I had a visit from my grandma that passed away, we had a talk and the next day she channeled the melodies of “Never Far”, the intro song of the album. I am not a particularly spiritual person, in fact, I would rather avoid those moments because they can be very intense and disturbing. But that happened and I couldn’t deny how powerful of an experience it was. It’s the most soulful song on the album I would say. For me that felt like something very raw, so I guess it’s the best way to answer your question.
And what was the most difficult song you made on this record?
I guess it would be either “New World” or “Give Me Love or Give Me Nothing”. It’s the longest I’ve worked on a song, to find the right structure and perfect the details. But to be honest none of these songs were particularly difficult. Maybe the mixing was the most difficult because the songs were very different from what I had previously made, so I had to experiment and adjust my process of mixing. Some of the songs were recorded a while ago, so the mixing process was definitely a challenge because I wanted all of the songs to sound cohesive.
On this record, there’s a song called “Not A Rockstar”. Do you think now, your life changed due to the success of “Shining Light” which was on repeat on the radio?
Life changes regardless of any success but I think “Shining Light” opened a few doors in terms of what I can do now as an artist.
You explored artificial intelligence in one of your music videos. How close are you to all these new kinds of technologies?
I don’t feel very close to them but I like to experiment with new tools to create different kinds of work. I love novelty and innovation. I think it is important to embrace the technology of the time you are in, so as to avoid being caught in repetition of previous eras.
You were born in Paris while having Norway origins and you did your previous album in Berlin. Is traveling a source of inspiration?
It depends on how I travel. Sometimes I just pass by in a city for a show or a shoot and I don’t feel like I get much from it. But having lived in LA, Vienna, and Berlin definitely inspired me, and having family in Norway as well. The times that I have been introduced to a city by someone that really knows it, and took the time to understand the vibe and the culture, definitely revealed something unique and beautiful about each place that added a new dimension to the depth of the universe I am creating. Sometimes it is very subtle and hard to explain. Sometimes it is more obvious, like with Berlin. I think anyone that knows Berlin would recognize that it is part of my history, you can find traces of it in my music and aesthetic.
