Sophie Powers On Being a “Klepto”, Synesthesia and NYFW
Written by Daphne Bryant
All images courtesy of Aiden Magarian
Pop disruptor Sophie Powers is a busy lady. On the day of our interview together, she had plans to go to a storage unit, more interviews, a couple calls, Pilates and then a night out with a visiting friend. “I love LA but I hate the person it makes me,” says Powers, who admits to working herself to the ground in order to keep up with the hustle and bustle of her peers. At the same time, Powers—who is originally from Toronto—appreciates LA’s established creative infrastructure and the amount of artistic spaces it fosters.“ The hardest thing is knowing when to say yes and when to say no to opportunities. You’re only one person and missing one event is not as big a deal as you think,” she says, laughing as she realizes she is indeed going to four events later on in the night.
When Powers first made the move to LA she was only sixteen years old. Now she jokingly refers to herself as a grandma, an artist with plenty of experience under her belt. Powers’ music defies genre, blending atmospheric melodies and a grungy pop-punk attitude with electronic elements. Putting a label on it just doesn’t feel right, and all Powers really wants is for listeners to feel a sense of importance, that they are justified for feeling whatever it is they feel:“ If you thought you were crazy, you’re not.”
The most recent release from Powers is“ klepto”, a hyper-catchy collaboration with Chinese superstar and friend Lexie Liu. Powers reveals that“ klepto” was actually finished three years ago, but that she had always felt something was missing. She played the track to a bunch of her artist friends, hoping to find a feature that was just-right.“ I [always] thought Lexie would be the perfect fit. I actually stopped showing [the song] to people leading up to when I’d see [her],” says Powers. Once Liu heard“ klepto”, no convincing had to be done; she loved the song and hopped on the track with ease.“ klepto” aligns with both of their girlhood influences, with both artists taking inspiration from Y2K icons like Britney Spears and Paris Hilton. Embodying diva energy was and is the ultimate goal.
If you haven’t yet had the chance to watch the accompanying music video for“ klepto”, turn on your TV and pull up YouTube right now! The entire MV is so stunning and fierce, with Powers receiving partial credits for creative direction. The theme of the video was breaking into a bank and literally“ stealing spotlights”, which bounces nicely off all the song’s innuendos. Powers also wanted there to be a push and pull between her and Liu, a visual contrast. For example, in the video Powers’ hair and wardrobe is mostly silver, while Liu only dons black. Fun fact: Powers made the dress Liu wears in the video, a fashion designer to her core.
For Powers, music and fashion are inextricably intertwined. She experiences synesthesia, a neurological trait that causes a person to associate senses with other sensations, like tasting words or perceiving colors as having sounds, and notes that being on the spectrum probably widens these associations. When Powers hears a song, her brain connects it with a color, texture and/or feeling, which then informs what she wears. In this way, her music reflects on to her fashion, and her fashion dictates her presentation and so-called“ artist persona.” Powers knows more than anybody that artists exist in eras, and she rejects the normalization of choosing a specific aesthetic and stick with it for the rest of your life.“ The world is not an aesthetic,” says Powers, emphasizing that people should keep changing and trying new things, as she is still discovering her own style.“ If I can go on national television in a hot pink jacket looking a mess”, she jokes, referencing her iconic American Idol fit,“ [then] you can wear the crazy sweater in your closet and look fine.”
Earlier this year Sophie walked in a fashion show for the first time ever, making her debut at none other than New York Fashion Week.“ I got height mogged. [I am] not a model,” says Powers, who stands at five foot six. She also mentioned eventually having to go to the ER:“ Do not eat Italian wedding soup from a bodega.” Food poisoning aside, Powers had an amazing and transformative time at NYFW.“ I respect the models, designers, and everyone involved; [there was] passion and [a] cohesive vision in [all of the] work and I want to [do] it again.”
As for what’s coming up, Powers teases an EP that will be released this year:“ I kind of [dropped] the name of it multiple times during this interview” she says, though her lips are otherwise sealed. She also plans on touring later this year (and is a phenomenal live performer), so everyone should be on the lookout for tickets once they’re live.
Powers may have joked about being a“ grandma” earlier on, but really, at 21, she’s just getting started. Between new music, experimental fashion, and a packed social calendar, Powers is learning in real time how to balance ambition with self-preservation. What is for sure? Whatever era Sophie Powers enters next is going to shock, surprise and stun!
