In a period, where one genre of music appears to be the dominant one (dance and electronica) many musicians follow mainstream tactics in order to get their name known. Santi White aka Santigold goes about her way by unleashing her genre-bending style. It’s hard to believe that this eccentric performer used to work as an A&R representative for Epic Records. She realized just how disenchanted she had become with life in the boardroom when she took a request from soul singer and childhood friend Res to work on her debut album How I Do (MCA).
Santigold’s self titled debut album released in 2008, breaks down boundary and genre classifications by incorporating new wave, indie rock, post punk, and electronic music all within her first record. For most of her songs on the album, they never sound the same, she provides her own uniqueness. In “Creator”, her first single it features her ‘singsongy’ rap abilities blending in with warped electronic beats. Influenced by the sub-cultural alternative scene of the 1980’s, her songs “Lights Out” and “Unstoppable”, show off her way of writing in catchy hooks that are accessible to a wider audience of listeners. Her song “L.E.S. Artistes” infuses her indie rock influences with her hypnotic voice with post-punk guitar riffs, it also plays on the fact of musicians who are trying to make it in the New York City music scene but only focus on trying to be seen rather than on their quality of their own music. Santigold’s genre hopping musical style has garnered her attention from well known artists like Kanye West, Beastie Boys, and Christina Aguilera.
