The Scottish music producer and singer Sophie posed the most beautiful question of who can be considered a pop star today, in the age of Spotify and social media. Many over 35 claim to have never heard of her, many younger people lost one of their icons on Saturday.
Sophie Xeon was born in Glasgow in 1986 with a male first name and a different family name; as a musician she called herself SOPHIE. Her 2018 album “Oil of Every Pearl’s Un-Insides” was nominated for a Grammy in the category “Best Dance / Electronic Album”. “It’s Okay To Cry”, the hit of the album, is a heavenly melancholy power ballad, poured into cool, liquid computer sound. It joins the long line of great rain / tears songs in pop history, from Ann Peebles’ “I Can’t Stand The Rain” to Kate Bush’s “Cloudbusting”.
A songwriting that is tugged by contradictions
Sophie worked with Madonna and Nicki Minaj (on the song “Bitch I’m Madonna”), collaborated with stars like Charli XCX, Vince Staples and Kim Petras. She combined a fluid gender presentation with a beautiful face, meticulous sound work and a songwriting that tugged at the contradictions: stubborn, hard grooves, constructed from digital pop noises, topped with the most delicate chewing gum melodies. It will take years to fully understand this work.
The person Sophie is startlingly history: According to her label, she fell to her death early Saturday morning in Athens when she climbed up and slipped in order to better view the full moon. She was 34 years old.
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