SixQuick Archives WithSudan

Words by Sam Hetherington

Intro

When I think of a violin I definitely don’t associate it with dancing, but Sudan Archives is a musician who sure is changing that. Drawing inspiration from Sudanese fiddlers, Sudan Archives blends R&B, electronic dance and violin to make some of the most unique and damn catchy music I’ve ever listened to. Known for her high-performance sets, she is one of the international acts I have pencilled into my Splendour schedule and was lucky enough to catch for five minutes on the phone just after she wrapped up a Glastonbury set.

If you could come up with a name for the mixed genre that your music exists in – what would it be?

For my next album I would say folk trap. I don’t know about right now but that’s the vibe of the next album.

What does it feel like when you’re on stage? Do you feel present or is it an out of body kind of experience?

I think a little bit of both because I am definitely always present but at the same time I’m not really thinking, I’m just in the now, just feeling so much. So it does kind of feel like out of body sometimes because there is so much emotion.

A friend of mine was at Glastonbury and said you have a lot of energy on stage – is your personality very high energy or do you feed from the crowd?

I feel like I have a high energy personality but I draw a lot from the crowd. I really love with this new album of mine that people are actually dancing a lot. They’re not just staring at me. I don’t like it when people just stare at me. I think with this tour people are just dancing a lot. People are having a good ol time and that just makes me want to have a good ol time on stage. That’s why I’m twerking all the time, and getting up in people’s faces, laughing with them. I love it when they scream and get into it. I get into it more. It’s like a party – I want it to always feel like a party every time I perform. You have amazing style. Do you work with someone on this or it’s your own thing?

I would love to take credit for the styling even though I can’t. I’m a stylist in my head even though I’m not. But yeah I have a stylist friend. She’s amazing. Most of the time she’s able to travel with me but when she’s not available I’m sad. I just do what I can do in those situations which is not as good but it’s still me.

Is a collaboration with a fashion brand something you’ve thought about at all?

I haven’t really thought about a collaboration but I’ve always seen myself creating my own brand or my own fashion thing. I feel like that would be lit.

You’ve played some incredibly huge festivals in the last year - Coachella, Glastonbury, and now coming out for Splendour. What’s the best part about playing to such big crowds?

Just seeing lots of people having a good time and dancing. It’s like a prom night. That’s the best thing seeing people having fun along with my music.

Catch Sudan Archives at 5:30 pm on Friday at the Mix - up