Cool AF: Talking with Sofi Tukker
Sofi Tukker Swing. Photo Ekaterina Belinskaya
Chances are you’ve heard Sofi Tukker even if you don’t know them.
Apple, damn them for being such whales, are always are on the pulse of what’s awesome. They tapped on bumping little EDM duo, Sofi Tukker, and let’s just say… Apple knows what’s what.
Here’s Sofi Tukker’s latest release, from this June…
So cool, hey?
The duo that makes up Sofi Tukker, Sophie Hawley-Weld and Tucker Halpern, were generous enough to answer all my questions so you can get to know them a little bit better before they drop in at Osheaga.
They’ve been here before. “Montreal’s one of our favourite cities to play in the world,” they say, noting espeically, “People are loose af.”
Even though they say they are “always in a state of excitement,” playing at Osheaga is “next level.” It’s certainly not their first trip, as they played once before. They want to remind everyone that “the after parties are also always wild, so it’ll be a super sweaty day. We can’t wait!”
Of course playing at Osheaga provides a chance to check out other bands. They tell me they’ll be checking out Logic on Saturday, “one of our favorite performers ever.”
Playing big festivals is different from smaller venues, and they elaborate on how they try to bridge the gap. “We try to make any festival set feel as intimate as a headline show. We want to create a world for people to lose themselves in, no matter what the space.”
Touring has definitely become “their new normal” and they say that they’re “more comfortable on the road than anywhere else. That makes us really happy.”
They’ve had some crazy nights touring and one show in particular was memorable as a near disaster. “In Berlin, about a year ago, someone spilled a beer on the soundboard and the sound was out for 30 minutes. We just stayed on stage trying to figure out how to entertain 2,000 people hoping the sound would turn back on eventually, but we weren’t gonna leave everybody hanging. It was stressful but also turned into a really special show.”
Even though “touring can definitely be gruelling,” they love doing it. “We have each other, and that’s a huge part of it. And we tour with amazing people and often bring our friends on the road with us when we can! We also have friends all around the world and get to connect with them all the time too. We do a lot to take care of ourselves. We treat ourselves like athletes in terms of warming up and cooling down and nutrition and sleep. We prioritize the stuff we have control over so that we can give all of our energy on stage night after night.”
One cool thing is that Sofi Tukker regularly raises money for different causes and their autumn tour is about raising money for mental health. “We’d love to do so much more,” they say. “We get to share sweat and dancing and joy with so many people, but we want to contribute to everybody’s best life in as many ways as we can! Mental health is so underfunded and so close to home for us (as it is for most people) and we really want to support people who are doing the hard work to provide support and challenge the stigma around mental illness.
Finally, even with all this touring, there’s new music coming your way. “Yessssss!!” they say, “Our song Purple Hat and our EP, DANCING ON THE PEOPLE is coming out in September. We are so excited to share it with the world.”
Get ready for Sofi Tukker and the other bands at Osheaga starting Friday August 2-4. For details about tickets, click HERE. Sofi Tukker plays on Saturday at 6:50 at the Honda Valley Stage and also will be at an after party at L’Astral at 11 p.m. After party tickets HERE.
