The Sugababes - Interview

Sugababes Interview
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It's a warm, sunny day outside, but life for the Sugababes is all Go!
We caught up with the Keisha, Mutya & Heidi as they promote their new single, 'Hole in the Head' & upcoming album "Three".


CM: So girls, how's the album going? Are you excited about touring?

S: (Mutya) We're just promoting the new single at the moment, Hole in the Head, so hopefully next year in the first couple of months we're gonna start the new tour. It'll be our second tour and yeah, we're really enjoying it at the moment cos we had a bit of time off, four, five months, to actually do the album and then at the same time do a few of the festivals like Glastonbury, Witnness, T in the Park, Party in the Park and, stuff like that. But right now we're just promoting and doing interviews and things like that. Having read the press release calling the girls an alternative to the slick, Girls Aloud-style girl groups, I went into this interview with some reservations about

Music - Sugababes Interviewed
Music - Sugababes Interviewed
how true that is. However, it's when Mutya mentions the festivals the Sugababes have done that you begin to realise that they aren't actually you're typical girl band at all particularly when you consider they played the traditionally Indie and rock festivals. They seem to love doing festivals as well as gigs and Heidi is keen to stress the crossover link as well as the live aspect.

CM: And Glastonbury? How was it for you?

S: (Heidi) It was great, we loved it.
(Keisha) We were so nervous because we thought it was gonna be some hippies, the whole hippie crowd, but when we went out there obviously we realised that we were in the 21st Century and not the seventies so yeah we had a really good time.
(Mutya) Macy Gray was watching us from the side of the stage so that made us a bit nervous. But we felt really comfortable when we went out there and there were all our fans at the front with banners and stuff.

CM: Having played all kinds of prominent events which do you prefer, festivals or gigs.

S: (Heidi) I think it's nice to do it all, it's nice to keep things different and if you're doing just the one thing all the time you get bored. We're lucky to be able to cross over into loads of different scenes.

When we get around to talking about their new single, Keisha reveals that whilst they may be a real band that writes their own stuff, they still get a lot of help from pop writers like Linda Perry and Diane Warren etc. The range of styles the Sugababes encompass is vast and their wide-ranging popularity can be seen in the variety of magazines they feature in.

CM: Your new single, Hole in the Head', are there any particular influences?

S: (Keisha) 'Hole in the Head', basically, we didn't think about it. When we went into the studio it was pretty much the same thing. We just went in and Brian Higgins had already written the chorus for 'Hole and the Head' and we just went in and wrote our verses and that was it. And obviously the meaning of the song is basically about a girl or a guy being in a relationship with someone and then breaking up. It's like you're upset for a while but you get over it and you realise that you can do better. That's basically it.
And normally when we go in we listen to the backing track and vibe off and write what we're feeling that day.

CM: You have featured in a wide variety of magazines from Q through to Smash Hits. Where do you think you fit in?

S: (Keisha) I think it's up to the public to decide where they wanna put us. We've done Glastonbury which put us on the same line-up as Coldplay, and many other indie and rock groups. But, y'know, we also did the MOBOs which is mostly urban, R'n'B and whatever. Then we did Smash Hits which is mostly pop and I think it's cool because we love different types of music and we cross over into a lot of areas a lot of girl bands don't get the chance to do it - so we're very grateful for that. I don't think we fit into every type of category. Like we would never say we're a hiphop band or funk band.

CM: Do you subscribe to the view that where you grew up influences you?

S: (Mutya) I think it does, I mean I think it's a big part of who you are. Heidi comes from Liverpool and Keisha and I are based in London. I think the way you grow up is a big influence on what you talk about, your opinions and everything.

CM: You talk about relationships in your songs a lot, do you gain inspiration from everyday stuff you see on the streets?

S: (Mutya) it's cos we are very normal girls, every time we see our family, cousins & friends plus other people around us going through things, we write about it. Because people go through them things all around the world, so as soon as you write something there's gonna be at least 10 out of 20 people who will understand what you're going through.

CM: It's important to relate to your fans then?

S: (Heidi) If they can't relate to it they're not going to buy it
(Mutya) And then there's no point and we wouldn't have the support we have now if no-one understood what you were doing.

CM: How do you reckon you've changed since you formed the Sugababes, apart from changes to the line-up?

S: (Keisha) You grow up a lot quicker and learn lots.
(Mutya) Yeah, you learn a lot more from experiences and what you see around you.
(Keisha) And I think you appreciate things a lot more like your family. And even this, like the fridge at home so, yeah, it makes you learn a lot.

Heidi replaced Siobhan Donaghy as the third of the trio, having previously been in Atomic Kitten (a subject which is firmly in the past according to the band) so I gave her a chance to put this into her own words.

CM: How have you fitted into the band then Heidi?

S: (Heidi) it was hard at first, obviously we were getting to know each other over the first six months. Now, it's about 2 and a half years on so we're very tight and have a lot of respect for each other.

So, with the new album ""Three" set to come out soon and a tour to follow in the New Year, the Sugababes are routing for the future rather than the past.


Check out previews of The Sugababes New Album "Three"
Click here for Sugababes album.

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