Sampha Sisay, the Morden, South London-bred singer/producer sensation has been introduced into the mainstream world of music several times. Eben before his 2013 collaboration with Drake for the unforgettable NWTS track "Too Much" Sampha had been making a name for himself in the UK music scene on the Young Turks label and had built up an impressive catalog of collaborations with artists like SBTRKT, Jean Deaux, Jessie Ware and more.
Now, in 2017, after several years of being active in the industry, a slew of high-profile collabs and only two small EP's, Sampha has released his debut album Process and is transitioning into mega-stardom quite gracefully. His genre-blending skills as a producer and silky texture vocals allow him to emerge as one of the front-runners for the next generation of multi-platform artist and with his fledgling career on a massive upward trend, we can only expect that Sampha's star power will shine for years to come.
So this week's essentials feature seeks to tell the intricate and gripping story of Sampha's success through his music.
Click through the gallery to experience Sampha's humble beginnings and come up throughout the years.
Sampha
"Hold On"
Again, though Sampha has been known as of late because of his collaborations of some of the biggest albums of 2016 like Solange Knowles Seat At The Table or Frank Ocean's visual album Endless, he has been known to collaborate with big names in the industry for quite some time. In fact, some of his earliest and most widely know work come from his collaborations with Aaron Jerome, the English artist behind SBTRKT.
Sampha started working with SBTRKT after meeting London producer Kwes and hanging around his soon to be label home Young Turks. There are a few tracks that Sampha did earlier that caught on, like his remix to The xx's "Basic Space", but this track "Hold On" from SBTRKT's 2011 self-titled album is probably one of his most significant early tracks.
This particular song is a great reference point for an artist like Sampha because it is the epitome of his discography, it's a hodgepodge. The alternating clanging of the steel drums and pulsating bass mixed with the soft rift of the synths laid by SBTRKT and Sampha's shimmering vocals make this track definitely sounds like a wonderful hodgepodge too and serves as an early example of the type of multi-talented artist Sampha is.
"Trials Of The Past"
Here goes another track from Sampha's collaboration with the English artist from his self-titled project SBTRKT. "Trials Of The Past" is one of those moody and emotional tracks that Sampha is known for. Once again these two records are a great foundation for any new listener as they help to construct the complex artistry of Sampha's music.
Also, Sampha and SBTRKT kill it every time they link up.
"Without"
Though he has been a part of a large amount of the biggest albums from the biggest artists in the past few years, Sampha has only released three official projects himself including his debut album Process. This record comes from his 2013 Dual EP and is definitely another great example of why this guy is such a special artist.
"Without" is the type of track you get lost in. Whether it be because you ar trying to find the rhythm or figure out how Sampha thrives within the spacious, yet crowded production, or because you are simply mesmerized by the cathartic properties of this song, you are tuned all the way into this track from the drop.
"Indecision"
While the Dual EP is only a mere six tracks long, it packs a punch and "Indecision" is one of those firecracker tracks that explodes within this album and proves that Sampha is one of the most unique and important vocal and performing talents to be discovered in a long time. Also, this is one of the first times we
Also, "Indecision" is one of the first times we hear Sampha deliver one of his beautifully crafted piano driven ballads. It's interesting to listen to Sampha's discography and listen to tracks like this versus tracks like "Hold On" and many others as it shows the duality of his musical influence. Sampha was introduced to music by learning how to play the piano in his parents home in Morden, South London and became enthralled in music and had his interest nurtured by his older siblings who would give him records. Things also took a shift when he discovered the production side of music as a teen and his brother built him an in-home studio.
Anyways, peep this very special record.
"Happens"
2013 was a huge year for Sampha. Not only had he appeared on Drake's album NWTS, but he had also released his own EP and contributed to Beyoncé's monumental self-titled surprise album. This was a year of immense growth for Sampha and we can very clearly hear it within his music.
This track comes from a short two-track release featuring a stripped piano dominant rendition of "Too Much" and "Happens." Because it is hard to choose between the two of these records, both are below to listen. While these two tracks both predominantly feature the piano, they both have vastly different vibrations and sonic auras and together create a divine listening experience. "Happens" is a pensive epic while "Too Much" is a powerful and reflective ballad.
Peep both records below and decide for yourself which is the stronger of the pair.
"Temporary View"
Once again, whenever SBTRKT and Sampha link up, it is effortlessly elegant and this time it is no different. "Temporary View" appeared on SBTRKT's 2014 album Where We Land. It's pretty self-explanatory why this track is so essential to this list, and also Sampha's discography because it's super fire.
"Temporary View" is the type of exciting track that Sampha has become extremely well at creating. It has house and EDM tendencies with the sort of swing and rock of a new age RnB and per usual, Sampha kills the song with his dense lyrics and light, angelic vocals.
Shout out to these two cats for being the dynamic duo that they are.
"Timmy's Prayer"
Now we have finally reached the mecca chapter of Sampha's career, his debut album Process. Sampha had been contributing rather frequently to other artist's work but had not released any solo music in almost three years. Finally, in May of 2016, he began the rollout for his debut album with the soulfully electric single "Timmy's Prayer."
This track exudes a thoughtful and passionate energy and boasts several genres of music including soul, RnB, and electronic tempos. This is definitely one of his most well-known tracks and is an awesome reference for the type of concentrated and eclectic mixture of sounds his album Process houses.
"Blood On Me"
The follow-up single for the album Process is equally gripping and sensational as the first. "Blood On Me" is both characteristic and uncharacteristic of Sampha the way that the track openly displays his usually subdued elements of emotion and passion in a grandiose and volatile manner.
"Blood On Me" is the sort of gnarly and vivid track that helps to round out the soft edges of this album as well as give it some rough surfaces to grip onto whilst listening. The video for this track is also very beautiful, check it out.
"Incomplete Kisses"
This track is the sort of veiled shot that helped propel Sampha's name to the top of the 'It' list following the release of Process. The best way to describe this song is to give it the label of new age RnB, however, it is so much more than that. Sampha's cadence, his melodies and concept for this record are so superb and next level that it would have been the perfect way to end the album, even though incomplete is within the title.
This track definitely left us on the edge of our seats wanting more, even after an album full of gems and that is exactly why it has its place on this essentials feature.
Do us the honor and simply, peep this joint.
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"(No One Knows Me) Like The Piano"
We saved the most beautiful song for the last official spot. There isn't much more to be said about "(No One Knows Me) Like The Piano" that hasn't already been said. This song is incredible and enchanting and everything we could have ever asked for and or expected from Sampha.
This track definitely proves that Sampha is indeed a very special talent.
"4422"
It wouldn't be right to not include this record on the list. Contrary to popular belief, Drake did not discover Sampha, but he did help to give him the gigantic platform within the states that he currently has due to his 2013 vote of approval of the artist by putting him on his album NWTS.
Now, that vote of confidence has turned into staunch admiration as Drake gave an entire guest spot to Sampha on his extremely successful More Life playlist. It's easy to see why Champagnepapi gave this solo spotlight to Sampha because dude does his thing on "4422." This record has class, swag and though it may be too early to say, it should be remarked that this track is shaping up to be a true Sampha Classic.