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To find out that new chanteuse Sam Valdez grew up in the desert is hardly shocking; her music has that open, ethereal hidden beauty that reveals itself at dusk type feel you often find in areas void of light pollution. Her mysterious, subtle textures also have that camouflaged user brightness effect, all very compelling and the reason we reached out to find out a little bit more about this emerging star and her new single "Unwind."

Ones To Watch: Who is Sam Valdez?

Sam Valdez: Someone who is trying to make sense of everything by creating and writing songs. 

What is "Unwind" all about? 

"Unwind" is about dating when you’re introverted. It’s like you and the person you are with have two different ideas of what being close means, and feeling like you don’t actually know that person in a real way. 

Love this sultry, almost withholding sound. How’d you settle on the composition? 

It came together very naturally. When I was writing it, I didn’t feel the need to have a big chorus or anything, it felt good to just hang on those words repeating. I brought it to Luca and we pretty much finished this one in a day. I think we both are drawn to darker tones and we just really leaned into that. 

Any collaborators? Who produced the track?  

Yes, I worked on this with Luca Buccellati. He produced this track and my EP. He’s honestly so smart and tuned in to what a song needs that nothing ever felt like it was trying to be anything other than what it was. 

The video really mirrors the energy of the song. How’d you go about storyboarding that? 

The director and I wanted to find a way to outline the story of the song but focus more on creating this moody atmosphere with lighting and the setting. I didn’t want anything to feel overacted, just subtle interactions to pay attention to. We wanted it to feel a bit creepy like a murder was about to go down so we just played into that with the aesthetics. 

Can we expect more of this style in the future, potentially on an upcoming album?

Yeah, definitely it feels like this is the music I  have been wanting to make and with the people I want to make it with so I want to keep exploring that. 

Besides this excellent single, what else should we be on the lookout for? 

I have another single coming and an EP :) I also have a few collaborations coming out soon that I’m excited for. 

What's inspiring you right now outside of music? 

I’ve been really into learning about mythology and writing more poetry. I’ve always written poems but I’ve been making it more of a daily practice. 

Who are your Ones To Watch? 

I'm a big fan of Crumb and this band called Sorry that I’ve been listening to a ton lately. I think they both have really distinct vocals and style. Their music feels like the perfect blend of old and new.