After winning 'The Voice' earlier this year, Perth looping artist Sam Perry has announced a national tour.
In the wake of his success on 'The Voice', Sam has become a household name to many. “It has been fantastic getting to do what I love, there really isn’t anything more I could ask to be doing,” Sam says about his recent experiences.
Bringing something different to the Australian mainstream music scene, Sam’s decision to pursue a career as a looping artist came about after he stumbled upon some of Dub FX’s YouTube videos.
“I’ve always made noises and been into music my whole life. I toured internationally in a theatre show; it took me all around the world and I got to play on Broadway and even played in Alaska,” Sam says talking about his experiences with 360 Allstars – Urban Circus.
“But looping was a fresh art form that I hadn’t really discovered until I came across the videos of Dub FX. He is the Jimi Hendrix of looping in my eyes and he is my inspiration,” Sam says.
“So over the next few days [after watching the videos], I went out and bought a loop station and trained for months and months in my bedroom. Then, all of a sudden, one day all of my sounds just went together and worked.”
In November, Sam’s ‘Not A DJ’ Australian tour will kick off Melbourne before traversing the country taking in capital cities as well as regional centres.
“My first national tour... It’s just crazy! So many people have supported me and it's crazy to see people connecting with my music. Knowing that people want to see me live is just huge,” Sam says.
“At the moment, getting ready for the tour I’m just loving learning [more]; it’s a whole, new experiences that, to be honest, is kind of hard. I think one of the main things I’m looking forward to is working with producers that I respect. It’s important to collaborate and go in with a positive vibe and try and [create] something that others will vibe to.”
As part of his tour, Perry is running a competition to help unearth new and upcoming Australian artists. “Once the tour was announced, the first thing I wanted to do was to put a call out and find all this different music and give an up-and-coming artist a go,” he says.
“We thought it would be a great opportunity, a good idea to give back a little bit. Being from Perth, I never knew who to hit up or who to contact to try and get ahead, and I want to give someone else the opportunity.
“We’ve had an overwhelming response of submissions coming through, I’m getting messages every morning and have had submissions for every show.”
Over the past couple of months, Perry has also been writing new music. “It’s a work in process,” he explains.
“I have so many ideas. I’m a live artist. I’ve never focused on recording before. Trying to harness these vocal loops, for a large amount of people to listen to, stream and buy is something I’ve never really explored. With vocal loops the world is really your oyster. It’s about harnessing all these ideas.”
Sam Perry Australia Tour 2018
Fri 16 Nov - The Toff In Town (Melbourne)Sat 17 Nov - Dub In The Park (Adelaide)
Fri 23 Nov - The Helm (Sunshine Coast)
Sat 24 Nov - 256 Wickham (Brisbane)
Fri 30 Nov - Civic Underground (Sydney)
Fri 7 Dec - Settlers Tavern (Margaret River)
Fri 14 Dec - Jack Rabbit Slim's (Perth)
Fri 21 Dec - Magnums Hotel (Airlie Beach)
Sat 22 Dec - Dalrymple Hotel (Townsville)
