obee<\/a> isn\u2019t trying to fit into electronic music right now, and honestly, that\u2019s exactly why SODA hits as hard as it does.
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<\/p>\nLet\u2019s be real for a second. A lot of dance and hyperpop has started to feel like empty calories. Big drops, glossy hooks, zero substance. SODA flips that on its head immediately. This project actually has something to say, and more importantly, it knows how to make you feel it without killing the vibe.
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Built as a concept where each track acts like a different \u201cflavor,\u201d SODA could\u2019ve easily turned gimmicky. It doesn\u2019t. Instead, it becomes a full-on emotional spiral disguised as a club record. The production is loud, chaotic, euphoric, sometimes overwhelming, but always intentional. You can hear the DNA of Daft Punk and deadmau5 in the structure, but obee isn\u2019t cosplaying nostalgia. He\u2019s using it as a launchpad.
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\u201cCURRENCY\u201d is where things start to get uncomfortable in the best way. It taps into that obsessive, borderline toxic relationship people have with money right now. The chase, the dopamine, the crash. It\u2019s not subtle, and it shouldn\u2019t be. That\u2019s the point.
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\u201cPLACES\u201d leans more introspective, cutting into the constant noise of being told how to live, what to want, who to be. It feels like scrolling your life away at 3AM and suddenly realizing none of it is actually yours. The production floats, but the message lands heavily.
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Then there\u2019s \u201cBLOODRUSHBABY,\u201d which is basically sensory overload turned into a song. It\u2019s chaotic, addictive, and self-aware enough to call itself out while still feeding into the rush. It\u2019s one of the strongest moments on the project because it doesn\u2019t pretend to be above the problem. It lives in it.
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\u201cHIGHLIGHTS 2.0\u201d pulls things back just enough to breathe, tapping into French house nostalgia while digging into something deeper. Memory versus reality. Coping versus clarity. It\u2019s easily one of the most layered tracks here, and it proves obee isn\u2019t just chasing energy, he\u2019s building worlds.
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What makes SODA actually stick is the tension. The darker undertones never fully disappear, even when the production explodes into something euphoric. That push and pull is the entire point. It mirrors exactly what life feels like right now. Overstimulated, uncertain, chasing highs while quietly dealing with the lows.
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And that\u2019s where obee separates himself. This isn\u2019t escapism that ignores reality. It\u2019s escapism that understands it. \u201cI hope people feel free\u2026 I hope it moves people in some way,\u201d obee says. You can hear that intention all over this project. Not in a preachy way, not in a forced \u201cmessage,\u201d but in the way these songs let you sit in your own chaos without judging it. <\/p>\n
SODA balances escapism with some pretty heavy themes like money, identity, and overstimulation. Do you see your music more as an escape from reality or a way to process it?<\/p>\n
\nI see it as both. I think both the listener and the artist look to music for escapism – it\u2019s always been that way. Some sort of gateway to focus on different things, to dream, to give energy, to deal with current issues. This record was very much a healing process for me, and helped me process a lot of what I see, deal with, and think about daily. It\u2019s also a dance record and very feel-good in its sound, and was a total escape for me during stressful moments. I wrote it with the intent to be listened to with different lenses, so it works as a record that just sounds good and feels good, and also something that can be dove into, and dissected in its lyrics and samples. I think the most powerful music does that.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cCURRENCY\u201d taps into that almost addictive relationship people have with money right now. What made you want to confront that cycle instead of just ignoring it like most dance records do?
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Haha YES – this question. This song\u2019s semi-ironic because music\u2019s a business, and at the end of the day, we\u2019re pushing a product that sells. Usually, music that talks about boatloads of money is what sells and is what artists write about. Don\u2019t get me wrong, I love making money. I just wanted to write about something that I think is on the back burner for a lot of people, even the ones who make loads of money. I think deep down we all get a little sick of the chase, and time and time come back to speaking out about truer reasons of living life. A lot of this record is written about the roots of stress, something I think is kind of an issue right now, and how it\u2019s sort of led to a mentally ill capitalistic society where everyone\u2019s really overzealous and driven by financial success. I love competition, and I think a lot of people do as well. I just think we glorify making money because we\u2019ve given into the cycle a little bit, and I wanted to write something that counters that. I think if you asked a lot of kids, they\u2019d shamelessly agree. I think if you asked a lot of adults, they\u2019d counter out of defense. I also think a lot of pop and hip hop records write about this, so I wanted this song to sound like something you\u2019d hear on the radio everywhere; it\u2019s super upbeat. Oh, and I still get McDonald\u2019s – a McDouble with ketchup and a big ahh Coke.<\/p>\n
\nA lot of your sound pulls from artists like Daft Punk and deadmau5, but it doesn\u2019t feel nostalgic; it feels current. How do you keep inspiration from turning into imitation?<\/p>\n
\nMmm – this is a constant battle. I mean, all art is pretty much an iteration of something else created before it. I think there\u2019s a difference between paying homage and being a copycat completely. Not going to lie, for the start of my career, I was making music that sounded exactly like other people. I feel like it wasn\u2019t until the last two years that I found my sound. With that said, certain styles and genres call for that, and I don\u2019t think there\u2019s anything wrong with that. So many people still try to make music that sounds like Michael Jackson. For me, what\u2019s worked is being cognizant of where my heart and mind are before I start something – so I\u2019m not really thinking about any other artists or musicians. From there, I can sort of escape to a new ether, and then I let go. I think it\u2019s something that takes practice. A lot of my lyrics on this record are about personal experience, things that I think a lot of people can relate to for sure, but also things that are really subject to me and my life and what I\u2019ve been through. I think no matter what, when people listen to music, they naturally compare. Oh, this sounds like this artist, or this band, or something from this era. It\u2019s just a natural phenomenon. When I was making this record, I knew I didn\u2019t want to sound like anyone else. I had genres I wanted to pay homage to, but I had a lot in me that needed to get out, and that\u2019s sort of what was driving the wheel behind SODA.<\/p>\n
\u201cBLOODRUSHBABY\u201d feels like controlled chaos. When you\u2019re making something that intense, how do you know when to push it further versus when to pull it back?<\/p>\n
\nFor sure – I like this question because the production on this one is pretty straightforward and simple; deep bass, pads, and drums. Ironically, this was the hardest one to mix and master\u2026 I digress. This one\u2019s about myself, but also a reflection of everyone alive today. How we naturally seek thrills, rushes, and have addictions to something. If it\u2019s not a substance, it\u2019s love, it\u2019s talking, it\u2019s working out, it\u2019s reading, writing, sex, making money – serotonin. Whether people admit it or not, it\u2019s true. I just think there are different levels to it for people. I\u2019ve struggled with substance abuse in the past; I\u2019m sober besides nicotine and occasional alcohol now, but yeah, this is about that, and being a natural thrill seeker. I love heights, and have hit rock bottom so many times before, that even the lows kind of get me giddy a bit, because I know the process of pulling myself out of it so well. I tried not to cuss on this record and to really make it about what the waves of those rushes are like for me. How something\u2019s really awesome for one second, then total hell the next. Then you pull yourself out and feel like a god, and your ego takes over. Then the next moment, you’re looking for something else to get a rush on. Even when we find a balance and a constant, which I think is the goal, I think there\u2019s still that process of give and take within that constant, if that makes sense. Obviously, not everyone has dealt with substance abuse, but I think everyone deals with this. This was sort of me admitting this part of me and freeing it through a song. I\u2019ve come to be really conscious of my health and well-being, as much as I can, and I think that\u2019s all we can really do. Life\u2019s so awesome and filled with things that give us these surges, you have to give in a little and let yourself live. In the words of Mac Miller, \u201cOh, it\u2019s not sad, baby!\u201d<\/p>\n
You said you hope this project helps people feel free and break out of their shells. What does \u201cfreedom\u201d actually look like for you right now, outside of the music?<\/p>\n
\nMan, hit me where it hurts! I mean, for me, it\u2019s finding joy in the little things and being able to do what I do with no constraints. Spending time with my girlfriend is a big one – staying up late goofing off and having deep conversations, spilling tea and jabbering. Gaming, giving myself time to relax, and smoking with my girlfriend in Mario Kart. Cooking really good food and trying new foods, taking time to skateboard, going to shows, walking around the apartment naked, wearing the clothes I want to wear, being adventurous, getting boba when I shouldn\u2019t be spending money, things like that. Just freedom of the mind and heart is a big one, so I guess just doing as much as I can preserve that magic while spreading it.<\/p>\n
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