Sophie May Sucks: “There’s A Lot Of Truth In YOLO”
British-Australian singer-songwriter Sophie May’s music is achingly poetic. She’s just released her new EP, Worst Thoughts In The World (word of warning, this isn’t exactly the happiest project I’ve ever heard), and it’s Sophie’s attempt to strip away the power that intrusive thoughts hold over her.
The project features tracks about dreams of loved ones dying and worries that she looks like her partner’s ex — topics not often touched on in music. I mean this in the nicest way possible: if you worry sometimes that you are a weird little freak for what goes on inside your brain, then Worst Thoughts In The World will be endlessly comforting. If you’re very well-adjusted and nothing has ever gone wrong in your life/brain, go listen to Coldplay.
To mark the release of Worst Thoughts In The World, we caught up with Sophie to chat about why you shouldn’t eat bread when you’re really drunk (the logic is somewhat sound, but the reality sucks), what happens when you don’t truly commit to something you’re chasing, and manifesting health conditions. I’m not entirely sure I share Sophie’s belief that you can conjure health issues simply by thinking really hard about them, but hey. Maybe science will vindicate her in the future.
Junkee: A mistake that turned into an opportunity?
Probably not doing any of my assignments during COVID for a songwriting course I was doing because I ended up downloading TikTok. And that’s been my biggest opportunity so far.
Cringe quote you used to live by?
YOLO was a quote I used to live by when I was younger. But you know what? There’s a lot of truth in YOLO. So maybe it will have a comeback. I quite like it still.
Worst advice you got and blindly followed?
When I was a teenager, people used to say that if you were really drunk, you should eat bread. But actually, now you’re just really drunk and really full, and probably more likely to throw up.
The worst failure you’re up for sharing, and what you learned from it?
I learned a big lesson from not getting into drama school. I think I didn’t fully commit because I think deep down, I wasn’t really in it. And so I think it taught me, you know, if you half-ass something you’ll probably feel disappointed no matter what the outcome, you know. Just try really hard all the time.
Anything you used to be wrong about?
I used to think mysterious people were sexy. I used to think that was hot. But now, with some more life experience, I think mysterious people are really boring. And usually people show — most of the time — how they feel about themselves.
Embarrassing internet habit?
Probably my screen time. I’m not sure if I cheated the question there. But my screen time is probably about six hours a day, which, you know, isn’t good.
Ideal morning routine versus actual morning routine?
So my ideal morning would probably be to get out of bed, make breakfast, start my day. But my reality is that I wake up, I’ll get a headache from looking at my phone for too long and then I’ll crawl into the shower.
Something very off-brand for you?
I don’t really listen to loads of music. I do listen a normal amount, but I’ll often be like, ‘Oh, I should really listen to some music, I’m not listening to enough’. People say that if you’re a writer you should read and I’m like, ‘Oh, I’m not listening to any music right now’.
Bad health decision?
I know I don’t floss enough. And I also believe sometimes that I manifest health conditions. So I’ll be worried about a tumour and I think me thinking about it more will send signals to my brain that will make a tumour. You heard it here first. Proven fact.
What do you waste money on?
Uber and food deliveries. I feel like that’s everyone though. Yeah, I have so much good food in my fridge, [it’s all] rotting basically. Yeah. Actually, that’s not true. Don’t tell my mum.
Worst procrastination habit?
The screen time, it’s bad. I can feel my brain cells turning to liquid. Every day, I’m like, ‘Oh, melting my brain’. But it’s a great procrastination tool.
Sophie May’s new EP Worst Thoughts In The World is out now.
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Illustration credit: Matt Lauricella, @pigeonboyart