SAMPA THE GREAT

shares new single & video

‘OMG’

WATCH HERE

+ announces AUS/NZ Tour

& debut album

‘The Return’

PRE-ORDER HERE

out September 13

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Sampa the Great today shares news of her forthcoming album The Return, out September 13, alongside the release of her brand new single and video “OMG”, out today on Ninja Tune.

Premiered with a ‘World First’ play on Zane Lowe’s Beats 1, “OMG” addresses Sampa’s ideas of home through the exploration of her African heritage. Taking a page from the sounds of her childhood in Botswana, the single proudly showcases Sampa’s culture through vocal aerobics and flexes, clapped to the beat with precision and attitude. The “OMG” video was created in collaboration with Red Bull and brings the vibrant audio to life, with bursts of colour, energy and slick choreography to match. Having worked with Red Bull across multiple projects – recording her HERoes Act 2 EP with Estelle and Rahki (which culminated performing at Laneway Festival) as well as multiple Red Bull Sound Select shows – the video was filmed on a trip home between South Africa and Botswana, and shows Sampa, her friends and her parents shine in a tribute to their home and the fruits of their heritage.

She says of “OMG”: “I personally feel that people on the continent have a duty to our family in the diaspora, to re-teach our culture, language, spirituality, ways and return our peeps to ourselves. To me ‘OMG’ sounds like the songs we heard in our childhood. It’s broadly about flexing your culture! Loving where you’re from and even being shocked at the realisation of not knowing how dope it is to be ‘who you are’.” 

The video has given Sampa the chance to involve her parents in her world. She says: “I got to do something that I’ve never done before.“Which is to have my parents in one of my music videos. This is the first time they have been involved in my music at this level and it was important for me to express accepting and flexing my culture with the two people who know me most!” 

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Built on four years of personal and musical soul-searching, Sampa also announces the news of her debut album The Return, an assured statement and product of meaningful musical connections on Sampa’s journey to redefine her self-identity and find home within herself. With reference points ranging from classic hip-hop to ancient Southern African sounds, the album sees Sampa tackle bigger questions around home, displacement, freedom and heritage while climbing to the realisation of her final form. A collection of accomplished sounds and poignant lyricism, this body of work stems from the rift Sampa has experienced in the rise of her career, where she’s celebrated as part of a new generation of musicians while at the same time still being seen as an other.

The Return enlists a string of esteemed collaborators and fruits of Sampa’s wide network of peers, including mixing by Jonwayne (of Stones Throw notoriety), MsM (Skepta/Boy Better Know) and Andrei Eremin ((GRAMMY-nominated engineer for Hiatus Kaiyote and Chet Faker), productions by Silentjay, Kwes Darko, Clever Austin (Perrin Moss), Blue Lab Beats and Syreniscreamy, as well as a family of vocalists and collaborators featuring Ecca Vandal, Thando, Krown, Steam Down and her very own sister Mwanje.

To celebrate the momentous LP, Sampa The Great has also announced a massive tour of Australia and New Zealand this October. Kicking off at Bryon Bay’s Brewery on October 3, Sampa and her dream team will next arrive at Caloundra Music Festival on the Sunshine Coast on October 4 and Brisbane’s Wooly Mammoth on October 5. Traversing seas she’ll next take the stage at Wellington’s Meow on October 11 and Auckland’s Hollywood Theatre on October 12 before returning to hometown Melbourne for a special performance on October 18, with more details soon to be announced. Setting off to Canberra’s Stonefest on October 19th and Hobart’s Republic Bar on October 24, Sampa will then commence wrapping things up at Adelaide’s Fat Controller on October 25, Perth’s Freo Social on October 26 and a final show at Sydney’s Factory Theatre on October 31st.

“OMG” follows the recent success of debut album single “Final Form”, which climbed to the #1 Most Played Track on triple j the week of release and garnered acclaim from CLASH, The Independent, The Guardian, SNIFFERS and many more. Sampa the Great’s second long-form release, Birds And The BEE9 – produced by Silentjay, Kwes Darko and Sensible J (REMI) – was defined by The Observer as an album in which “categories dissolve around her” and also won the Australian Music Prize as Best Album Of 2017.

The raw majesty of Sampa The Great continues to leave listeners across the globe in awe, with her unmatched sound and thought-provoking words now set to culminate in a 19-track body of work. In the meantime, fans can relish in the glow of “OMG”, out now.

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“OMG” OUT TODAY VIA NINJA TUNE
WATCH HERE

THE RETURN IS OUT SEPTEMBER 13
PRE ORDER HERE

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SAMPA THE GREAT
TOUR DATES

Thursday, October 3 – Byron Bay Brewery, Byron Bay NSW
Friday, October 4 – Caloundra Music Festival, Sunshine Coast QLD
Saturday, October 5 – Wooly Mammoth, Brisbane QLD
Friday, October 11 – Meow, Wellington NZ
Saturday, October 12 – Hollywood Theatre, Auckland NZ
Friday, October 18 – TBA, Melbourne VIC
Saturday, October 19 – Stonefest, Canberra ACT
Thursday, October 24 – Republic Bar, Hobart TAS
Friday, October 25 – Fat Controller, Adelaide SA
Saturday, October 26 – Freo Social, Perth WA
Saturday, October 31 – Factory Theatre, Sydney NSW

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AMNPLIFY – DB