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FireFlyz | 57
inspirations. I’m not really a big fan of
KPop but currently I’m into BigBang. They
write great songs and are breaking a lot
of barriers with new melodies and beats.
Jon:
Country music is definitely a huge
influence for me. Lady Antebellum and
Hunter Hayes are ultimate favourites.
The SamWillows will be releasing their
debut album at the end of 2015.
Twitter: @thesamwillows
Instagram: @thesamwillows
Website:www.thesamwillows.com
Facebook:The SamWillows
in globalised society. As long as the craft is
good and you know your target audience,
you will be fine.
Benjamin:
Music these days is less associ-
ated with culture. Take Iggy Azalea for in-
stance. She’s anAustralian singing hip-hop
and doing it very well in America. People
just don’t look at skin colour anymore.
What do you think of the current trend of
musicbuyersopting tobuysingles instead
of the full album?
Benjamin:
In keeping upwith the globali-
sation, we have no choice but to follow the
direction that consumerism is going. Like
it or not, we will have to adapt sooner or
later. It is a process of consumption. It is
good that people are counting album sales
differently now.
Could you share with us your individual
musical Influences?
Benjamin:
John Foreman and Singa-
porean singer, songwriter Charlie Lim
Narelle:
Mine changes all the time
like changingmy clothes according
tomymood. Currently, I’m listen-
ing to a lot of stuff by James Bay.
Sandra:
Justin Timberlake and
Ryan Tedder are both very huge
Southwest (SXSW) Festival 2013
in Austin,
Texas, as well as the
Canadian Music
Festival
in Toronto, Ontario. In April 2013,
The Sam Willows re-recorded their hit
single,
Glasshouse
with five-time Grammy
Award Winning Music Producer; Steve
Lillywhite CBE (U2, Rolling Stones and
30 Seconds toMars) at Yellowbox Studios.
Most recently, they performed at MUS-
EXPO 2015 in LA, an annual international
music and media conference, where the
likes of Katy Perry have been discovered.
This is the first time a Singaporean band
has been invited to perform at MUSEXPO.
The Sam Willows were recently in Kuala
Lumpur for a special showcase for their
Malaysian fans at The Meat & Wine Co in
Publika, Solaris Dutamas.
Fireflyz catches up with the young
Singaporean melody makers to talk about
their musical inspiration and their plan to
step further into the global music market.
How difficult is it for Asian musical acts to
break into internationalmarkets?
Jon:
There’s a lot of stigmas attached
to them, even for us in Singapore. It
takes guts for us to travel and explore the
international scene but we love it. There
is no other way to do it. We are now living