Coming together creatively for the first time, rising Indie-pop innovator FLAVIA and her friend, the equally-trailblazing, Alt-pop rock name-taker Cami Petyn have recently debuted “Sepulveda”, a journey of a song 6 months in the making, where each brings their all and their best to a perfect balance in a track that is somehow fully representative of each other in a common ground that their respective fans will definitely meet on.
This is all no doubt the result of the foremost bond of friendship and equal respect that both share, so much so that they analogized it through the name of the release itself, as “Sepulveda” is the longest-running avenue in the City of Los Angeles (the two artists’ stomping grounds), a nod to the long-running admiration and love they have for one another.
FLAVIA has been labelled as “one of Pop’s most exciting new artists”, met widely with praise and attentive ears since her debut, one of the first signs of her ascent was when she claimed the Grand Prize in the John Lennon Songwriting competition for her song, “Expectations”, later becoming a finalist in the “Great American Song Contest. Her upbringing was worldly, from Ireland to Italy and later a nomadic stint all over the U.S. with all of this moving around surely giving her the unique perspective she pens her electronically-powered Pop verses about life, love, and sexuality.
Cami Petyn’s Cali background saw her head banging to heavy metal in the gnarliest spots of her Small Beach Town in San Diego. But far from brutality alone, Cami’s fascination with old-school Jazz tempered that intensity and darkness with a love of colourful complexity and sophistication -something that’s integral to her sound today just as much as the raw emotional power often fueling her vocals. “My music to me is turning pain into power” she’s been quoted saying, and to those who’ve trudged the fringes of extreme music will know exactly what she means by it.
Did we mention both artists identify as Queer? Well, they do, and while “Sepulveda” is not at all an exclusively ‘Queer’ song, one can’t help but imagine that its themes of effervescent and free young love will resonate deeper with their open support and activism with and around the queer community that they so proudly advocate and cherish.
I understand that there’s been a long-standing mutual admiration and love between the two of you, so wasn’t a matter of ‘if’ you ever worked together but of ‘when’. So why now? how did this collab finally materialize?
FLAVIA: Yes! I have so much admiration for Cami. She’s so hard-working and her journey with music is really inspiring. We originally wrote this song without any expectation for what it had to be – we just wanted to create something beautiful. After the session, we both realized that we both loved it, so we decided to release it together! As 2 solo artists who normally have to do everything on their own, it’s been so fun having a partner in crime on this release. Plus, who doesn’t love an epic online love story?!
Cami: The first time we met was actually when we played on the same bill in 2021! Flavia had performed some deeply personal songs and I thought she was an absolutely fearless, talented badass. The session was set up with no expectations whatsoever. But, it resulted in not only a spicy song but also a spicy connection.
In a condensed manner, what is ‘Sepulveda’ about?
FLAVIA: SEPULVEDA is the longest-running street in Los Angeles. It’s a sex-positive, queer-centric bop about falling in love “under purple neon lights” on SEPULVEDA, and the series of hawt adventures that ensued. It’s pretty self-explanatory when you listen to the song ;)
Cami: Ever gone out with someone you love and stayed up all night dancing, laughing and being all over each other? That’s what SEPULVEDA is about. Just like a night out, it’s hot and sexy but also light and fun. Oh, and gay.
Creatively speaking, how did all of the pieces that make this track come together? Who handled what?
FLAVIA: I was actually in Berlin when we wrote this song. I Zoom’d in with Cami, Matt, and Aaron (p/k/a Theo and the Climb – the producers of the song) while they were all in the room together! It was so special to be able to be in different parts of the world and still able to create together. And since its completion, it has been really fun to be able to shoot photos and videos together to help document our saucy lil love story.
Cami: When we first started chatting at our session we realized that we both had just spent months in heavy advocacy. I had just spent months fighting for overdose awareness and FLAVIA fighting for LGBTQ+ rights. So we both realized we were in need of a fun and light-hearted song. Thus, SEPULVEDA was born.
I know it’s early to say, but are there plans to do more songs together? Perhaps more extensive work?
FLAVIA: We can’t say too much, but perhaps a music video, or maybe some shows are in the cards for the future…
Cami: What FLAVIA said
FLAVIA, what drew you to Cami’s music when you first heard it?
FLAVIA: Cami is a badass! The day before we first wrote together (initially for her project) I stayed up until 1 am going down a rabbit hole on her TikTok and I was so impressed with all of her tutorials and dedication to her craft, I was really inspired.
Likewise, Cami, What drew you to FLAVIA’s sound?
Cami: Her AUTHENTICITY! As a creator and a consumer of music, I am always chasing whatever is fiercely authentic. And FLAVIA is absolutely fiercely authentic. It’s inspiring.
Musically speaking, what would you say is the biggest or most important common ground the two of you share?
FLAVIA: A serious work ethic, love of music and authenticity, sharing honesty, and an unyielding vulnerability in our music and in our stories
Cami: Definitely our insane work ethic, haha. It took us 6 MONTHS to finish SEPULVEDA simply because neither of us could stop working on it, haha! But also, as Flav said, we both share incessant gravitation to authenticity and vulnerability. It’s a beautiful thing to get to work with someone with the same values.
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