Philadelphia, PA · alt-pop · new wave

Santigold

2 upcoming festivals

Genre-collapsing alt-pop pioneer — 'L.E.S. Artistes' to now, always ahead, new wave and dancehall in one voice.

Santigold is Santi White, a singer and songwriter born in 1976 in Philadelphia. Before her solo career she worked as an A&R representative at Epic Records, wrote songs for the singer Res, and fronted the punk band Stiffed. Her debut album appeared in 2008 under the name Santogold, which she changed to Santigold the following year.

That first record, including L.E.S. Artistes and Creator, drew on new wave, dub, dancehall and hip-hop production, and her subsequent albums Master of My Make-Believe, 99¢ and Spirituals have continued to move between those reference points. Her flat, unaffected vocal delivery over dense rhythmic production has been widely imitated, and her songs have been sampled and licensed extensively.

alt-popnew wave