Issue 041

Hello Sheena & Cristiano. How are you
both keeping?
We are great thank you, the Holidays we’re exactly
what we always seek which is home in Canada in the snow
with our family and close friends. Boxing Day through New
Years Day was non stop touring. We performed 5 shows in
Brazil; festivals, beach clubs, Clubs, and finished the last
sunrise of 2023 in the mountains above Rio De Janeiro. New
Years Eve was our debut in Punta Del Este Uruguay.
Where are you both from?
We are both from Canada, near to Toronto. We met
and started our project Savage & SHē in Toronto.
How did you meet?
We were set up on a blind double date from
Sheenas roommates. Everyone went the the club after
dinner and we made music together instead.
Can you tell us all about your
introduction to house music?
We had similar introductions to house music in our
late teens, early 20’s. Coming from Toronto, Canada we had
a vibrant club scene and spent the weekends out dancing
which led to us deciding it was time we brought our own
sound to the local community.
Growing up who were yoru fav
bands / Musicians?
Sheena- huge lover of feel good jazz and Talented
vocalists like Natalie Cole and early Mariah Carey. Also loved
indie and rock music like arcade fire, the XX and Mars volta.
Cristiano- from a young age I was in reggae and
ska bands, my earlier years went through many musical
genres. Listening to punk bands like Rancid & The Sex
Pistols, Hip Hop artists like Dr. Dre, Reggae artists such as
Peter Tosh all the way to Blues artists like Muddy Waters.
Music of all genres spoke to me since I was a child.
Starting out as DJ / Artists what
equipment did you use?
We started out on CDJ-900’s (Original) / DJM
750MK2.
Can you take us trough your live set
equipment now?
We are in the process of transitioning into a Full
Live Set. At the moment we perform a Hybrid Set which
includes:
Shure SM58 Mic, Roland Handsonic HPD-20, Midi Keyboard
(or) Moog Sub37.
How long are you based in Tulum &
what lead you both to Mexico ?
We had been vacationing and taking gigs in that
part of mexico since 2015 and decided it was time for a life
change in 2018. A plethora or reasoning behind this
including being offered a residency at the two best beach
clubs in Tulum at that time. And the year round tropical
weather was definitely a big factor in taking the leap.
You have releases on some stunning
labels, can you take us trough your
first few Eps?
We were fortunate to come into the music industry
with a high note our first release was signed to a very
established label RADIANT. From that point forward we
continued to pursue established record labels through many
genres and in the past year have honed in on the sound we
can truly call our own after 6 years of releasing music.
Labels like Radiant, crosstown rebels,
the soundgarden, and Go Deeva are
some of the homes for your music.
Did you find it hard to find homes for
your music projects at first?
Every release is different, we have been fortunate
to build a reputation now that allows us easy access to label
A&R’s but sometimes finding the right fit can be difficult, you
" Our most memorable show from last year would
be Universo Parallelo in Brazil. Performing for more
then 12,000ppl was a first and an overwhelmingly
emotional experience "