This article was previously published in a September 2017 issue of NME
The first song I remember hearing
Anita Ward – ‘Ring My Bell’
“I think I heard it on the radio, and at four years old I was singing along: ‘You can ring my bell…’ My parents were Chilean immigrants and they were super into music.”
The first concert I went to
The Police
“That was in Austin, Texas, where I spent my childhood. Iggy Pop opened for them. I was only five, but I remember quite a bit of it. I remember they arrived by helicopter. My parents took us to a lot of concerts. We started asking for tickets for birthdays. My sister asked to go to Madonna’s ‘Like A Virgin’ tour. I went too. I loved it!”
The first song I fell in love with
Billy Idol – ‘White Wedding’
“I remember really cranking it in the house. I would try to curl my lip like him. I pretended that he was my older brother, the bad boy brother who would come and break me out of the house.”
The first album I bought
Paul Simon – ‘Graceland’
“I’d asked for things like the Footloose soundtrack and Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ for my birthdays, but I remember walking what felt like miles to this cassette shop called The Warehouse to buy Paul Simon’s ‘Graceland’, U2’s ‘Joshua Tree’ and a Roberta Flack album. I had pretty good taste. I have shit taste now.”
The song I would do at karaoke
‘La Bamba’
“I hate karaoke. I don’t want to sing karaoke and I don’t want to listen to people sing karaoke. I like these songs and I don’t want to hear you sing them. The only song that I could probably sing and get away with is ‘La Bamba’. The song I wish I could sing well is ‘Dreams’ by Fleetwood Mac.”
The song I can no longer listen to
Pharrell – ‘Happy’
“I can’t hear that song anymore. I’m not happy, and I don’t want to be told to be happy.”
The song I can’t get out of my head
Princess Nokia – ‘Tomboy’
“I’m not sure it’s appropriate. She’s brilliant, and she’s completely empowered by it. She sings: ‘My little titties/My fat belly.’ That keeps going around my head. I feel like right now I have little titties and a fat belly. It works for empowered women and for out of shape men.”
The song that makes me want to dance
Technotronic – ‘Move This’
“When I moved to New York in ’93 we’d go dancing a lot. That’s what kept us in shape, I think. There were parties downtown that would move around different venues. Irving Plaza was a great venue where they’d play house music but with live drummers.”
The song that I want played at my funeral
Prince – ‘Purple Rain’
“Prince is the fucking greatest. I was in London when I found out that he died. I was in a hotel and I had already ordered room service. Someone came to the door and I was crying. They asked if I was okay, so I told them the truth and then they started crying too. We hugged. It was a moment.”
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