Moonchild Sanelly was recently interviewed by the legendary Elton John.
Image: File.
Legendary musician Elton John recently interviewed South African singer Moonchild Sanelly on his renowned radio show, "Rocket Hour".
The conversation unfolded while Sanelly was in Manchester last month, promoting her new album, "Full Moon".
Sanelly released her latest offering, her third studio album, in January.
According to the singer, the album is more than just a collection of songs; it is her fully embracing her essence.
The album features 12 hits that showcase her unique approach to music, a mix of unapologetic self-love and empowerment.
John, who has openly declared his admiration for Sanelly's work, expressed how much he enjoys her album, saying he "constantly" plays it.
He particularly highlighted his affection for the song "Falling," describing it as "one of my favourite videos of all time."
"You are so amazing. Your whole album is just wonderful. I just play it constantly, and your video for ‘Falling’ is one of my favourite videos of all time. I fell in love with you visually, and I fell in love with you orally," he said.
When asked about her journey into music, Sanelly shared a nostalgic memory of her youth.
"I was always surrounded by music, but my first great memory was when my friends had no access to the internet and I did," she recalled.
"So I take those lyrics, put my own melodies, and we called ourselves 'Baps Girls'. And so I'd either be Baby Spice or Scary Spice because I ran the thing. So that was my first real memory, it was flipping Spice Girls songs to make them my own songs."
John also expressed his enthusiasm for Sanelly's collaboration with fellow musician Little Simz. "I'm a Little Simz fan. I was honoured," she recounted.
"I literally was walking downstairs, she WhatsApped me to say, 'There's a song I'd like you to be a part of'. I said, 'I'm leaving tomorrow. I am here today. Organise a studio, I'm there like a bear'. And I went on the same day because I'm such a fan," said Sanelly.
As for her reception in London, Sanelly described it as "sublime."
"It's been ridiculous. Even in South Africa, they believe I've moved. I live in London now because the reception has been sublime.
Reflecting on her childhood, she reminisced about how the pop music she grew up with was primarily from the UK.
"The craziest, wildest thing I was telling my manager, and I think I keep telling her, every time I realised that the pop music I grew up to was actually from the UK.
"I'll hear a song and I know the lyrics, she'd be like, 'How do you know that?' I was like, 'That's my childhood'. And it's crazy that now I am being received so beautifully in a space where the music, where it stemmed from, was my upbringing, because actually a lot of the pop was from the UK. And feeling like home is beautiful."
John expressed his eagerness to see Sanelly perform live, noting her vibrant personality. "You are such a personality. You are just full of life and full of joy, and I'm sure when you're on stage that comes across 100 times more than when I'm talking to you now, and I'm sure your electric live."
Sanelly responded with gratitude, acknowledging the connection she has with her audience.
"Thank you so much. I get this a lot where it's like people say, 'Your energy, your energy is something else outside of what your message is and it just all translates and we just love being in your space'.
"So I always say the freedom demon comes out without you thinking about who's watching you, because you only have one life to live, you better live it at your ultimate."