To say Charlotte Sands has had a crazy year *might* be an understatement, but in the midst of all the excitement, she has never strayed away from doing things her own way – at all costs.
“I think what I’ve realized is, I’d rather do things my own way and fail (and look back and be proud of the fact that I kind of stuck to my guns a little bit on my decisions) and did everything the way I wanted to,” Charlotte eagerly explains from the comfort of her couch. “That way, it’s my responsibility if things don’t do well. I never want to fail at something or succeed at something and it not be based off of my truth or my best judgement. As long as I just do everything to my best ability. I think that’s kind of my only goal… doing things I want to do and succeeding or failing and being able to walk away proud of that either way.”
While Charlotte’s story as a genre-bending artist started long before 2020, the year served as a huge turning point on all fronts for the rising singer/songwriter. “It was like a really big test for me,” she confesses. “I had to re-learn how to write music without feeling inspired, and I had to learn how to make music over a computer instead of in a session with somebody in person.”
There were plenty of challenges that came with working in a totally different setting, but Charlotte was able to adapt to them in time. She felt like the pandemic pushed her into what she described as “this uncomfortable zone where you either have to sink or swim,” and in reality, she had no option but to swim. But let’s face it – even if she had been presented with options, she would’ve chosen to swim like this was the Olympics and she was going for the gold. Charlotte continued to write and crank out new music, and trusted that her hard work would all pay off soon.
Part of Charlotte being a champion at her own game has involved her choosing to continue to write her own rules. They include (but aren’t limited to) being able to have complete creative control of her art, choosing what and when she shares it, and embracing the beauty of being an independent artist. “I kind of always grew up thinking a record deal was the way to go,” she mentions. “I was like, ‘I can’t wait until I’m signed to a label, I can’t wait until I’m signed and I’m on a roster alongside other artists.’ Then I realized over the past few years, it kind of shifted to, ‘I’m so proud of being an independent artist. I’m so proud of being the one who is funding all my art, and being able to have complete creative control over every decision. I’m so proud of making music that I care about and releasing it on a timeline that I decide. Instead of being proud of being signed or being proud of making money or all these different things, it turned into being proud of the process and the art, being proud of the team I have and the people around me.”
Then in November 2020, the circle of people surrounding Charlotte grew a whole lot bigger. As a response to all of the negativity surrounding Harry Styles’ Vogue cover, she decided to post a song on TikTok that essentially called out the naysayers. (You know, the cover where Harry was rocking a dress.) Who says you can’t wear whatever your heart desires? Definitely not Charlotte. The clip received over 100,000 views within a few hours of being posted, and she ended up dropping the full version of “Dress” on streaming services a few days later.
“’Dress’ was like a really incredible experience,” Charlotte recalls. “I’ve never had a viral moment like that before, so it was really cool. The positivity I received from that song and the community that was created based off that song was so cool.”
The momentum carried on into the new year, as Charlotte released her debut EP Special. She also decided to start her own street team to help get the word out about her projects, and the nearly 100-member group is helping her excitement to return to the stage grow larger than ever. “They’ve kinda turned into this really supportive friend group,” Charlotte says. “We all talk all the time, Snapchat, and do all that stuff. That whole experience has been so exciting for me, because it’s a bunch of people who I’ve never met that I’m only going to meet for the first time in person at my shows. We’ve been friends for like over a year now which is so crazy, and I just think having a community of really positive people and supportive people is so vital for self growth and self-awareness.”
One of the songs fans will be able to sing at the top of their lungs at a Charlotte Sands show will be her new single “All My Friends Are Falling In Love.” Those who enjoy an early 00’s pop-rock vibe will especially fancy this song, which sprouted from a recurring feeling of loneliness.
Charlotte spilled, “A lot of my songs start off with me just singing something random into my phone voice memos. I went out… I think it was to dinner with a few of my friends. I kind of had a pod of people during the pandemic where I would go to their house, or we’d just see each other and only hang out with each other. I was like the only one in the group not in a relationship. It was really fun to kinda be the single friend who hung out with everybody. I could just go to their house and hang out with couples, and it was like never an attention thing, I was always really comfortable hanging out with them. Then it got to this point where it was super lonely to go home alone. I would always kinda subconsciously hate that part of the night where we said goodbye, because I would be going home by myself, and they all got to leave whenever they wanted with other people. They all had this built-in comfort and support, and I didn’t. I’d go home and it would be late, I’d be driving alone, and it would be sad for me.”
The next morning, Charlotte woke up and started singing the chorus to the song. She thought it was a genius idea, so she sang it again and sent a voice note over to her collaborator Danon Reid. The two met up later that day for a studio session, and they were able to transform the snippet into an entire song. Just let it be known: “All My Friends Are Falling In Love” doesn’t necessarily need to be about a romantic relationship. Charlotte feels as though the track can apply to a much broader range of situations, such as becoming distant from people you were once very close to.
“It can be about people growing up and falling in love with other things and just getting busy,” Charlotte explains. “It’s kind of this thing about feeling isolated even when you’re surrounded by a ton of people, and people are growing out of you or moving on. There’s a lot of ways I relate to it that’s more than just from a relationship standpoint, so I hope other people feel that way as well.”
No matter how you choose to connect with the song, Charlotte insists that it must be experienced in person with her. “We definitely wrote this one for the live experience,” she says. “It felt so much like a relatable chorus and relatable song that other people would want to sing at the top of their lungs. We wanted to really capture that feeling and make it seem super inclusive. It was one of those things where I want everybody to sing with me and feel like they’re not alone, while they’re singing this song about being lonely.”
When you listen to “All My Friends Are Falling In Love,” you’ll likely feel like a winner yourself. But even as Charlotte continues to release more music through 2021, she’ll never forget how the events of the past year and a half made her even stronger than before.
Charlotte spilled, “I feel like there were a lot of times throughout the last year where I was able to kinda take a second. It was almost too much time at some times, it felt almost like I just wanted to be go go go all the time. It was nice to be able to take a second and relax and let some of those part of the year be questionable about what I was doing and what was the next step. The last few months, it’s definitely been full speed ahead, just in the sense of everything getting back to normal. I just want to be overly prepared for shows and get back in shape for that, physically and mentally, just be ready to give the best performance I possibly can and have the best music possible I can for those shows. It’s been a lot of preparation for everything opening back up and getting back to normal a little bit. I love that, I love being busy, I love staying motivated and having things to work towards. It’s inspiring to me, it only makes me more creative.”
Fall in love with the journey, if anything. Check out “All My Friends Are Falling In Love” below!
