In Conversation With #079 - Tatum

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South African artist Tatum has just released her debut EP ‘Bloodsport’, which is five tracks of dark alt-pop that explores the beauty of heartbreak. She took a moment to talk to us about the EP in more detail. 


So, your debut EP is out now, how does it feel to finally have it out there? 
I am so proud of what we have created and it's incredibly exciting for me to finally have it out there. It’s a dream realized for me. 

The EP is called ‘Bloodsport’, does that have a certain meaning? 
Yes, the title track Bloodsport is about how vicious and painful love can be... how all love ultimately ends in the pain of separation. Love is Bloodsport. 

You touch on the topic of love quite a bit on this release, what areas of love have you taken influence from? 
Many areas... most are touching on various kinds of relationships. Broken is about intense first love, Fever is about a dangerous relationship and Bloodsport is just about love between any two people, whether it’s romantic or the love for family / friends that hurts like hell when you lose them in any way. 

What is the meaning of love to you? 
Real love is immortal, which is why it has such a power to wreck you when you are parted from the one you love for any reason... whether it is a break up with a soul mate when you are young or death that parts you when you have grown old together. Love chooses you at your worst. Love is effortless. It is easy. It is blind and reckless. It is irresponsible in all the good ways. Love doesn’t overthink. It is impulsive. It should be limitless with no conditions. It is care free and sometimes even dangerous. But it is beautiful!

There is a lot of deep roots for you in South African opera, as a descendent of the Veenemans family, do you feel this has contributed to you much as an artist and on this EP
Absolutely... music and singing runs so deep in my blood. Thanks to my roots in Opera and my family, my voice was shaped at a very early age and I have always known that I would do music as a career and this in turn has given me a burning focus to find the style of music that I love and could express myself through. 

Do you have a favorite lyric on the EP? If so which one and why? 
"Lost kids on a lost highway, living the words of a blues song" ... don't know why.. just gives me big feels :) 

Now the EP is out there, how does it feel to be releasing music during the Covid-19 problem? How are you keeping motivated? It is such a tragic and life changing year for everyone, especially for the underprivileged here in South Africa. My feelings have been a mixture of extreme happiness for releasing a piece of art I am so proud of and extreme sadness for the suffering of the people of my country. I stay motivated by my need to create and sing and the knowledge of just how privileged I am to be doing what I love when so many have nothing.


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