Sara Lugo: "Music happens to be a very good medium to transport the message of unity and it can give people the strength to continue in this time!"

Sara, you were surrounded by music from your early childhood since you hail from a very musical family. Can you tell us a bit more about your background?
Sara Lugo: "My mom comes from a very musical – like classical – family, singing in choirs and doing all kinds of classical music. My father always used to collect records and he listened to all kinds of music. So that was my first approach to music. My mom always sang us to sleep. And then you have my brothers Tom and Nathan. Nathan was the selector at home; he always played reggae. Tom started a band in 2000 called Jamaram and that was my first access really where I could enter the music world and see what's happening, check out the shows, the sound checks, see how a stage was set up, go to the studio, experience the recording situation and all of that. So in that report my brothers also introduced me to the music scene. That is also where I met Umberto Echo, my producer and the people from Oneness Records. So that is how I slipped into all the reggae music."

So these different influences are all reflected in your own music then?
Sara Lugo: "Definitely, yeah! I'm a big fan of soul music, jazz; I really love these two genres, hip hop too. I just stick to whatever feels good to me and a lot of the stuff my dad used to play also influenced me. So now I'm doing my own project and my own music so I can create my own sound picture and that's what we're doing."

How would you describe your own music?
Sara Lugo: "I guess my music is a mix of reggae, soul, jazz and hip hop, maybe a bit of pop also."

I read somewhere that you have Puerto Rican roots.
Sara Lugo: "Yeah my dad was from Puerto Rico, but he grew up in New Jersey so I grew up speaking German and English at home. I was born and raised in Germany."

So that Puerto Rican element hasn't really influenced you or your music?
Sara Lugo: "(laughs) I guess where the influence of Puerto Rico comes in is just my temper. That would be my answer to that."

Ok so you explained that you came into contact with the music scene through your brothers. What made you want to pursue a career in reggae music yourself?
Sara Lugo: "Because it touched me straight from the beginning. It was very simple and it was very natural. You know how it is: you hear reggae and it's just that heartbeat, you know. It was just easy and it was natural for me to connect with it. So when I got my first instrumentals from Oneness, for example, it was easy for me to jump on it. After that I wanted to expand and I added all the other genres to the repertoire to make it more interesting for me."

You have collaborated with a lot of internationally renowned reggae artists. How do these collaborations come about?
Sara Lugo: "Most of the combinations I did happened by me just asking the artists. At some point we linked up already and I feel their music of course. Otherwise I would not be working with them. I don't do music for the money or the fame, I do it because the vibe is right and I can connect to the people. Mostly I had an idea for a song and I let them hear it and they really enjoyed it so they jumped on the song and joined me on the track."

A lot of your more popular songs are with artists who are part of the reggae revival movement like Protoje or Kabaka Pyramid. Is that a conscious decision, do you feel like you want to share that same message or is it more of a coincidence?
Sara Lugo: "I think it's not a coincidence, I think it's just the way it was supposed to happen. It definitely happened that way for a reason. I didn't say: "Ah, ok these guys are part of the reggae revival so I'm going to do a feature with them…". It just happened naturally; I heard their music and I was really touched by it, I could really feel it and connect with it so I said: "Yo, I want to do something with them and combine our energies and our musical outputs to create something new!". We ended up reaching more people and touching more hearts so it worked out really well."

Is it mostly a musical vibe or is it also a message that you can relate to?
Sara Lugo: "The reggae revival is definitely something I can relate to. But actually it's not just that. The same movement is happening in hip hop too and in different genres as well. There is a bunch of movements in music now that have the same undertone because the world going crazy and there is a lot of bullshit happening and the people are starting to be aware of it. Music happens to be a very good medium to transport the message of unity and it can give people the strength to continue in this time. So the reggae revival has a lot of truth in it and it has a lot of strength for the people, you know. And that's why I really support it and tell people to go and listen to all the artists that are in the reggae revival: Protoje, Kabaka, Jah9, Raging Fyah and so many more."

Do you have a personal message that you want to carry out, something that you want to achieve with your music:
Sara Lugo: "I want to give the people love, really, because in the end of the day it's like this: if you have love in your heart, you can't really be a bad person. There are so many people growing so cold nowadays because the system puts us in a situation where we have to work nine to seven and all the time you are just hustling and working and trying to get money to survive, you know? You have to feed your family; you have to buy stuff so that you are accepted in the society. But it's all bullshit, you know. They put us in a situation where we forget to be kind to each other. And even in the schools you start up early and from first grade on, they give you grades, they start to value what you do rather than who you are. They should change that, in the first years of school they should teach you how to be a good person and how to function well. So my message would be to just be kind to each other, show more love and just be nice. Consider the way other people are feeling. Pay more attention to details and show some more love."

I couldn't agree more. Do you have any collaborations still on your wish list?
Sara Lugo: "Definitely! There is a bunch of collaborations on my wish list like Tarrus Riley, Raging Fyah, Damian Marley would be wonderful, Jah9. (Hesitates) There's just so many, this is a really tough question. Morgan Heritage would be nice, also Fat Freddy's Drop, Cultura Profética. And the list goes on. Anyway, whatever is supposed to happen will happen in time. But yeah, the list is long."

Your last album, 'Hit Me With Music', was released in October. How has the reception been so far?
Sara Lugo: "So far the album has received very well by the people. I got only positive feedback from all corners of the world so I'm really happy to see that happening and to see that we're actually reaching more people now. And I must say the 'Really Like You' song did open a lot of doors. It did change a lot and more people are listening to the music now and checking out all other songs too so yeah it's been a very positive experience."

Where do you get inspiration for your songs?
Sara Lugo: "Most of my songs are inspired by personal situations, but they also come sometimes from just watching people and the situations they're in. Also from the radio, the news but at the same time inspiration can come from out of nowhere. My inspiration sources are everywhere and nowhere. Often I listen to an instrumental and then I hear a melody and then the words just come to me. But also sometimes I'm just on the train or driving in the car and a line just comes to my mind and then afterwards we find the music for it. So there's really no formula for that."

You've been in the business for a while, you've worked with some great artists, you've put out an album, you're touring now, performing. So far have you discovered any downsides to being in the music business?
Sara Lugo: "(Laughs) That's a very nice question you ask there because yes of course there are a lot of downsides. It's funny because people see an artist as always shiny and they see the presentation of the final work so it always looks like everything is really good. But actually it is a lot of work. There is a lot of stuff that has to be dealt with and a lot of tight situations where you need to find a good solution. Actually it's a constant dance of trying to optimize your work and there's just so much more to it than people realize. I wish it was mostly about making music but if you don't have a major label behind you that supports you financially, you have to do most of it yourself. So that means you do your management yourself. Booking has to be done, the internet promotion and appearance has to be done. You have to work on the music at the same time. Music videos take a lot of work. And there are just so many other details that have to be done so that the whole thing can work like band organization, rehearsals need to be arranged. All of this work is something that people don't take into account. So there are some downsides to the music business for sure, but at the end of the day it pays off when you can celebrate the music with the people and you see that they really feel it and get the vibe and connect with it. Then I realize that this is what I'm doing it for!"

And we really appreciate the fact that you're doing it! So you are located in Germany, is that convenient for you? Do you need to travel a lot?
Sara Lugo: "Well, nowadays we have the worldwide web so you can just send a track and you don't have to be in the same room with a person to record a song. Of course it's nicer for the vibe, but it's not really a problem. It doesn't really matter where you are. You can travel, you can jump on a plane and fly to Jamaica for a video shoot. And of course I have my team here so it's cool to be around them."

Will we see you in Belgium any time soon?
Sara Lugo: "I hope so! Actually a bunch of people have been writing me from Belgium and I really hope we can play there soon. You can check Facebook and my website for any updates."

Perfect, we are looking forward to it! Are you currently working on any new material?
Sara Lugo: "Yes we are working on a new project that will be released in the first half of 2016. It's going to be a feature album with some feature songs that I have done already and some new ones as well. We will have a physical release for the album in France. Apart from that it will be released digitally. So you can look out for that."

Foto: © Max Alberti