Techno Pop Princess Sam Quealy Believes In Being Delusional

Sam has always been the main character. At age 18, she left her home in Australia and relocated to Paris to pursue a career as a professional cabaret dancer. Drawn to the dramatic and the extra, she eventually found the underground ballroom scene and began walking at balls. Now, she’s preparing to take over the world with her dystopian club bangers. We met up with Sam to learn more about the themes within her forthcoming album and her journey to stardom. 

You have a new record coming out, congrats.

Yeah, I’ve put out singles. It’s a pretty new project, I think my first single was [released in] June 2021. So, it’s kind of been building up to this. It’s my first record. I’m super excited. 

Tell me a little bit about Blonde Venus.

I wrote [Blonde Venus] with my partner Marlon Magni from La Femme during confinement, so we were obviously trapped indoors. This album feels very much like a party at the end of the world. It’s a bit trashy, a bit Eurodance, and very hyper-feminine. Which is why in all of my visuals, I play an exaggerated, superhero woman. It’s my alter ego. Blonde Venus is the very confident alter ego version of myself — all of the songs are about being a bad bitch and forgetting everything on the dance floor amongst all of the chaos in the world.

Do you feel that writing Blonde Venus was an escape from reality? Or is this record more of a reflection of the feelings you had during lockdown?

I would say both? I mean, the end of the world vibe on the record was definitely influenced by COVID, but then there are also my own experiences from life mixed in there as well. I’ve spent so much of my life in nightlife. For me, it’s the place to go to forget everything. During COVID when social interactions were closed off, I was imagining a place that everyone could go to listen to this type of music and be together. 

Would you say there is one through-theme throughout the record? Your singles like “Yum” and “Watch Me Now” sound so different from each other.

It’s a reflection of me, and there are lots of characters and separate storylines, but there is still an underlying theme of trying to not give a fuck.

Some of your lyrics seem to stem from personal experiences, whereas others are more of a fantasy storyline, which to me, feels very reminiscent of dance and drag show choreography. Would you say that your involvement with the ballroom scene influences your writing process?

I definitely gained so much confidence from ballroom because it really is all about being that bitch and being fabulous. You have to believe in yourself, and that has definitely rubbed off on me when it comes to storytelling. It’s weird because I always refer to myself as “her” like it’s another person. If I’m editing a video, I’m like “Oh can you put that girl in there?” but it’s all me! I have lots of alter egos, and I think of them as other characters. For example, the storyline for my song “Klepto” is about a kleptomaniac and I’m not a kleptomaniac, but I can imagine that she is covered in jewels and is obsessed with all of this shit she doesn’t need. She just wants more, more, more.

It’s so interesting that you see the characters you represent in your music as somebody that isn’t you. I’m sure there is some part of your subconscious that relates to what your character in “Klepto” wants.

Oh yeah. I just love the over-the-top and the dramatic. I love the old school 90s trashy pop star, the type of artists who really entertain on stage. My live shows are so extra, oh my god. There’s some people who see me and are uncomfortable and think it isn’t feminism, but that’s okay, because even if they feel uncomfortable, I’m making them feel something. I love my live shows so much, I get so much pleasure from them. I feel like the visuals and energy of my live performances complete [the music].

You keep going back to these ideas of empowerment and confidence and pleasure. I want to know a little bit more about what you’re trying to express through your music.

My main message is not to worry about what people think of you and to free yourself of the idea that you have to be polite or agree with how society tells us we have to act. As a woman you’re told “don’t speak too loud,” “don’t act a certain way,” “don’t be too strong”. Fuck that. I want to inspire others to get on my delusional wavelength. Even if you don’t feel like hot shit, believing that you’re that bitch is a much more enjoyable way to live. It’s freeing to stop caring about what other people think so much.

Have you mastered that? 

I think I put more pressure on myself now. I don’t care what others think, but I care what I think. I have expectations for myself, but only because I want to make the best art I can. It’s less about “oh I’m not getting streams” or “my parents won’t like this” and more about “do I love this?” and “am I proud of this?”

I think that is a much healthier way to frame the idea of having expectations. Has writing music helped you develop self-confidence?

Writing is very therapeutic. I mean, there are some songs [on Blonde Venus], like “Follow the Night” that are a bit deeper and darker. Even though the melody for [Follow the Night] is bubblegum pop, the lyrics are dark. It’s about getting lost in the nightlife and not knowing when to go home and feeling trapped. I feel like a lot of teenagers and 20-somethings go through a phase where they are like “Wait what the fuck am I doing? Why am I at this person’s house?” I didn’t even realize when I was writing it that I was moving in that direction. Sometimes the songs can surprise you. 

Did you always see yourself ending up as a musician?

Oh yes. I feel like I was born to be a pop star. There are videos of me when I’m four or five on old video cameras. where I’ve got this bell and I would ring it and demand everyone’s attention. I’d make them sit down and watch me singing for ages. I’ve always been into playing different characters and roles. I had a character where I pretended to be a news anchor and a male character that I would play dress up as and imagine myself making different movies. I’ve had lots of different jobs like that, I was a professional dancer when I first moved to Paris, and I once worked as a magician’s assistant doing illusions and stunts. I’ve always had that popstar mentality. 

Like on a cruise ship?

Yeah, on a cruise ship. It’s funny to think about, like I can’t believe I lived on a ship for a year just doing this magic show. It was just me and the magician you know, getting cut in half, being spun around, having things thrown at you. Oh my God, I want to bring magic and illusions into my set. It would be so good, the beat drops and the magician just POOF, disappears. 

I support that, please bring a magician on the next tour for me! Would that be your “I made it” moment? What do you want to accomplish?

I’m manifesting La Défense Arena. So I’m aiming high, you know, staying inline with the delusional pop star trope. I feel that if I don’t aim high, then I won’t land anywhere good underneath so I’m saying La Défense Arena, there we go. But really, I just want to do a huge tour. I love, love, love the live aspect. I know some artists really dread it, but I live for the live performance. I’m already working on the second album and trying to push myself to be the best that I can, but I’m not comparing myself to others or stressing myself out. I’m doing this for other people, but I’m also doing this for myself. I know I can do it.