What was the album you had on repeat growing up? For Leroy Clampitt, the answer was Ricky Martin’s 1999 self-titled record. So, for his new single, Ricky Martin, Clampitt opted to channel the quiet curiosity he felt when listening to Livin’ La Vida Loca as a young student before school, long before understanding what the lyrics really meant. Musically, the melody is soft, leisurely shuffling through pared back instrumentals with a shrugging cadence, reminiscing over a childhood crush with all the warmth and welcome familiarity of nostalgia. Through lyrics like “Where did the time go / pretending to tango / looking into her eyes”, Clampitt captures the way childhood memories soften with age while the emotions behind them remain unexpectedly vivid.
Ricky Martin marks an exciting, unfolding chapter for Clampitt. New Zealand-born and LA-based, the singer, songwriter and producer has spent more than a decade writing and producing for some of pop’s biggest names. Lily Allen‘s searing excavation of infidelity on Pussy Palace? Rachel Chinouriri‘s colloquial, confronting stream of consciousness on It Is What It Is? Clampitt helped pen and produce both. Add a few credits on megastar Sabrina Carpenter‘s foundational discography and Clampitt’s musical talent can’t be disputed.
Now, he’s stepping into the spotlight as a solo artist, dropping I’m Going To Die, Easy Daisy and Sick Day as the first taste of his debut album, Get Happy. Ricky Martin marks the fourth installment of the LP, which arrives on August 14 via his independent label, Sorry Susan Records. Spanning 11 tracks, the work reflects on love, life and everything in between. Here, we caught up with Clampitt to talk about the making of Ricky Martin, his transition from producer to solo artist and what listeners can expect from Get Happy.
1. How would you describe yourself as a solo artist?
That’s like asking a chicken to eat its own egg – hard to do. It’s difficult to describe yourself. There are healthy parts to it, though: chickens get calcium from crushed eggshells. But you don’t want them going too deep into the yolk of it all – it’s bad for the ego.
2. What was the biggest creative shift from producing for others to making Get Happy?
When you collaborate you get real-time feedback and can bounce bad ideas around until something clicks. Working alone on Get Happy meant waiting for myself to gain perspective. A song might take a week or two of passively thinking about it, rather than a day intensely immersed with someone else.
3. What inspired the album?
I just love making albums – it’s a beautiful art form. If I’m going to help other people make theirs for the rest of my life, I wanted to experience what it’s like to be truly in the driver’s seat.
4. What do you hope people take away from Ricky Martin?
I know it’s overplayed, but I love nostalgia. It’s nice to be coddled by feelings from your youth. I’d like people to feel that.
5. If Ricky Martin could only be played in one place forever, where would you like it to be?
Definitely on top of a mountain somewhere. I always pictured myself on a mountaintop with my arms open, spinning around and singing “living the crazy life”.
6. If childhood you heard Ricky Martin today, what do you think they’d say?
He’d be extremely embarrassed for Charlie to hear his feelings, and he’d still wonder what Livin’ la Vida Loca means.
7. You’re born in NZ and based in LA – how do both of these places inform your work?
Growing up in Aotearoa hearing mostly American and British music through the filter of “faraway lands” gave me an outsider perspective. Now that I’m among – at least – American pop culture, that outsider view feels like a valuable asset.
8. What type of music can fans expect to come out of Sorry Susan Records?
Adventurous explorations of artists’ deepest passions and influences. I’m excited for the label’s second release – between Get Happy and this next album, you’ll get a pretty clear sense of the world I’m creating.
9. What’s one thing you learned about yourself whilst making Get Happy?
I have pretty niche song ideas when no one’s reigning me in.
10. What are you most excited about once the album comes out?
I’m excited for it to be out in the world and for people to hold it. I’m proud of how the vinyl looks and how, when you hold it and look at it in a strange way, you get a good sense of what it’ll feel like to listen to.
Photography by Taylor Morales.
