artistsGet to know Angel-Ho, the artist fusing neo-pop anthems with gritty club mentality

“When I was younger I wanted to dance like a pop star and be like that bitch on stage,” laughs 24-year-old South African singer, songwriter and performer Angel-Ho. “Music was a fantasy I could enjoy in this harsh world. It was pure, innocent fun and now, it’s an escape to really enjoy myself in the world.”

Last time we caught up with Angel she was preparing to do just that. Hitting up Hyperdub’s Ø club night at Corsica Studios as part of a UK tour, she invited fans into her elaborate, escapist world. As she transformed the club’s usually dark Room 1 into a blue-lit fantasy land, she performed material from her forthcoming debut album ‘Death Becomes Her’ complete with on-stage outfit change and an occasional whip of flame-coloured hair.

“It was when I was studying and doing a lot of performance art that I realised I should be a performer and make music,” she tells us. “It was an innate calling. I was drawn to the microphone, I was drawn to the idea of performing for an audience and really pushing the idea of what performance can be, what a stage show can be.”

For many, it’s Angel’s work as part of forward-thinking collective NON Worldwide that springs to mind. As co-founder of the underground collective, Angel’s deconstructed material was as thought-provoking as it was impactful on the dancefloor. Releases such as her 2015 Arca-mastered EP ‘Ascension’ through to her explosive mixes showcased the sound pioneered by her crew and NON affiliates.

On her debut album, Angel’s experimental sound is given a new name, ‘neo-pop’. “Neo-pop, for me, is about expressing whatever story you want to express in a way that isn’t necessarily aesthetically pop,” she explains. “But what is pop but a catchy lyric or a catchy melody?”

Discussing themes such as wealth, love and humanity’s universal need to survive, Angel also explores narratives surrounding gender and identity on her debut. The sleeve notes describe the album as one of “emancipation and trans identity”, its themes “treated with an ambiguity that restructures the narrative within a trans-identity”.

Landing on Hyperdub, producers such as Gaika, Nunu and Nguzunguzu’s Asmara are credited, while vocalists such as K Rizz and Queezy feature on vocal duty. “I’m so into collaborating with other artists. I love the idea of two people coming together, or three or four people, and making something because you can’t do this alone,” says Angel.

Despite citing the likes of Lady Gaga, Missy Elliot and Björk as inspirations, Angel’s keen to carve out her own lane. “I’m not looking at someone else’s career,” she says.

“I’m listening to [other] artists, I’m absorbing art and music and fashion every day of my life, and that’s what I look towards. I look to create pop culture, and not [follow] a similar trajectory to what another artist has created.”

‘Death Becomes Her’ is out March 1 on Hyperdub

Jasmine Kent-Smith is Mixmag's Staff Writer. Follow her on Twitter

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