A week into the release of their heartrending duet “When Was It Over?”
and Sasha Sloan andSam Huntare feeling good about its reception.
“My manager called me and is like, ‘Skip rates super-low.’
Singer-songwriter Sasha Sloan and country star Sam Hunt have released a duet titled ‘When Was it Over?'.David O’Donohue; Steven Worster
And I was like, ‘That’s great,'” jokes Sloan.
“I think Sam may have saved me from getting dropped is what I keep saying.”
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: When did you guys meet, and how’d you start writing music together?
The cover art for Sasha Sloan and Sam Hunt’s single ‘When Was it Over?'.courtesy RCA Records
SASHA SLOAN:We met about two years ago maybe, throughDiplo, weirdly enough.
Shane was a big connector for us as well because he works a lot with both of us.
So yeah, it kinda just happened, and we wrote, “When Was It Over?”
over an EDM sounding track [at first].
SAM HUNT:Yeah, it’s been like two years ago now.
And then we got together to write, and I felt like we connected.
I was really blown away with Sasha.
I feel like y’all would really hit it off."
And I think that was another thread that really helped.
SLOAN:That’s really sweet.
Shane’s the best, so thanks for that.
I’ve noticed though you both keep a tight circle of consistent collaborators.
It’s a lot easier for me to be able to do that.
With me, I feel like I’m always aiming at such a specific thing.
you better be sensitive around writers.
SLOAN:Especially it’s like whenever I’m writing with an artist for them, it’s different.
I’ll write with whoever they want to write with.
Like, do you want to hang?
Sam, do you consider “When Was It Over?”
your first official duet?
HUNT:Yeah, this is the first real collaboration I’ve done.
And I would be open to doing [more] collaborations.
And with Sasha and myself, that’s the way it worked out.
“We think it might be a good idea.”
It happened without that intention, which feels more natural.
And so, I’ve just followed that approach so far.
Is that shared experience something you gravitate towards when choosing collaborators?
SLOAN:Yeah, it’s also about knowing the person.
I’ve hung out with Kygo, and he’s awesome.
He’s a super sweet dude, and we have similar tastes.
I don’t know.
I’m following my gut for the first time in my life.
How’d you guys record it?
Did you have a chance to record together or was it a back and forth?
SLOAN:It was a pretty smooth but separate process, I guess.
By the time I rediscovered the song and was like, “Hey, I love this.
Would you feature on it?”
it was [during] COVID.
I didn’t leave my house or see another human.
So I feel like those happened simultaneously.
And I think maybe I had sung a little on it from that original day.
What goes into making one like this fresh?
You’re trying to be indifferent, but underneath there’s a real heartbreak there.
So I’ve tried to do that at least a little bit with some of my breakup songs.
You also mentioned on Twitter that you and Sasha have written more songs together.
Is there any chance there’s going to be more songs from you all?
And also any chance of a “When Was It Over?”
SLOAN:Not sure about more music.
Let’s see how this one does.
No, but I personally hate being in music videos, like more than anything on planet earth.
I’m like, “Oh f—.”
I don’t know how you feel Sam.
HUNT:I hate doing the music video thing.
I’ve walked that line too.
When singers are in music videos, and they’re acting, sometimes it can be cringy.
I just have a go at avoid putting myself in that position.
So it’s hard to say about those things.
SLOAN:Yeah, you never know.
But yeah, music videos, I’m sorry.
Maybe I was too honest.
HUNT:No, I’m with you.
SLOAN:I know, same.
Maybe if I was like Beyonce, but it’s just like me and a guitar and lip-syncing.
I don’t know.
I just feel super weird about it.
You both had the experience of releasing albums during the pandemic.
What was that like, and has the inability to tour those songs led to you writing more?
I just have nothing else to do, so I’ve just been writing a lot.
It’s almost done, so it’ll come out at some point this year.
It’s weird making music and not really knowing when you’re going to get to do it again.
Everyone’s like, “You should make a TikTok.”
And I’m like, “I don’t know how, and I don’t want to.”
I’m not going to dance to my own songs and make them blow up.
That’s just not something that’s going to happen.
So I’m ready for touring to come back.
That’s what I’ll say.
HUNT:That’s funny hearing you say that.
That reminds me of some of the conversations we had when we first met.
I was like, “I’ve got to put this record out.”
So I really still have no idea if anybody listened to the record or which songs people gravitated towards.
So hopefully, I can figure some of that out when we get back out on the road.
I’m excited about putting new stuff out.
Listen to Sasha Sloan and Sam Hunt’s new single “When Was It Over?”
