Moving to the beaches of Margate after losing a bet with a mate, rising star Thandii reflects that effortlessness of seaside life in her debut EP, “Forgetful”. Full of soaring romantic synths and intricate drum beats, the four-track record is a dream-pop sensation, showing off Thandii’s seductively smoky vocals and flawless songwriting technique.

Marking the beginning of what is bound to be the start of an exciting journey, we had a chat with Thandii to find out about the girl behind the gorgeous songs.

Hey Thandii, how’s it going?

Pretty good thanks.

Do you remember the moment when you fell in love with music?

Yeah, I grew up with a lot of music in the house because my whole family are musicians and I’ve always loved it. It was hearing Joni Mitchell’s Blue that was probably my first love. Although the style may be a few worlds away from where my sound is now, Joni was an artist I felt akin to and I listened to that album over and over.

You released your debut single, “Cameo”, earlier this year. Can you tell us about the inspiration behind the track?

It’s about someone who’s struggling to take the lead in their life and what inspired it was recognising that you’re not going to do anything if you don’t be bold and brave and just get on with it.

You wrote it in Margate after moving there because you lost a bet. We’ve got to hear the story behind this…

Haha yeah, I got dared to move somewhere I’d never been before and I just took the dare very seriously. It was a stage where I felt like I was going round in circles in London. So I spent a couple of months staying up all night going out, and going over everything and one night got a little crazy and ended with the dare. And a few weeks later I went to Margate for the first time ever… the weather was shit, I got stuck in the rain and the sea was a murky brown …but somehow the British seaside charm won me over. I don’t know how! So I looked at a flat.. and and started renting it straight away.

You’ve described your sound as “an attempt to put a female stamp on an otherwise male-dominated sound”. Can you tell us a bit more about this?

There was a time where all the music I was getting excited about had a male vocal on it, and the stuff I was hearing that I liked with a female vocal always tended to be softer and dreamier. I naturally have a fairly soft voice and I didn’t want this to dictate the music direction completely. I like bold drums, weird guitar sounds, interesting lyric placement and sweeping synths. So there was one day where I suddenly thought, why can’t this be the sound?

Your debut EP, “Forgetful”, came out on 26th May. What can we expect from it?

There are a lot of old synths and up front drums on the tracks. I’d probably say none of the tracks are shy. It’s also really a snap shot of the last year where I feel like I’ve been sticking my neck out (musically) and not worrying about how that’s going to be received.

What are you wanting people to take away from the EP?

I hope people find the sound exciting. I guess that as my first EP I want it to give an introduction to what’s gonna come in the future from me.

What else do you have planned for this year?

There’s a couple of live shows coming up, LeeFest is one of them. Apart from that I’m really excited to see how the year’s going to pan out.