Overwhelmed by the whirlwind success and fearing overexposure, Sande decided to take a break from the limelight.
EMILE SANDE:I was always in the studio.
I was always writing, just hanging out.
But there was definitely a moment when I thought, I really have to focus now.
Then we went to this farm out in Oxfordshire and that was when it all started to come together.
We only had the instruments and we started making everything from scratch.
I knew that was what Id been waiting for: something organic.
How do you deal with that going forward with this album?
Then I started working with a guy called Philip Lee.
Hes just such a great guitarist and hed write these riffs and suddenly the melody would just come.
Wed spend just a little more time on it and the song was finished.
It felt really natural with him.
I was writing about real life, real emotions on this one.
Is there one that youre most proud of?
Theres a song I wrote with Alicia Keys called 101.
I just loved it.
I loved the night we wrote it and I love listening to it now.
It was just the keys and her voice.
Its not often you get to sit with an artist and build the song up.
We were just telling each other stories, like, What did you do yesterday?
What did you dream about?
And suddenly we had songs.
Another theme of album is spirituality, but not prescribed religion.
I feel like I just broadened my understanding of it.
Your dads from Zambia and you had the opportunity to visit the country during your time off.
How did that influence your writing or your approach to the music?
It was just life changing.
I just grew up after that trip and really felt fulfilled.
It definitely added to the conversation of what I wanted to say.
Different influences from the trip are weaving in and out of the album.
Did anyone know of your success there?
Had they heard your music before?
My dad started playing some stuff and my cousins were like Wait, a minute!
Theres a track on the album, Tenderly, that your dads on.
Is he a musician too?
He took the school choir, but he didnt play formally.
His whole family the Zambian side is so musical.
Whats been the highlight for you?
And performing for the Obamas was mental, and for Carole King.
What songs are you most excited to perform from the new album on tour next year?
I was so excited for Garden to come out, just to show people it because its quite different.
