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ON THE RISE
Miami based rapper SATEGA knows that people are tired of hearing the same old music with everyone sounding the same. That isn’t the case with his music “a breath of fresh air,” as SATEGA prides himself in having his own unique sound, cadence and flow.
“I don’t sound like anyone else,” he said. “I sound like SATEGA, and I feel proud to say that because most artists can’t.”
SATEGA has released a brand new single called “Blame It on Me,” which he describes as a “fun, sexy record.” It is inspired by true events, and is about him and a girl being playful and teasing each other.
“She’ll joke at me that something’s my fault, and I’m like, ‘Blame it on me,’” he said. “You know, it’s real. That’s where the thought of the record came from. It’s a fun record to sing along to. It’s memorable, catchy. You can play it anywhere. You can play it in the car, the club, the yacht. It definitely has a fun vibe.”
A music video for “Blame It on Me” is scheduled for a March 1 release, and SATEGA is pumped about it because it “brings it all home.”
“It’s exciting,” he said. “It matches the record perfectly. Very, very wavy.”
SATEGA was born and Chicago and raised in Miami, and is inspired by the how artists relate their music to reality. This can be both positive and negative aspects of life. SATEGA said that he writes “because it not only makes people feel good, it also motivates them, as well, and allows people to relate and connect with you on a deeper level.”
“I was listening to hip-hop and R&B since I was in elementary school,” he said. “I remember first and second grade being surrounded by hip-hop culture. Even in my school, that was predominantly the music that was played. So you’re a product of your environment. I think that was a blessing for me.”
SATEGA called it a vibrant culture that has inspired him to this day.
“Just seeing artists express themselves and express their story, I was like, well, I’ve got a story too,” he said. “I think that’s where the influence came from- just seeing other mainstream artists tell their story in a song. When it’s packaged nice with good production, it makes it art. That was fascinating to me, to create a body of work that is relatable, enjoyable and fun to sing.”
SATEGA started creating music when he was finishing middle school, saying that is when he actually picked up a pen and started writing. One day he just had this intoxicating feeling, knowing that he had a calling and a gift that just wasn’t cultivated yet. He remembers sitting down and putting words together to make them rhyme. It took a long time to develop to where he is at today, with plenty of practice along the way.
“It took a lot of polishing, but now it’s like second nature,” he said. “I can put a song together and don’t need to write anything down. I can just do it all in my head.”
SATEGA writes all his own lyrics, saying that he comes up with a flow, melody and harmony to get the full feel of the record. He focuses more on the writing, singing and rapping, but he works with quality producers who work to bring him the best beats that meet his style.
“I look for that connection with the beat, and for that inspiration to come through,” he said.
He said sometimes it is a slow process finding the beat that works, as some can sound appealing on first listen, but then a week later another might be the right sound. Much of this is because creating music involves what is going on in his life. Once the inspiration hits, SATEGA said it “flows like a waterfall.” It just comes out, and he starts piecing the record together.
“Things change and I think the more you hear something, it’s like reading a book,” he said. “If you read a book one time, that’s great. But if you read it a second time, you’re going to pick up on a lot of things that you didn’t that first time.”
While this is a single, but it could lead to an EP or possible album. The goal is to put out more music to appease the fans, and just keep on creating. He has a catalog that has enough to make two albums, and said there will be much more music to come. Down the line, he also hopes to get out on the road for some shows for listeners to hear in a live setting.
“I genuinely love making music,” he said. “It’s in me 100%. It’s not just a profitable endeavor, I genuinely love making this art. It brings me so much happiness and fulfillment. I make it for myself first, but I am so excited to make it for the fans and share it with the world.”
Be sure to check out “Blame It on Me” and the music of SATEGA, available on all major platforms. Also check out his website, which features his apparel line New Vintage.
ON THE RISE
As they prepare to unveil their fourth album, ‘Joy In Short Moments’, The Snuts have spoken with NME about how stepping away from touring gave them the chance to reflect on some of life’s biggest challenges and bring greater attention to mental health.
Their first album since 2024’s upbeat ‘Millenials’ follows a rare break from the road over the past year. During that time, frontman Jack Cochrane also experienced a major change in his personal life as he welcomed his first child.
Along with getting used to fatherhood, the singer began thinking about deeper questions that the demanding touring lifestyle had previously left little room to consider. His reflections on growing up, dealing with loss and understanding what success really means gradually found their way into his writing, eventually shaping the direction of the band's more personal new album.
Fans were first introduced to the album earlier this year through ‘Summer Rain’, an emotional track exploring postnatal depression and the “fear of the future”. They later returned during the summer with the more hopeful ‘Defibrillator’, encouraging listeners to move beyond negative thoughts about themselves and find comfort in connecting with other people.
Speaking to NME about the creative shift behind their fourth record, Cochrane explained: “By taking a conscious break from life on the road and making records, my world opened up to let so much more of the real world in,” he said. “For the first time I was living then writing, not writing while trying to live.”
He also described how the change helped the band approach recording differently, adding: “It unlocked a new process that the band had been crying out for,” he continued. “The studio sessions were set up to allow us to be friends and not colleagues. Distraction and external pressures were completely eradicated from the recording environment, allowing us to trust our gut and have the conversations we needed to as humans.”
In the remainder of the interview, Cochrane also discusses his new role as an ambassador for mental health charity CALM and talks about starting a podcast designed to encourage more artists to speak honestly about their personal struggles.
NME: Hi Jack, congratulations on the new album. You’ve said that this record was about addressing the topics that you previously tried to hide from. What kinds of questions did you find yourself confronting?
Jack Cochrane: “I would say mainly, ‘What do I need to be happy?’… Eeek! It’s a big one I know, but having set out with the title ‘Joy In Short Moments’, I was able to spend my time searching for them and allow joy to do what joy does: compound and relieve the stresses of the modern world.”
That’s not the easiest question to find yourself confronting. Did you manage to find any answers along the way?
“Ultimately yes. With the completion of this record I was able to find a much happier healthier version of myself I had been so long yearning for.”
The album sees you deal with new themes, but musically we also see you return to the guitar-led sound from your early days. Did revisiting those roots make you notice how much has changed since you were starting out?
“For sure. We were able to remove any snobbery from the process. We’re no longer new kids on the block and with that came a new found ability to be really honest about the kind of noises we wanted to make and the type of artists that had originally inspired us.”
This album goes hand in hand with you becoming an ambassador for CALM and launching your own podcast dedicated to checking in with fellow artists. Why was it important for you to get involved in the conversation about mental health?
“I think conversations and role models are absolutely essential for young people. I wanted to have more and do my best to be one. Every song on this record was born out of unfiltered, open and honest conversation.”
From talking to people on your podcast, including Louis Tomlinson, and using your platform to open up this dialogue, is there anything interesting that you’ve noticed?
“I think that more often than not, young men are finding it difficult to combat the struggles they are facing in this modern world. To me it feels like there are less and less spaces and opportunities to have meaningful, healing conversations…”
Having had those conversations yourself and explored them on the album, it must be somewhat daunting to now put it out into the world. Is there something that you hope people take from it?
“I’d like people to feel less alone after hearing the record and the themes intertwined with it. I think music is more than just heartbreak and I hoped in the writing of this record I would be able to highlight some more universally relevant topics.”
You have your headline tour coming up next month. What can we expect from the shows?
“Big smiles and big sound all round! It will be the most self assured Snuts tour to date.”
‘Life In Short Moments’ is out now Happy Artist Records in partnership with Virgin Music Group. Their UK and Ireland tour kicks off next month with an opening night in Dundee. Visit here for tickets and check out a list of tour dates below.
NOVEMBER 2026
19 – Dundee, Livehouse
20 – Aberdeen, Beach Ballroom
21 – Edinburgh, Corn Exchange
23 – Dunfermline, Alhambra Theatre
24 – Newcastle, O2 City Hall
26 – Sheffield, Octagon Centre
27 – Nottingham, Rock City
29 – Norwich, UEA
30 – Hull, City Hall
DECEMBER 2026
1 – Bristol, Prospect Hall
3 – Leeds, O2 Academy
4 – Manchester, O2 Victoria Warehouse
8 – Birmingham, O2 Academy
9 – Portsmouth, Guildhall
10 – London, O2 Academy Brixton
JANUARY 2027
26 – Belfast, Limelight
27 – Galway, Róisín Dubh
28 – Dublin, Academy
