Creams: ‘My Number One icon is Patti Smith…’

Bursting onto the scene with the required amount of energy to break free of the shackles of 2021, Creams is here to save us all. Singer, writer, producer, Creams is a one-woman show who ‘cannot imagine doing things any other way.’ Her new Sleep on Me EP dropped last month and we’ve been slow-grinding in our room ever since.

Loverboy catches up with Creams to discuss life in Tblisi, how music is genderless and her love for Patti Smith. 

Hello Creams, where are you zooming us from?
Right now I’m based in Tblisi but my next stop after Covid will probably be Berlin. Today I’m chilling but it’s impossible to really chill in Georgia because it is so small and politically active! There is always something going on. I don’t even have a TV but I know all the fucking news from just opening my door. The country is so small, you become involved in everything. If people are protesting against a new law, you should join them because the next law could be against you.

What are people currently protesting about?
Right now there is a Georgian rapper called Bara and he is the son of our former Prime Minister, a Russian oligarch. Bera has been harassing kids at school because they had been leaving negative comments on social media about his music! Then my friends started posting stuff like, ‘Oh my God, what a dickhead’ and then my friend had the police calling them up! You are literally pulled into things here in Georgia.

Wow. Well we are here to discuss your excellent Sleep on Me EP.
Thank you. The response has been great which has been surprising considering how many things people have going on right now like Covid, quarantine, mental health issue in general!

People always need music. You produced this EP by yourself. How did you get into producing? 
I studied writing music when I was fourteen, just with acoustic instruments, but I started learning to produce like four or five years ago. I learned Ableton in two days because I needed to put down a song and there was no other way! Back then I had no idea producers wrote songs for other people. It’s so strange. I cannot imagine doing it any other way than by yourself. I enjoy being involved 100%, putting down the bass then the chorus and a bridge and just living your life! Why not enjoy every part of the process? You need to just take your time and do something slowly. It’s like butter!

Do you have a network of female producers you talk with?
When it comes to music, I don’t like to differentiate between genders because it’s a sound world. We have this really small community and so many different types of people. Some are boys, some are girls, some sample, some don’t, some are doing I don’t know what! It doesn’t matter as long as it sounds good!

I know the visuals are really important for you too right? 
Yes, I’m a very visual person and if I am ever struggling to finish a song, I start to imagine how the music video for it might look and that helps me finish writing the song. The music videos for the Sleep on Me EP have been shot by my very good friend Buba Beboshvili and I just trust him completely. I show him things I love and he just combines them all.

You’ve said you are inspired by people who take artistic control of their own destiny and rebellious tendencies. Who are we talking about? 
The first person I think of is Patti Smith, she is like my Number One icon. I discovered her when I was thirteen and was like, ‘Woah!’ Whenever I need a boost, I look at my favourite artists and I know I cannot stop doing what I am doing. It’s a rebellious act.

I hear you don’t have Spotify in Georgia?
No, we have Apple Music. It’s strange though because my friends are saying it comes through the Russian source, and no matter what you listen to, all your recommendations are Russian pop! You are just swimming in all these Russian pop songs!

What does Russian pop sound like?
You don’t need to know.

Got it. Lately we are named after the biggest-selling single of 2001 so we always ask, what is your favourite Mariah Carey son?
I’m a Nineties kid, I was born in 1995 so I remember Mariah Carey very well. ‘Emotions’ is my favourite but when I think about Mariah Carey, the Christmas sparkles just pop out! Every December it starts until the end of March! It’s the best. Is ‘All I Want For Christmas’ played in Georgia? Yes! I’m sure that track is played on Mars!

Creams’ Sleep on Me EP is out now
Instagram / Soundcloud / YouTube / Facebook