She's an original Jersey Shore girl. She didn't need to GTL or puff-her-poof before taking the stage at the legendary D'Jais nightclub in Belmar, New Jersey. All she needed was great music and her loyal fans.
Kim Sozzi has always seemed to have a knack for that true Jersey Shore vibe. Growing up in Long Island, New York, and getting her start in the club scene, Sozzi is one of dance music's most-iconic vocalists. Through various projects, labels and collaborations, she has maintained her position as one of underground dance music's most-sought-after hitmakers, and after two years, is set to release her second studio album, the self-titled Kim Sozzi. While no official release date has been set, Sozzi assured MTV News that the album is complete and ready to go.
"It's totally different from my dance [music] and my previous singles," Sozzi said. "I wanted to do something a little more mainstream. Hopefully my dance fans are going to follow me over, but if not, I have plenty of classic Kim Sozzi songs on the album."
After releasing "Rated R," the album's first single, back in December, Sozzi is gearing up to release the second track, "Little Bird," a cover of the Annie Lennox classic.
"I love, love, love this record. It came out great," Sozzi gushed. "The guys from Beatport actually did the production. They did a killer job. This is definitely going to be a standout track on the album ... It's totally a song for the fans."
Produced by former Beatport staffers Brad Roulier and Shawn Sabo, known as Manufactured Superstars, "Little Bird" shows Sozzi at her best. With her distinctly sexy swagger and stunningly soulful vocal prowess accompanied by clean and crisp production from the Denver duo, this little birdie seems geared to fly up the charts.
Sozzi has been a magnet for producers since she burst onto the scene back in 2001 with the epic Sound Factory NYC anthem "Feelin' Me," produced by Hex Hector and Jonathan Peters. She was launched almost instantly on a path to chart success, becoming a go-to for dance producers and topping the Billboard dance chart several times.
In 2004, she joined the production quintet Mynt, which pumped out classic dance smashes such as "How Did You Know?" "Stay" and "Still Not Sorry." To the dismay of their fans, the group split up in 2006 amid what many speculated were creative differences.
"It's tough because when you're working with producers, it's a double-edged sword," Sozzi explained. "It's great because you have these built-in people working around the clock and playing and producing, but then you also have everyone wanting to be the star, so it's definitely a bit tricky.
"But luckily, since parting ways, we are all friends again, which is nice, but I always wanted to be a solo artist, so I'm happy we did it amicably. It sounds like a divorce, but it kind of was."
Rich "DJ Riddler" Pangilinan, a well-known DJ/producer and former Mynt member, shared a similar sentiment regarding the split, saying he's also glad the past is behind them.
"It's no secret that there were some differences in opinions on that project and some feelings were hurt on both sides," he said. "It took some time to mend those fences, however, we were friends before that project, and we stayed friends after.
"If there was one thing that I regret about that project it is that we never really got to do another album. I think that with what we both know now, we could come up with something very special."
Whether or not a Mynt reunion would ever be in the cards, Sozzi is keeping her eyes and ears open, always seeking to make moves and pair up with the hottest names in dance music.
"I would love to work with deadmau5, David Guetta. I'm a big fan of Kaskade; I've been trying actually to get Ryan to work on one of my tracks. There's so many great people doing great music and great tracks that I would like to work with."
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