‘Sense of ecstasy’, says Clara X Sofia, the Brazilian duo who opened 5 Coldplay concerts in the country

When they first sang together at a “little Thursday party,” Clara Campara AND Sophia Lopez little did he imagine that, a few years later, they would be responsible for it open five of the 11 shows that the Coldplay made in Brazil in 2023.

The duo, who introduce themselves as Clare X Sofiait was one of the highlights of the tour The music of the spheres on March 21 and 22 at the Estádio Couto Pereira, in Curitiba, and on 25, 26 and 28 at the Estádio Nilton Santos (Engenhão), in Rio de Janeiro.

“We only really realized when we got on stage,” says Sofia, 25. For her and Clara, 26, the invitation is the realization of a dream, but also a “certificate” of the work that the two have been doing since 2019, when they started producing original music.

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Trajectory

Before coming together to form a duo, Clara and Sofia were “Instagram singers,” as they joke. After they sang together for the first time, they were invited to perform at a friend’s party and they knew it worked ever since.

Born and raised in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, they spent a few years doing shows around the city until, in 2019, they started working on copyright projects. With the arrival of the covid-19 pandemic and a few years of “introspection”, the two started working on their biggest dream so far, which is to produce an album.

“We released our album having matured for a long time. I think there is no such thing as ‘perfect’, but [foi] for us to do it the way we believed and for us to get our message across to those who were listening,” says Sofia.

Clara explains that the duo already knew the sound of the album was going to be pop, but that the biggest challenge was finding a niche within that universe – that’s what they explored with the releases that came between 2019 and 2022.

Very inspired by big names in European pop, like Dua Lipa – which they call “our greatest reference in life” – but also in Brazilian artists, such as Marina Lima AND Marina Senathey created what they dubbed “bubblegum chic.”

“It’s super organic pop, where you see the presence of the band and the instruments,” explains Clara. Within this logic, the duo incorporated elements ranging from pop punk to bossa nova, and thus the album was born. None of this is for you.

According to Renata Gomes, director of marketing and digital strategies at Ingroove Brazil, the label that released the album, the work “has a complete narrative about love, the end and the beginning”. “The history of the album is intertwined with the history of the artists and of each of us human beings, prone to passions and disappointments,” says the executive.

invitation to the cold game

Luck or not, the confirmation that Clara and Sofia would open Coldplay’s concerts arrived on August 5, 2022, the day on which None of this is for you reached digital platforms. “It was a day marked forever in our memory,” says Sofia.

The first contact took place in 2021 through Live Nation, the production company that organized the British band’s performances in the country. “We put a lot of ‘face to face’,” comments the singer. “We’ve done everything you can imagine, because we believe it’s important, this is how you spread your word and how you showcase your work, so [o convite] came a lot for that.”

With the confirmation, the duo dove into rehearsals and due to the postponement of the shows, which were originally set to take place in October 2022, they’ve had nearly seven months to prepare for performances. “We started rehearsing like there was no tomorrow,” Clara jokes.

“There were months of preparation and understanding because, man, we want to live up to it, right? We were selected, but we want to offer the best of the best,” completes Sofia.

On Tuesday 21 March, and for the four shows that followed, Clara and Sofia faced the Coldplay audience and performed a 30-minute set of excerpts from None of this is for you and with some previously released songs.

“The feeling is pure ecstasy,” Sofia says of the show. “You have no idea exactly how many people are there, because it’s a lot of people, people mingle too, but you feel the energy even when the show is on.”

This energy, according to her, comes from the interaction between artists and audiences. “Coldplay’s audience is very special. By doing these five shows we could see that there is a common denominator there, which is that people are there to see the band, but are open to learning about other things,” she explains.

In addition to the public, the duo spares no praise for the group members themselves. “I think the behind-the-scenes story is this: We’ve never been treated so well in our lives,” Clara says. She says the musicians always asked themselves if they were comfortable and well.

“They are really compact with the message they convey in their shows,” Sofia points out. “I had this feeling of belonging, that we were part of a whole. They treated us with great affection.”

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Future of Clara X Sofia

Clara and Sofia’s participation in the Coldplay tour solidified something they already knew: what the duo enjoys most is singing live. For the future, this is what they want most.

“I hope we can build, through streaming and social networks, a connection with the audience so that we can have, more and more, rich shows like we have these days,” says Clara.

“It was a dream to be able to sing for a complete audience, who were there listening to our music, exchanging with us. That’s what we really want to do: be able to tour Brazil with the certainty that we will have this very nice exchange”, she completes singer.

Sofia says that, for this reason, they will continue to work “brick by brick”. The duo even have a pitch in front of them. Without revealing names, they say they will launch a partnership with a singer from Rio de Janeiro in April. “We are ready to attack,” Clara jokes. “Together”, echoes Sofia.

*Intern under the supervision of Charlise Morais

Source: Terra