Sofía Valdés Shares Ethereal New Single "Midnight Freak-Out"
Photo Credit: Olivia Parker and Parker Hao
Panamanian singer-songwriter Sofía Valdés shares the dreamy new single “Midnight Freak-Out,” out today via Warner Records. Crafted with acclaimed producer Michael Uzowuru [Rosalía, SZA, Frank Ocean], “Midnight Freak-Out” sets the stage for a momentous 2023 for Sofía, who is currently putting the finishing touches on her next project alongside Uzowuru and a team of today’s most in-demand collaborators. The moody track vividly expresses the isolation of being an immigrant in a new country and comes with a gorgeously shot video filmed mostly underwater, taking Sofía from a late-night bath into the vast deep sea.
With a weightlessness to the track, as if she hopes to turn her loneliness into nothing but a dream, “Midnight Freak-Out” was inspired by Sofía’s move to America at the height of the pandemic.
“I was new to the U.S. and I had a really hard time getting to know people because of the cultural differences and language barrier. Being an immigrant is not easy. Getting to know people starting from zero without any connections is no easy task. I found myself relying on unhealthy habits to feel less alone. I missed my family and my life in Panamá so much that I didn’t know why I was even here in the first place. Was all this suffering worth it when I could be back home with my family? Like a lot of artists, I turned to music to try and tell my story.”
Effortlessly balancing pop and poetic songwriting with sounds from her Latinx musical roots, “Midnight Freak-Out” is Valdés' first release of 2023, following last year’s emotional bedroom-pop gems “Heart of Glass” and “Broken” [feat. Pink Sweat$]. The singles—along with 2021’s acclaimed EPs ‘In Bloom’ and ‘Ventura’—have received a long list of critical acclaim from the likes of NPR, W Magazine, Interview Magazine, NYLON, Ones To Watch, and more for her beautifully original blend of bossa nova, folk, and pop. With “Midnight Freakout,” Sofía continues to expand on that sound while remaining boldly vulnerable in her words and delivery.