Mimi Oz is a Canadian songstress with a highly experimental approach to making music. Evocative and playful Oz channels her energy back to 50s and 60s pop, mixed with jazz, gospel and even punk influences to make for an all encompassing and fresh sound that travels far and wide.
She has just released her new single 'Mariposa' part of her upcoming EP to be released this year, and it's everything aforementioned and more. A delicate verse transcends into a funk-soul-pop chorus that is punchy and catchy at the same time. We sat down with Mimi to learn more about her new single 'Mariposa' and what's next for her in 2023!
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Hey Mimi, welcome to FLEX! Your music is in quite a unique place, in the realms of power pop, soul and rock. Has this always been your calling sonically?
I find it hard to place myself in a genre, so it was refreshing to hear you place me within all of those, and I think it fits- thanks for that. When people ask me what kind of music I make I generally say I dabble in all of those genres, but my music sounds like Mimi Oz. Most recently I have been looking towards producing my work electronically, rather than band production so I think where this song went is just a result of working within a beat based studio with “Harrison Adams”, aka “Left Pop”.
Who are your main influences?
I can’t say I have influences, honestly. I had recently been inspired by Amber Ryann.
What is 'Mariposa' about?
Mariposa is about being in love with someone who is unavailable, to the point of being delusional. Maybe, just maybe you and that person exist somewhere, at some point in time, but not in this reality. The song explores that possibility but the chorus is still tainted with reality, “Why can’t I touch you, why can’t I?”.
Stream 'Mariposa' in full here:
What do you want people to take away from this EP?
Honestly I want people to have fun, and explore their emotions. I’m never quite sure what people take from music, so that’s a hard one and I would imagine different for everyone. I definitely want to reintroduce myself and redefine my sense of direction, in terms of sound and production. This would be my second release since the pandemic and first time venturing off into electronically produced music and I had a lot of fun. “Left Pop” added some of his own performances and analog sounds throughout.
And finally, what is in store for Mimi Oz in 2023?
My EP will also be coming out over the summer so I can’t wait for that. I’m also getting back into the studio-without a band to explore new song ideas and maybe have something out for the fall- who knows no pressure. I’m really trying to put out music with intention rather than just pump out material.