Today, 17 September would have marked the 38th birthday of the late hyperpop pioneer.
To mark what would have been SOPHIE’s (real name Sophie Xeon) birthday today (17 September), Google has paid tribute to the late pop pioneer via a Google Doodle.
The search engine’s home page and logo has been changed to a neon rainbow coloured graphic, with an illustration of SOPHIE replacing the first ‘O’ in Google.
A short animated video of the Doodle has also been released, titled Celebrating Sophie Xeon, which sees SOPHIE take the form of a cloud, a heart and more, before closing with a depiction of her playing a Monomachine – the instrument she was most commonly associated with and helped shape the hyperpop sound. It’s soundtracked by her track Immaterial, taken from her debut and only album released during her lifetime OIL OF EVERY PEARL’S UN-INSIDES.
In a statement accompanying the Doodle, SOPHIE’s family wrote: “Music and the future were always at the centre of Sophie’s world. From a very young age Sophie was taken to music festivals and raves, and it was the electronic sounds and futuristic rhythms of mainly underground dance music that really appealed to her.
“As her love of electronic music continued to grow into her teenage years, she began to focus on her own experiments in music making. Especially drawn to synthesis, Sophie spent many years honing her skills; pushing the limits of what was possible, striving to create the shiniest, most metallic snares and the bounciest, bubbliest bass sounds,” they continued.
“The future has always been a big part of Sophie, and we hope Sophie continues to be a big part of the future. As always with Sophie, exactly what comes next and what shape it takes remains to be seen. One thing is for sure, there is a lot more still to come.”
The Doodle comes 10 days ahead of the release of her posthumous, final album. Self-titled SOPHIE, it is set to be released on 27 September via Transgressive and Future Classic.
Revisit our 2018 cover interview with SOPHIE here, and watch Celebrating Sophie Xeon below.
