As a solo project with a revolving door of members, the heart and face of
.
, use their common backgrounds as production-savvy musicians to make bombastic, bass-oriented songs that fuse punk, reggae, grime, and indie rock with electro. Tribal island rhythms merge with flavorful digital chirps and blips, culminating in an original sound that is comparable to
knockoff.
While showcasing her array of vocal styles at a
Stiffed show,
White was spotted by
Martin Heath, who made her an offer to record a solo record on Lizard King, the label responsible for the successful promotion of
the Killers. After failed attempts with a few mainstream pop producers,
White and
Hill (now calling the project Santogold) decided to pair up with a crew of like-minded musicians -- including
Freq Nasty,
Disco D,
Switch,
Spank Rock's
Naeem,
Xxxchange,
Steel Pulse guitarist
Clifford Moonie Pusey, and none other than
M.I.A. herself.
In only three weeks, the full-length
Creator was completed and scheduled for release in January of 2008, though it took until April for the album (retitled simply
Santogold) to actually hit shelves. She spent time supporting headlining acts ranging from Coldplay to Jay-Z for the rest of the year. Then
White decided to change the name of the project to
Santigold in early 2009 for reasons related to an impending lawsuit from wrestler and "personality"
Santo Gold. Although a follow-up under the new name was not immediately forthcoming, she kept busy featuring on tracks by N.A.S.A. (The Spirit of Apollo), Beastie Boys (Hot Sauce Committee, Pt. 2), and the Lonely Island (Turtleneck & Chain). She started recording solo again in January 2010. Once the dynamic sophomore follow-up was completed, the release date was delayed when she briefly joined and left Jay-Z's Roc-a-Fella Records, but eventually she signed with Atlantic Records, and Master of My Make-Believe was unveiled in April of 2012.
–
Jason Lymangrover, Rovi