SAILORR reveals the hidden Easter eggs in ‘POOKIE’S REQUIEM’

SAILORR tells me she makes “songs that bad bitches cry to”. Can confirm: I didn’t cry. Alternatively, she describes her music as “songs that girls can run over curbs in their Nissan Altimas to”. Both work. Recent viral single “POOKIE’S REQUIEM” is the sound of a crash out, yes, but it’s a glorious crash out – one in which the Florida-raised singer fully commits to the mania, and still looks bad while she’s doing it.

The track is also incredibly addictive. Sitting somewhere between hip hop, RnB and musical theatre, it’s SAILORR’s storytelling that is the key draw here – sassy verses hitting walls of distorted synths before collapsing into bittersweet melodic choruses. It’s a sub-two minute deluge of sweet, sweet delulu and, true to her name, SAILORR’s rides these waves with ease.

And it’s not just the sonics that clearly sit close to her heart. In her From the Block performance, SAILORR sings through blackened grills as a troupe of gal pals in pink dresses perform a Vietnamese fan dance behind her. Elsewhere, her On the Radar Radio freestyle sees the singer perform while being suspended upside down as a foreboding anchor hangs in the background. Woven throughout these scenes, SAILORR explains, are odes to her first-generation Vietnamese upbringing in Florida, pointing yet again to an eye for storytelling that extends far beneath her beguiling surface.

With only three singles out to date, SAILORR has managed to make a pretty big impact. Below, she reveals her inspirations, break up advice, and the Easter eggs hidden in “POOKIE’S REQUIEM”.

Where did the name SAILORR come from?

SAILORR: My finsta used to be called @sailorg00n and I went by Sailor Goon for a long time because I grew up watching Sailor Moon with my cousins and sister. Everything I do is a nod to nostalgic experiences I’ve had before. But also, most of my family and the people I come from were sailors. It was a mass exodus of refugees that fled Vietnam by boat after the war and I always want to pay homage where I can.

There’s a pretty fascinating mix of hip hop, RnB and musical theatre-esque storytelling in your releases so far. What inspired this approach?

SAILORR: I hate to say it but I started out as an obnoxious, loud musical theatre kid in middle school. I spent a lot of time writing scripts and upstaging weak ass hoes since I was 11. I found my love for listening to music through my sister’s iPod nano that I would steal for my bus rides to school in the morning. When I write, I often draw inspiration internally first, then externally. Maybe it starts with a feeling, or a memory and then I’ll remember when a movie made me feel the same way. It’s all connected one way or another.

‘POOKIE’S REQUIEM’ is an absolute whirlwind of a song. It’s about a break-up, right?

SAILORR: Thank you, I felt like I was in an absolute whirlwind when I made it. I used that time in the studio as an opportunity to say my last piece to my ex after we went fully no contact. I was feeling very facetious and I wanted him to know that I knew he was talking to other girls without sending any paragraphs or overexplaining why he did me so dirt. Sometimes after breaking up with someone you realise how much of an influence they were in your life and, of course, it can be perceived in a literal sense with the music you shared, or the memes you sent, but it also is a reflection of all the new things you learned about yourself being with them. Yes, the song is a cry for help, but it’s also me reclaiming all that energy and time I poured into that relationship.

The live performances on From the Block and On the Radar Radio also took ‘POOKIE’S REQUIEM’ in yet more interesting directions. Could you break this visual direction?

SAILORR: I’m always trying to find ways to include Easter eggs and nods to my culture with everything I do. Growing up in the South and coming from an immigrant family shapes who I am as a person and I always want to exhibit that in everything I do. My grillz are black because my grandma’s teeth were dyed black – a customary beauty standard for Southeast Asian women to ward off bad spirits and signifies wealth. I think everything I do in life has been influenced one way or another by a woman of color, and it will always be women that run my world. I try my best to express who I am in various ways with my art and my appearance and only move with love and respect for those that came before me.

Similarly, what’s the story behind the anchor?

SAILORR: What else would you use to dock a boat? I’m a sailor.

Do you have an online obsession you can tell us about?

SAILORR: The kid on TikTok that is a mechanic, uses a lot of chapstick, and has that red-40 stare. Mixie and Munchie. Any rant that Thickneyy uploads. MoeMillionz talking about Aquaphor and Fentanyl. My algorithm was built brick by brick.

Who are the dream collabs?

SAILORR: Skaiwater, annonXL, SZA, Asha Imuno, Nali, Eem Triplin, Kali Uchis, Jill Scott, Cash Cobain, James Fauntleroy, Teezo Touchdown, 454, Frank Ocean, SahBabii, Erykah Badu, Fousheé, Bktherula, Tisakorean, Doechii, Thee Sacred Souls, and many, many, many more. 

Finally, do you have any break-up advice for us?

SAILORR: Fck btches get money, in no particular order.