From being the Dapettes to being Saun & Starr, how did that transition happen?

Starr: Well we were quite fine at that point. We sang background, we were a part of the family. And it was really the fans that requested: “We need to hear more of you guys. Do you have a record out?” And they would always ask Saundra and I this question when we would go out and sign [autographs] with Sharon. It was that bond and that connection—they really loved that we were very open and responsive to that. So we’re looking at each other like, “Oh, wow.”

Saun: Gabe and Neal [Sugarman], too, they started to hear buzz from the audience and from people, and I guess they tossed the idea around and approached us about three years ago about it, about doing our own record. And we were like, “Seriously?” It was scary. Because we were fine—we don’t have like crazy egos, and we really enjoy singing backing vocals for Sharon. We always talk about the bird’s-eye view that we have where we’re perched on the backup mics.

Starr: Yes we do. It’s a beautiful bird’s-eye view. When Sharon gives and the audience receives, then the audience gives back to her, and the band is responding, we just come in.

Saun: We get to see it all. So when they asked us to do the record, they said it’s gonna take some time, but we just want to know if you all are cool with it. Do you even want to do it? And we were like, you know, if you all wanna do it, great, but we’re fine here doing background. We knew Daptone could record whoever they wanted to, so we were just always in shock. Like, is this happening right now? And then they were like, let’s just start recording. And in between the time we were on tour, and I think a little after Sharon got sick, we started working on the single, which is “Hot Shot/Gonna Make Time.” Around that time, the conversation about us actually doing our own thing was talked about more, because the future of Sharon’s life was in jeopardy. We were all worried about her, but I think Daptone, in their own way, wanted to make sure me and Starr weren’t just caught out there by ourselves. Because, you know, we got bills, and we still loved to sing. They didn’t want to lose us and us go somewhere else. So they said, let’s do something and let’s look out for our own. So our record came about from a lot of different means, but mostly because I think they believed in us, and they believed in this project. For us, it’s just a dream come true—we never saw that coming. Sharon would always say to us, “You know, someday the guys are gonna approach you about doing your own thing, just get ready. I don’t know when, but they’re gonna definitely say something.” And we were like—

Starr: “Nah, that’s not gonna happen.” [Laughs]

Saun: “Whatever, we got your back, we’re good on the BGVs.” And then it just wound up happening.

Starr: So basically what you hear [on the album], it’s just introducing who we are. So many people who are fans of Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings are curious to know, “Who are those ladies? They make this sound great!”

Saun: We add a little bit of flavor, because they already sound great. We add a little seasoning. [Laughs] Because Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings, man, what a gig to have as a background singer, you know what I mean?

About the record, where did these songs come from? Are they ones you’ve been performing for a while, or were they written for the album?

Starr: “Hot Shot” and “Gonna Make Time,” that was definitely the primary one. But we had performed a few other songs just to see the response and how people liked it. And it was more than what we expected. So the album, it’s gonna be a treat to most people.

Saun: Some of the songs Gabe already had. He didn’t know what he was gonna do with them, or if he was ever gonna use them. But then when he started working with Starr and I, those wheels started to go around in his head, and he started pulling out tunes, then he wrote some of them—a lot of songs on the album were freshly-written. So really they came from different origins, but they were definitely hand-picked for Starr and I specifically. Some of the songs he already knew—“Starr, I’d like to to try this one, Saun I’d like you to try this one”—and some of the songs, we both tried them and saw who’s energy and voice did the song the most justice.

What is is like being a part of Daptone, especially with a band like the Dap-Kings backing you up, with that solid backbone to sing and perform over?

Starr: It’s a family.

Saun: Ooh, I feel like Amy Winehouse, in that you know you have quality musicians behind you who are attentive to what the singer needs. Like, Amy Winehouse really loved soul music, old school soul and hip-hop, and the Dap-Kings are in tune to that world. And Starr and I, we love all kinds of music—you could get Starr right now to sing you an opera, an aria, and you could get me right now to get my Frank Sinatra on till you tell me to shut up. With Daptone, it just feels good to know that you didn’t have to compromise yourself and sing into an autotune or anything. We actually were able to work with a band that respects where we come from as singers, and we didn’t have to compromise ourselves or change anything. We actually fit together like a puzzle. And on top of that, they’re fun, they’re not stodgy. They listen to us, they care about our opinion—it’s a dream come true for a singer. So we feel really blessed to be here—we always pinch ourselves. I know it sounds corny, but we’re in shock.

Starr: That’s the truth. It’s like sitting in a musical family. It’s an extension of your personal family, but all musically-inclined. So when you wake up in the morning, before you go to sleep at night, and when you nap, that’s all you know and hear and are around—music.

Saun: And we have our own house—the Daptone House of Soul. We tour crazy, and we have our business office, and everybody in the office is family, so you’re right in touch with your record label—there’s no disconnect. Like, if you’re downstairs recording and you wanna go up and say hey, what’s going on with this, what’s going on with that? And they’re free to talk to you. And we love it when everybody’s in town, because Gabriel moved to California, and Neal was in Switzerland for a hot minute with his family—he couldn’t take it no more, he was like, “I can’t be away from Daptone like that.” But we have amazing times when everybody’s in town, like Dave Guy off the Fallon show, he’ll come through and we’ll start recording, brainstorming, talking, hanging out, eating. It’s just a storybook. I hope one day somebody does a movie about it, because that story should be told.

And we’re really happy to be the two ladies, two additions to Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings and the Dap-Kings family. It’s just so crazy that it happened and that we’re here. So, as the Saun & Starr project, when you see us onstage, that’s what you see. You see our bewilderment—not in a bad way. [Laughs]

Starr: It’s in a great way. And usually some of the fans, they catch that and love seeing us in awe—because we’re in awe of them and their response, looking at Sharon and the guys gel together onstage. And it’s magical, and we’re absolutely in the middle of all the magic.

Saun: Don’t we sound like two little girls at Christmastime? [Laughs]

Starr: Like, can we just quickly unwrap this present? I wanna open this one next! [Laughs]

Saun: There’s just so much coincidence that happened to bring us from where we were as teenagers and young adults meeting each other, to this point. We know that it’s not by accident. And that’s a part of the magic of our set—it’s not like two girls thrown together. There’s a rich history there between Starr and I, and that includes Sharon Jones. So when we’re up there, we’re representing Daptone, and we have gratefulness in our hearts. We really love our fans, because they champion us every step of the way. We have fans, friends and all of that, and we’re just as excited for them as we are for ourselves. So it’s gonna be quite the ride.

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