Who is Sophie Xeon? Google Doodle celebrates late Scottish music producer SOPHIE

Also known as SOPHIE, the pioneering producer and DJ died in 2021 and is remembered for her critically acclaimed experimental pop and electronic music.

To celebrate her birthday, Google’s music video Doodle of the artist features her song Immaterial.

Who is Sophie Xeon?

Born in Glasgow on September 17, 1986, Sophie was raised in the city by her dad who introduced her to electronic and rave music through cassettes.

In a 2018 interview, she shared: “He bought me the rave cassette tapes before I went to the events and would play them in the car and be like, ‘This is going to be important for you.’”

From a young age, she attended music festivals and raves with the electronic and futuristic work of underground dance music appealing to her. As early as ten years old, she expressed an interest in dropping out of school to pursue a career as a music producer, something which her parents didn’t allow.

She spent her teen years experimenting with music and honing her skills. Her first job in music was as a wedding DJ, something which she had been asked to do by her half-sister, and then pursued for some time.

In the early 2000s she moved to Berlin, forming the dance pop group Motherland and playing shows in Germany and the UK. Then, moving into the 2010s, she was drawn to create music which was more futuristic sounding and fun which would lead to her releasing her 2015 compilation album PRODUCT.

While touring her own work, she continued to DJ as well as producing for other artists such as Charli XCX, Kim Petras, and Madonna.

But it was as she pushed to enter a new creative era that she embraced the more public side of her work, having mostly been shy of attention until the release of her music video for It’s Okay to Cry in 2017. She subsequently opened up about being transgender, eventually appearing more in public.

In 2018 she released her hyperpop album Oil of Every Pearl's Un-Insides. The experimental record saw Sophie become the first trans artist to earn a Grammy nomination for Best Dance/Electronic Album.

On January 30, 2021, it was announced that Sophie had died in Athens, Greece following an accident. The Scottish artist had been living there at the time, with many in the music industry expressing their condolences.

Included in her 2024 album BRAT, Charli XCX wrote the song So I about her relationship with Sophie, who she collaborated with on some her of biggest songs such as Vroom Vroom and Lipgloss.

Posthumous SOPHIE album to be released this month

Following her unexpected death, in June 2024 Sophie’s family confirmed that they would posthumously release her self titled album this year.

In a statement on Instagram, her family said: “When we, Sophie's family, took our first steps towards bringing this project to fruition we contacted the dear friends with whom she envisioned the album.

“We wrote, ‘We have been finding comfort in the music Sophie left us, it is a gift that we truly cherish as we try to find a way forward, with Sophie forever at the center of our worlds.’

“Sophie didn't often speak publicly of her private life, preferring to put everything she wanted to articulate in her music. It feels only right to share with the world the music she hoped to release, in the belief that we can all connect with her in this, the form she loved most. Sophie gave all of herself to her music. It's here that she can always be found.”

Co-produced by her brother Benny Long, SOPHIE will be released on Friday, September 27, 2024.

Four singles have been released so far, starting with Reason Why featuring Kim Petras and BC Kingdom, as well as tracks titled Berlin Nightmare, One More Time and Exhilarate.