Alexandra Artourovna Yatchenko[1] (Russian: Александра Артуровна Ятченко; born March 11, 1995[2]), known professionally as Sasha Alex Sloan (previously Sasha Sloan), is an American singer-songwriter.[3][4] Her debut album, Only Child, was released on October 16, 2020. It was met with critical acclaim by music critics, deeming it as a solid and outspoken debut album. Sloan's second studio album I Blame the World was released on May 13, 2022.
Sasha Alex Sloan | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Sloan in concert in Paris in 2021. | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Alexandra Artourovna Yatchenko |
| Also known as | Sasha Yatchenko, Sasha Sloan |
| Born | March 11, 1995 Boston, Massachusetts, U.S. |
| Genres | Indie pop |
| Occupation(s) |
|
| Years active | 2015–present |
| Labels |
|
| Website | sadgirlsloan |
Life and career
1995–2014: Early life and background
Sloan grew up in South Boston and taught herself to play on a piano her mother purchased when she was five.[5][6][7] Her grandparents lived in Siberia, Russia, and she spent summers on their farm there as a child.[3] Her maternal grandparents were both born and grew up in South Boston. Sasha spent a lot of time with them in Maine.
After graduating from high school, she went on to study at the Berklee College of Music.[8] When she got back home one day, she noticed that her parents had written the word "DORK" next to her room at their house. Sloan posted the photo on Reddit, which quickly became viral. Taking advantage of this opportunity, she pasted a link to her SoundCloud under the post. Soon enough, she was approached by Warner Chappell Music to sign a publishing deal.[9]
Sloan was 19 years old at this point and following the deal, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career as a songwriter; she worked at a coffee shop to support herself.[6] She made her US national TV debut on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on February 6, 2019.[10]
2015–2017: Beginnings
In 2015, Sloan was featured in the song "Phoenix" by Kaskade, as well as being credited for songwriting. Sloan continued her career by writing for artists including Idina Menzel, Maggie Lindemann and Camila Cabello.In 2017, Sloan was featured in the song "This Town" by Kygo, which she also cowrote.
2018: Sad Girl and Loser
Her debut EP, Sad Girl, was released by RCA on April 18, 2018.[11]
She co-wrote Juice WRLD's single "Black & White", which was released on May 23, 2018, and appeared on his debut studio album Goodbye & Good Riddance.
Her second EP, Loser, was released by RCA on November 29, 2018.[12] On the same day, she announced her first headlining tour to support the album. Her single "Older" from the album was performed on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on February 6, 2019.
2019–present: Self-Portrait, Only Child and I Blame The World
Sloan released her third EP Self-Portrait on October 18, 2019. She stated that "this EP is more about being OK with the fact that I have a lot of anxiety, and that I don’t want to go to parties."[13]
Self-Portrait played an important role in her music career by allowing her to unapologetically represent herself and create songs that her fans can connect and relate to; the EP deals with themes such as anxiety, depression, and uncertainty.[14]
On April 3, 2020, Sloan released the single "I'll Wait" produced by Kygo for his album Golden Hour. The following day, a music video was released starring American couple Rob Gronkowski and Camille Kostek containing personal footage of their life together.[15]
On August 3, Sloan announced that her debut album Only Child would be released in the fall,[16] with the lead single "Lie" released on August 7.[17] On August 25 she released the song "House With No Mirrors" as the second single from her debut album.[18] On August 28 she announced that her debut album Only Child would be released on October 16.[19]
On November 17, Sloan announced a collaboration with singer/songwriter Charlie Puth, a song called "Is It Just Me?", which would be released on November 19, 2020.[20][21]
On April 22, 2021, Sasha teamed up with country superstar Sam Hunt to release an acoustic-driven song titled "when was it over?" that finds Hunt and Sloan in a post-breakup state of misery questioning the cause of their respective romantic splits.[22] Sloan said that the track is about not being able to let go of someone even when you know there's nothing left.[23] The song was co-written with Shane McAnally who came up with the song's title.[23] Other co-writers include King Henry and Emi Dragoi.[24]
On May 13, 2022, Sloan released her second studio album I Blame The World. [25] During her interview with Billboard, she described what she perceives to be the biggest difference between Only Child and I Blame The World: "I would say Only Child was a collection of songs I really liked but there wasn’t a cohesive theme. With I Blame The World, I made a conscious effort to create a world in which all the songs made sense together."[26]
On March 27, 2023, Sloan announced on her socials that she is now an independent artist; confirming her departure from major label RCA Records.
Sloan was part of the lineup for the 22nd Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April 2023.[27]
In 2024, Sloan participated in season 5 of the Chinese variety show, Sisters Who Make Waves, however she dropped out due to health issues.
Personal life
Discography
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Studio albums
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Only Child |
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| I Blame the World |
|
| Me Again |
|
Extended plays
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Sad Girl |
|
| Loser |
|
| Self Portrait |
|
Singles
As lead artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GER [31] | US Bub. [32] | NOR [33][34] | NZ Hot [35] | SWE [36] | ||||
| "Ready Yet"[37] | 2017 | — | — | — | — | — | Sad Girl | |
| "Runaway"[38] | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Normal"[39] | 2018 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Fall"[40] | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Ready Yet" (San Holo Remix)[41] | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | ||
| "Hurt"[42] | — | — | — | — | — | Sad Girl | ||
| "Here"[43] | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "The Only"[44] | — | — | — | — | — | Loser | ||
| "Faking It"[45] | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Chasing Parties"[46] | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Older"[47] | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Thoughts"[50] | 2019 | — | — | — | — | — | Self Portrait | |
| "Dancing with Your Ghost" | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "At Least I Look Cool"[51] | — | — | — | 31 | — | |||
| "Smiling When I Die" | — | — | — | 38 | — | |||
| "I'll Wait"[52] (with Kygo) | 2020 | 89 | 7 | 9 | — | 28 | Golden Hour | |
| "Lie"[54] | — | — | — | — | — | Only Child | ||
| "House with No Mirrors"[55] | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Is It Just Me?" (solo or featuring Charlie Puth)[56] | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Hypochondriac"[57] | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "When Was It Over?" (featuring Sam Hunt) | 2021 | — | — | — | 8 | — |
| Non-album single |
| "Barcelona" (with Winnetka Bowling League)[58] | — | — | — | — | — | Pulp | ||
| "WTF" | 2022 | — | — | — | — | — | I Blame the World | |
| "I Blame the World" | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "New Normal" | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Adult" | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Highlights" | 2024 | — | — | — | — | — | Me Again | |
| "Me Again" | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released. | ||||||||
As featured artist
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NZ Hot [59] | SWE Heat. [60] | |||
| "Falls" (ODESZA featuring Sasha Alex Sloan) | 2017 | A Moment Apart | ||
| "Love Runs Out" (Martin Garrix featuring G-Eazy and Sasha Alex Sloan) | 2021 | 14 | 1 | Non-album single |
| "Hero" (Alan Walker featuring Sasha Alex Sloan) | 2023 | Non-album single | ||
Other charted or certified songs
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NZ Hot [61] | ||||
| "Only" (with NF) | 2019 | 26 |
| The Search |
Songwriting credits
Tour
| Date | Place | Country | Venue | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| February 10, 2018 | Las Vegas, Nevada |  United States | The Bunkhouse | [80] |
| February 11, 2018 | Phoenix, Arizona | Crescent Ballroom | [80] | |
| February 13, 2018 | West Hollywood, California | The Roxy Theatre | [80] | |
| February 15, 2018 | Santa Ana, California | Constellation Room | [80] | |
| February 16, 2018 | San Francisco, California | Swedish American Hall | [80] | |
| February 18, 2018 | Seattle, Washington | The Crocodile | [80] | |
| February 20, 2018 | Salt Lake City, Utah | Urban Lounge | [80] | |
| February 21, 2018 | Denver, Colorado | Globe Hall | [80] | |
| February 22, 2018 | [80] | |||
| February 24, 2018 | Austin, Texas | The Parish | [80] | |
| February 25, 2018 | New Orleans, Louisiana | Gasa Gasa | [80] | |
| February 27, 2018 | Atlanta, Georgia | Terminal West | [80] | |
| February 28, 2018 | Nashville, Tennessee | The Basement East | [80] | |
| March 2, 2018 | Carrboro, North Carolina | Cat's Cradle | [80] | |
| March 3, 2018 | Washington | U Street Music Hall | [80] | |
| March 6, 2018 | Toronto, Ontario |  Canada | Adelaide Hall | [80] |
| March 7, 2018 | Buffalo, New York | United States | Town Ballroom | [80] |
References
Further reading
- Cragg, Michael (April 14, 2018). "One to watch: Sasha Sloan". The Guardian. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
- Johnston, Maura (July 5, 2018). "From songwriter to singer, Southie's Sasha Sloan is finding her own voice". Boston Globe. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
- "Sasha Sloan Takes A Unique Approach on EDM in New Single, "Runaway"". Medium. December 29, 2017. Retrieved October 29, 2018.