“Only Sixteen” is a nostalgic love song remembering a teenage breakup, which Benedict describes “Emo rap meets Adele.” The track is an English-language adaptation of the Italian trap song “Autostima” by the underground teen Napolitan-Roman duo Psicologi, that went viral and featured on the soundtrack of the hit Netflix show, “Summertime.” Sinister translated the lyrics and added a new final verse, which includes his trademark reference to other artists, in this case Cat Stevens. It’s his first adaptation of an Italian song, following the success of his English versions of songs by French master lyricists Serge Gainsbourg and Vincent Delerm.
The release reflects an increased interest in Italian music in the Anglo world, with the English version of “Italodisco” just released and the ascent of Italian rock Gods Maneskin. Benedict says, “I want to be a twenty-first century Laura Branigan”, citing the American singer who had hits in the 1980s with English versions of “Gloria” and “Ti Amo” by Italian superstar Umberto Tozzi.
“It’s an adaptation of an Italian song, and the original title would translate as “Self Esteem.” I decided to change it, not to avoid confusion with the British artist of that name, but to create confusion with the 1975 Dr. Hook hit “Only Sixteen,” written by Sam Cooke. I chose the same title to fuck with Spotify’s and YouTube’s algorithms, and aid discovery from the massive army of Dr. Hook fans.” BENEDICT SINISTER
“Only Sixteen” was recorded and produced in Los Angeles, where Benedict called on Nikola Bedingfield, whose album “Golden Phoenix” was released earlier this year. “Nikola was super helpful with guiding me on the final arrangement,” Benedict said. A remix titled “You Dance in the Club” by LA-based DJ and Looped Music label head Christian B will be released shortly.
A unique artist, Benedict is entirely focused on reinterpreting the work of others. “Today most people are all about originality, visibility, and authenticity. Those three words mean nothing to me – they are the antithesis of what I want to achieve. That’s why I refuse to show my face – to erase my identity.” Sinister’s contrarian message also led him to lose his social media accounts and have his videos taken down, thanks to “big tech censorship, hackers and haters.”
Sinister spent 20 years working as an itinerant musician and performed all over the world, from DJing at beach bars in Senegal to playing covers of The Smiths in Mexico and of Leonard Cohen in Japan. He started to attract attention after he moved to US and to hipster Brooklyn in 2018. The creative hub saw his immersion in the music of other artists lead him to start creating his own unique musical genre he terms “Adaptations.”
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