SASH made his Ukrainian concert debut in July 2018 at the Plajnik Beach Club in Odessa, Ukraine. It was a homecoming of sorts for the Ukrainian-American who, while growing up, spent many summers visiting friends and family in Odessa.
How did the concert go? Sash says it was a perfect night: “A huge crowd turned out, and many didn’t know what to expect. They were into the whole set. It opened their eyes to my music, and I won new fans. People were excited to experience fresh, American music from someone who spoke their language.”
A city that’s also a popular resort, Odessa boasts a large club scene, with many venues on or near the beach. Plajknik Beach Club is among the top clubs and the stage opens onto one of Odessa’s most popular beaches. Sash and a DJ pushed the club’s state-of-the-art sound system to the limit during Sash’s set and encore.
The club’s owner invited Sash to perform after a mutual friend shared several tracks. Impressed, the club owner asked Sash to perform with a DJ at Plajnik. With just a few ads and fliers around Odessa, the concert came together with little promotion—but still attracted a crowd. Sash performed tracks including 2017’s “Libido” and the recently released “Try You.” He also performed tracks from his upcoming album.
“We had a great audience with very little promotion,” says Sash. “The club owner invited me back, and expects an even bigger night with more advance promotion.”
Local radio personalities from Odessa’s Pozitiv FM attended the show. They invited Sash to visit them at the station for an interview a few days after the concert. Sash joined them in the radio studio for a wide-ranging interview in Russian, a language Sash speaks fluently. The interview covered Sash’s personal history and musical influences.
“We connected during the interview,” says Sash. “My music is smooth-trap, but it was influenced by the music I heard in Odessa as a child. Not everyone speaks the same language, but music brings people and influences together—music transcends language. It definitely does for me. My Ukrainian and American roots exist side-by-side in my music.”
He adds, “I’m excited to go back and perform in the Ukraine again soon. I’ll have a new album to share with my fans in Odessa and beyond.”
