If spreading Christmas cheer were a sport, Sophia Scott would be at the top of the leaderboard. The Colorado native, who recently released an upbeat version of “Winter Wonderland,” thrives during the holiday season. “We’re a big Christmas family,” she tells American Songwriter.
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After releasing “Last Christmas” last year and “Winter Wonderland” this year, Scott has hinted at plans for a full Christmas EP in the future, a further example of her passion for the holidays. And not to mention, she’ll be celebrating her birthday the day after Christmas—no wonder she holds a special place in her heart for this time of year.
Before hitting the slopes and heading back to Colorado for some last-minute Christmas shopping with Mom, Scott sat down with American Songwriter to talk about her Christmas release, family traditions, her favorite Christmas memory, and more holiday stories.
American Songwriter: We’re a few days away. Are you ready for Christmas?
Sophia Scott: No. I like to leave it till the last minute every year.
AS: Are you the one who goes out on Christmas Eve and starts their Christmas shopping?
SS: No, I’ll usually do the 22nd. I’m flying to Colorado. Also, my birthday is the day after Christmas.
AS: Oh, happy birthday.
SS: Thank you. So I’m a Christmas baby. But I’m from Colorado, and so my mom and I are going Christmas shopping on the 23rd.
AS: So you’re a Christmas baby. Tell me, do you get ignored when your birthday is right after Christmas? How is that?
SS: The thing is, I feel like most people would, but my parents and my family have been really good to me, and I feel like I’ve used it as an opportunity for my own benefit, where everybody is always in town at that point. So basically, I feel like everyone gets really sad when Christmas is over, and then it’s like, ‘We got one more day, so let’s keep the party going.’
AS: What are your plans for Christmas? Besides shopping on the 23rd.
SS: I’m flying home to Colorado, and I’m going to go skiing in Vail.
AS: You just recently released “Winter Wonderland.” Tell me about that and why you wanted to pick that song as a holiday release.
SS: Last year I did “Last Christmas,” the Wham! song, and it was a whimsical, pretty version. So this year, I wanted to do the opposite and do more of a jam band rock vibe. My producer and I sat through two hours of just listening to every Christmas song, trying to decide which one to do because I know all of them, but it’s tough to do it in a new, cool way.
AS: I love it; it’s rockin’. How did you decide to go with the version you have? What was that process?
SS: It’s very jam-bandy. Kind of. We just sat; he played a bunch of different guitar riffs. We messed with a bunch of different tempos. We sped it up quite a bit because you can do it so many different ways, which is cool. We went through about five different versions before we landed on that one. And then, once we had it, it was like we just knocked it out. It was in a day.
AS: Tell me about “Last Christmas,” which you recorded last year. Why did you choose that song?
SS: Because I love that song, and I actually, there was this one version of it that was on the show Glee a super long time ago, and I was obsessed with that version of it specifically. It’s just always been one of my favorite Christmas songs, but I wanted to do more of that version of it. And then I hybrid-ed my own version, I guess.
AS: Are you a Wham! fan?
SS: Oh, yeah.
AS: So, is there a Christmas album in the works that we’re looking at that?
SS: I would say I would maybe do a Christmas EP vibe, possibly three to five songs. I was just talking to someone the other day about how we need more original Christmas music. We need a new Mariah Carey album because all of those, a majority of them I think, are original songs, and they’re obviously the biggest.
AS: What are some of your traditions that you look forward to?
SS: My mom always has a Christmas Eve party. We usually go to afternoon mass down the street from my house. Usually, we have some eggnog before that. And then either my uncle will have a Christmas Eve party, or my mom will. At midnight, we always read ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas and take turns reading a page.
AS: Any memorable gifts that you can think of that you’ve either received in childhood or that you’ve given?
SS: Well, one year, we got a puppy (chocolate Lab). There’s really no better gift than that. It was in the box and the whole nine yards.
AS: What about meals? What do you guys cook when you’re at Christmas dinner?
SS: My mom started doing this, which is untraditional in a way. But she’s an incredible chef, and she started making stuffed jalapeno peppers with five different cheeses in them. And so she’s now taken on this whole Mexican cuisine for Christmas night, which is super random. But yeah, Feliz Navidad.
AS: What about a favorite Christmas memory you can think of?
SS: I was just talking about this literally a couple of days ago with my friend. I believed in Santa for entirely too long when I was, I don’t even want to say what age… like last year. No, no. But in middle school, I would say I was still believing. I’ve always been a big believer in magic, I guess.
My dad knew I was having doubts. It was in Colorado, one of the craziest white Christmases we’ve ever had. There were three feet of snow or something on the ground. And so it was super magical. When we were falling asleep, my dad got on the roof and was doing the jingle bells, and I remember being like, “Oh my God, he’s real. I knew it.” And then, in the morning, there were all these big boot marks walking up onto the roof and in the front. And I remember just being like, you can’t tell me otherwise. And it was a really good memory.
AS: What about your favorite Christmas movie?
SS: I really like The Grinch and The Holiday.
AS: What about a song? Do you have a favorite you have to listen to?
SS: Yeah, there’s a Luther Vandross song. It’s called “Mistletoe Jam.” It’s an OG. It’s so good. It’s fire.
Photo by Quinn Martin
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