Poppy Reid is in LA with one of the most groundbreaking artists in dance music: VASSY. Kicked out of her school choir for not having the “right voice”, VASSY went on to defy expectations, clocking over 3 billion streams and becoming the first woman to win the EDM Icon Award.

In this intimate and wide-ranging chat, we revisit the decade-defining hits she wrote and sang, including “Bad” with David Guetta and “Secrets” with Tiësto, and unpack the real stories behind their creation.

We also dive into:

• Why VASSY stepped away from EDM to return to her jazz roots
• The hidden costs of success and early exploitation in LA
• What it means to be a female artist in a male-dominated genre
• How generative AI threatens songwriter incomes, and what can be done
• Her role as an advocate, mentor, and voice for creators’ rights

Multi-platinum artist VASSY joins us to go On The Record about the decade-defining EDM hits she created, including “Bad” with David Guetta and “Secrets” with Tiësto, her jazz roots, and the real-life challenges behind global success. 

📌 Episode Highlights

• 00:01:00 – Kicked out of school choir: turning rejection into fuel
• 00:10:00 – Starting from scratch in LA: surviving the hustle
• 00:18:00 – The making of “Bad”: meeting David Guetta
• 00:23:00 – “Secrets” and touring with Tiësto
• 00:33:00 – From EDM queen to BossAcoustics: returning to her roots
• 00:40:00 – How AI is threatening songwriters’ livelihoods
• 00:52:00 – Advocacy, inspiration, and defining success on her own terms