- May 2, 2024
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Sadie Martin showcases her original music when performing at local venues. Photo by Emma Brugna
Sadie Martin plays "Creep" by Radiohead at Fugu Sushi on Sunday, Oct. 8. Photo by Emma Brugna
Sadie Martin began playing guitar at 15. Photo by Emma Brugna
Father Lopez High School senior Sadie Martin is making local restaurants her newest stage.
Sadie, 17, has been passionate about performing since her debut in first grade in her school's holiday musical. Now, as an aspiring singer-songwriter, she's performing gigs throughout Ormond Beach.
Originally from Orlando, Sadie — whose stage name is Sadie Martini — is finding opportunities to pursue music. Transitioning from a heavily arts focused school, Sadie, of Ormond Beach, realized there was a need at Father Lopez for the performing arts. This inspired her to form a music club on campus where they sing at mass, as well as at local nursing homes.
Singing has always been prevalent throughout Sadie’s life.
“My first solo ever was when I was 6 and I haven’t left the stage,” Sadie said.
When she first picked up a guitar at the age of 15, she began to write songs.
Sadie uses songwriting as a creative outlet to channel her emotions. As someone who writes poetry often, once she composes a melody, the lyrics come easy to her, she said.
“My songwriting is a huge form of stress relief for me," Sadie said. "Writing music is my way of saying exactly what I want to say to people without any permanent strain on my relationships. It’s essentially my version of writing a note to someone, crumpling it up, and never giving it to them, but instead I end up with closure and a new addition to my setlist.”
Aside from her original songs, Sadie also enjoys performing covers, typically from bands that inspire her work.
“I don’t think I’ve played a single set without at least two or three Radiohead songs in there,” Sadie said.
She is able to put her own creative twist on any song she sings, allowing her to make it her own, said her mother, Carrie Martin.
“She puts such a spin on them because she has a certain type of voice,” Carrie Martin said. “I forget what the original sounds like.”
Sadie’s first appearance was at Beach + Vine located in Ormond-by-the-Sea in June. The business was in search of a younger performer to draw in a new crowd, so after discovering Sadie was looking for gigs, they invited her to play at the wine and coffee bar. She received immense support from the crowd, specifically during her cover of "No Surprises" by Radiohead, and was later reached out to by Fugu Sushi to play two back-to-back gigs.
The first gig Sadie played at Fugu Sushi allowed her to see how supportive her community would be with her music career.
“It’s been so crazy how some of these people just embrace the music that I write,” Sadie said. “It’s pretty unbelievable.”
Before beginning her solo career, Sadie was a member of a metal band in need of a bassist. However, soon after quitting that band, Sadie decided it was time to take center stage and play her own original music.
No matter what she is performing or who she is performing it with, Carrie Martin said it was easy to see from a young age that her daughter was meant to be on stage.
“In preschool, she was chosen to sing this solo for the preschool graduation and I just saw her face on stage,” Carrie Martin said. “It was like she was born for the stage.”
Currently, Sadie is working on recording and producing her favorite original song to play live, "We Like the Old You." After stumbling upon an old birthday card written to her by a friend in eighth grade, Sadie was reminded of the changes she had undergone during the summer between seventh and eighth grade.
“At that time I began the transformation into the person I am now, and I think my sudden reinvention and attitude shift really frightened some of my friends,” Sadie said. “I immediately got to work drafting a song based on the note, and I thought that it would be even more interesting if I wrote it from her perspective. I actually used a great deal of what she wrote to me word-for-word, and I'm happy to confirm that she loves the song as much as I do.”
