Dark pop songstress GILSKA is back with a new single. The Sri Lankan-British artist is closing out the year with a future-facing twist of the Christmas classic ‘Santa Baby’, unwrapping it from velvet and repainting it in a shade of glittering hyperpop.
Though the production points clearly towards a vibrating, synthesised, shadowy sound, it keeps some of the holiday season magic with bright keys crossing paths with more shuddering synth undertones. With the instrumental glitchy and shimmering, the percussion, when it arrives, hits with tight, energising breaks, as the vocals dart between silky soft and cut-up, pixelated bursts.
As the originals’ flirtatious, elegant sway becomes bolder, GILSKA is perhaps the only talent who could turn something originally for cosy fireplaces into flickering neon.
GILSKA shares, “I wanted to take something classic and turn it completely on its head. Santa Baby is iconic, but I felt it could shine in a new, chaotic, hyperpop world, full of distorted synths, glitchy vocals, and energy that makes it feel alive in 2025.”
The classically trained artist has found her feet in the past few years, striking a balance between pop lineage and club leanings. Pushing the edges outward whenever she gets the chance, she’s earned widespread praise across the world, even performing at Wembley Stadium for Voice in a Million. This ‘Santa Baby’ cover epitomises the playfulness and innovation of GILSKA’s work.
Listen below!
