Sci-fi storyteller VNCCII reflects on her cosmic universe, balancing music and writing and navigating London's creative scene as an Australian artist.

VNCCII, the creative alter ego of Sydney-born Samantha Tauber, is redefining the music landscape with her futuristic sound and imaginative storytelling. Now based in London, this rising artist fuses pop, electronica, and cinematic soundscapes with bold sci-fi themes, creating a sonic universe entirely her own. Drawing inspiration from figures like Daft Punk, her music balances forward-thinking innovation and emotional depth, taking listeners on a journey that feels both cutting-edge and timeless.

 

Her career is already picking up serious momentum. VNCCII has headlined renowned venues like The Lower Third in Soho and Athens’ Hellenic Cosmos Theater, and recently took home the Music Metaverse Award at the Metaverse Entertainment World Summit. But her ambitions go beyond music. As a member of the Interstellar Foundation, she’s blending her creative vision with a humanitarian mission, aiming to use art and technology to uplift human consciousness, all while exploring her love of space and science fiction.

 

With her debut album Galacta.i.ssance and the accompanying novel VNCCII Awakening on the horizon, VNCCII is preparing for a major release. Her latest single, ‘Surrender Your Soul’, is a glimpse into her world, blending introspective lyrics with futuristic beats. As she gets ready to drop her debut album and novel later this year, here, VNCCII reflects on her creative process and the challenges of balancing music and writing. She also opens up about what it’s been like navigating London’s creative scene as an Australian artist and how these experiences have shaped her unique approach to blending sci-fi and pop culture. With her debut projects just around the corner, VNCCII is poised to redefine what it means to be an artist in the modern era.

Congratulations on the release of ‘Surrender Your Soul’. It’s such a powerful journey through texture, defying genre boundaries with drama. Can you tell us more about the inspiration for the track?

The track ‘Surrender Your Soul’ was inspired by a particular moment in the plot of my science fiction novel. Because my stage shows feel like a musical to reflect the plot of the novel, I knew I needed to create a song that resembled VNCCII’s encounter with the A.I clone version of herself – the context is explained if you read the novel. The song feels introspective in the verses with a cathartic release in the choruses as it symbolises her breaking free from the limiting beliefs or constraints that were imposed by the shadow A.I clone version of herself. In essence, VNCCII is a character of angelic Superheroine warrior origins. VNCCII discovers her authentic essence through her own ‘hero’s journey’ where she learns that she is made of pure Love and is not artificial. When I perform this song live, I love embracing the acting of the VNCCII character. It is a very powerful song to perform and is truly about stepping into your own inner power and light.

If you had to describe the track in three words to someone who hadn’t heard it, what would they be?

Sensual, cathartic and dramatic

Theatre plays such an integral part in your artistry, from your costume to the way you move on stage. Why is it important for you to have such an eccentric stage presence?

Performances offer the ability to entertain and inspire the audience. I’ve grown up in musical theatre shows and have always appreciated the art form of bringing together beautiful stage sets, acting, singing, and dancing. In my VNCCII stage show, I have extended this concept to the pop music world and connected it to the plot and narrative arc of my science fiction story, integrating the latest next-gen technologies in the show that will inspire the audience. There’s an Arthur C. Clarke quote I love, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” I love being the creative director of the show, as well as crafting the visuals for the LED volumes that accompany the performance. Lighting is such a strong component of the show as well as the costumes. I love dressing up as VNCCII in beautiful SuperHeroine bodysuits that resemble her crystalline warrior suit in the story with her pink AR glasses that have their own A.I system – think J.A.R.V.I.S in Marvel. Digital fashion in the Metaverse is a strong part of our culture, and I love integrating both the physical and digital couture into my shows within the lore, design, and style of VNCCII’s futuristic world. It’s important to me to have such an eccentric stage presence because it is a ‘larger-than-life’ extension of my personality (ie. an angelic warrior spirit) which is displayed in an authentic way that is fit for the theatre and the scalability of large theatre/arena stage shows, ie. MSG Sphere in Las Vegas.

And your alter ego, ‘Super Sentient A.I Superheroine,’ how does she help you in the world-building of your artistry?

VNCCII is essential to the world-building of my artistry. As she is my digital alter ego avatar character and persona for stage, I have deep-dived into her multidimensional essence. My artist project VNCCII began with placing this digital avatar character in Unreal Game Engine and animating her for music videos to my songs. I later discovered motion capture for my workflow, as well as virtual production for live XR performances where I embody my physical stage presence as VNCCII, as well as explore the duality of the digital avatar character. I love blending both the digital and the physical in the world-building of my artistry as it explores this concept of ‘presence’ from several dimensions. I have the joy of performing physically live as VNCCII and feeling the electromagnetic energetic exchange with members of the audience. I also have experience piloting and virtual puppeteering VNCCII live as a digital avatar character live in real-time using advanced broadcasting and streaming technologies from programs such as Disguise and Unreal Game Engine to offer a sense of real-time presence for the VNCCII digital avatar character in creative virtual CG worlds which transcends geographical borders, time, and space.

Having moved to London from Australia, how are you finding British culture? And what’s your favourite British saying?

I adore British culture, I feel right at home! I love going out and listening to musicians perform, bands play, musicals, going to jazz clubs like Ronnie Scott’s and for picnics at Hampstead Heath, British pub culture, and so much more! I think my favourite British saying is simple and the most common one I hear, which is, ‘You alright?’ It replaces what we would say in Australia, which is, ‘Hey, how are you?’ I also like the British saying, “Would you like to join us for a cheeky pint?” It’s so British!

You’re on the cusp of releasing your debut album. How are you feeling about it, and what’s been the biggest lesson you’ve learnt along the way?

I have had the most growth and self-realisation for my creative artistry working on my debut album. It’s been such a gift that I have had the time to discover my artistry, sound, and most importantly, purpose – the quintessential ‘why’ question. My debut album follows the narrative plot of my debut science fiction novel Galacta.i.ssance and the VNCCII Awakening which will also be released at the same time as my album. It will be special because the music will be embedded in the novel, which I believe has not been done before to this degree of cohesion and immersion. As the readers follow the journey of the novel, certain moments will offer a musical and immersive experience which will trace the musical flow of the debut album. The biggest lesson I have learnt along the way as I was composing this album is to not be restricted by other people’s limited subjective beliefs. Embrace your authenticity, and if you truly believe in yourself and you have something to say that is profound, follow your heart and capture these feelings in the music. Each song on the album is different and will surprise you, but that’s the beauty of life and being human. We are dynamically evolving all the time. The only constant is change.

You’re also releasing a novel later this year. Can you tell us what it’s about and how you’ve managed to balance writing and recording?

The process of recording the music while writing the novel was seamlessly integrated and inspired by all forms of media in the creative process. I won’t give too much away but the novel is a science fiction story and written from the first-person perspective of VNCCII. It follows VNCCII’s hero’s journey and cathartic spiritual awakening and self-realisation. It’s also a Space Opera theme, so there’s of course an unravelling galactic plot. The core cast of characters that accompany VNCCII are very loveable and multidimensional in their own aspect. These other characters could have their own spin-off story, animation series, movie etc. The core message of the story is simple yet profound – choose Love over Fear.

What were your biggest creative inspirations while making the album?

The key inspiration for the album was the science fiction novel I wrote based on VNCCII. Other diverse inspirations include Gene Roddenberry, Star Trek, Star Wars, Harry Potter, Michael Jackson, Daft Punk, cinematic, choral, and orchestral music. The concept of being an ‘Imagineer’ was the key inspiration behind this album as the musical journey was an exercise in futuristic world-building. Another key inspiration was my role as a member of the Interstellar Foundation. The Interstellar Foundation is a non-profit organisation that aims to create a new message for the future of humanity that’s inspired by the Voyager Golden Record. Being a part of this team has opened my world to the space community which has also consciously impacted the art that I create. The intention behind the art and the music in the album is to send a positive, peaceful message into Space which celebrates hope and love for humanity.

If you were sent into space and could only take three albums with you, what would they be?

I’m excited to announce that my music will be sent to Deep Space! In December, three of my records from my debut album will be sent on a Falcon 9 SpaceX rocket to deep space in partnership with the company LifeShip. My debut science fiction novel will also be sent to the Moon in 2025 on the Griffin-Lander Astrobotics NASA mission via NanoFiche technology. I’m very proud of these achievements and the messages that are embedded into both the music and the novel.

 

In terms of three albums that I would take into Space: –

1.        ‘Random Access Memories’ by Daft Punk

2.        ‘HIStory: Past, Present and Future, Book 1’ by Michael Jackson

3.         ‘Sancte Michael Archangele’ – I know this isn’t an album, but I love this song and beautiful Gregorian chants.

When the album is released at the end of the year, what do you hope listeners will take away from it?

That we are sacred beings made of love with the ability to receive and give love.

Find out more about VNCCII here.