ROBY brings a legit vibe that mixes Pop and a bunch of electronic music textures in his 6-track EP, ‘vividity.’ So, if you’re into artists who push boundaries and explore innovative approaches to their productions, then you gotta dive right into this exclusive interview.
1 — You wear many hats as a producer, singer, and songwriter. Who is ROBY at his core and what truly fuels your desire to share your art with the world?
I started the ROBY project as just another teenager who wanted to start making electronic music. Over time I experimented with different genres and eventually, I started teaching myself how to sing. The ROBY project is my vessel for expressing myself through music and graphics. What really fuels my desire to put out my music is having a giant circle of people, fans, and friends, who all like the same music I do and also the music that I put out.
2 — What were you looking to convey about the topics and moods of the songs by selecting ‘vividity’ as the title of your new EP?
The EP is basically a result of all my ideas and inspiration that I’ve been gathering up for months when I wanted to shape this new era of ROBY. I want to experiment with guitars and different vocal styles and I feel like I accomplished that with the EP. It’s called ‘vividity’ because I finally realized these vivid musical visions I had. Though, going forward, this sound stays behind. I’ve already done it. It’s time to do something else.
3 — How do you personally classify your sound or describe it to others given the eclectic nature you exhibit across genres?
When people ask me what music I make, I just classify it as the blanket term of electronic pop. That might not be right, but I just feel like I do so many different styles and incorporate my voice into many different genres that it’s hard to label it as one thing.
4 — Was there anything new that you tried during the production process of this EP that you hadn’t done before?
I’ve always wanted to process my voice in different ways, so for the interlude of this project, I used Harmony Engine to make a cool Bon Iver vocal style effect. I also love playing with Auto-Tune and distortion and making my voice sound super crunched and destroyed.
“way too sentimental” is a song where I make music with guitars, which is something I’ve very rarely done and I think the song came out pretty good.
5 — What inspired you to choose a butterfly on the EP cover? Does it have any symbolism?
The butterfly, to me, represents learning new things, making and experimenting with different music, and growing as an artist.
6 — Which of all the tracks was the most challenging to produce? Why?
These tracks weren’t particularly hard to make, but the interlude was challenging because I haven’t had yet experimented with that vocal style. It was hard to get right.
7 — Who are some of the artists you have collaborated with on this new material? What they brought to the table?
On Twitter, I asked if anyone wanted to collab in 2023 and someone recommended andr3w j0hn. I thought his stuff was really cool, he had a lot of euphoric melodies. When he sent me the first demo for evolve+dissolve, I was shocked! We just built around that loop.
Neir is someone I’ve known for a while. He’s always had crazy sound design, so to have him remix “buy a little time” was awesome.
8 — Do you regret not adding or removing anything in this EP?
I don’t have any regrets. I’m just glad the project is out and I can look forward to the next thing!
9 — What kind of people do you imagine finding catharsis or kinship in the new songs you’ve created?
Most of this music pertains to the brokenhearted, but I feel like anyone can enjoy this kind of stuff. I’m not writing about my real life. I’m just writing about experiences.
10 How do you plan to grow and evolve as an artist in the future?
I definitely want to try new genres and sing in different ways that I haven’t before. I also wanna focus on the visual aspect of my project a lot more… Whether that involves getting new people on board for branding, or whatever, that will be something I definitely I’ll keep my eyes on. I also want to branch out to new labels because my music versatility stretches across a lot of the electronic world, and I think people should hear it.
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Hi, I’m Erick Ycaza — a music blogger with a BA in Advertising & Graphic Design. I created this blog to keep you updated with daily music news. Surprisingly, I’ve been writing about music since 2007. If you’re an artist and would like to be featured, feel free to reach out: info@electrowow.net
