Cian Ducrot

It might seem like Cian Ducrot & his incredibly tricky tunes have appeared out of nowhere, but a career as an artist has been his goal before he even actually knew what beingness an artist entailed.

Growing up in Ireland in a household where music was at the forefront, information technology was natural that Cian spent his formative years honing his craft and figuring out the type of creative person he wanted to exist. His independent mixtape 'started in college' was released last year, catching the eye of Justin Lubliner, the man who discovered Billie Eilish. That, solitary, could be considered a crushing amount of pressure on Ducrot'due south shoulders, simply he'southward been taking information technology in stride. Rather than getting caught up in TikTok challenges and insipid music trends, Cian has stayed focused, concentrating on the affair that matters higher up everything else: his music.

1883 had a chat with the rising singer/songwriter about his new single 'Crocodiles', the inspiration behind the music video, and why being an creative person is a lot more than than just having skilful songs and a good phonation.

You released your mixtape 'started in college' concluding year — how do y'all think you've grown as a songwriter since that torso of work?

I've found my audio and myself more. The biggest thing I learned is there'southward never really ane best manner to do things; you accept to push yourself to try and practise things differently than what yous're used to and what's normal for y'all. If you detect you lot keep getting stuck, it's probably because you need to change things up, and that's what I did. Approaching ideas or applying different songwriting formulas in a new way give you different perspectives has helped me grow and evolve as a songwriter.

You blew upwardly on TikTok last year and one that I loved was you with the billboard for your single and you talked about being homeless and couch surfing in LA a year prior. I know you spent a lot of your teen life busking, too. How do you lot call up growing up with those experiences helped shape who yous are as an creative person and songwriter?

I don't feel any different, to be honest. A lot has changed for me but I just don't feel any unlike. It's odd—you would expect those types of things to change you or affect yous a lot, but yous yet take the same difficulty every time you lot sit downwards in the studio to make music or stress nearly something else you lot're working on. The exterior might look unlike—I might take new shoes and nicer toys to make music within the studio—just information technology'due south all still me and all the struggles and everything I went through to become to where I am and be who I am today. I similar that it didn't change me or make me any different because I almost was expecting it to, but information technology'southward nice to know I'm still the same.

I feel like TikTok is so saturated now with artists trying to intermission out by constantly creating content. For you, it seems very natural — yous're merely uploading whatever you lot want rather than trying to abide by trends. Has it always been difficult for yous to focus on the music rather than trying to garner followers and likes?

Definitely. It's something I think nearly a lot. Information technology's hard because you watch other people posting and taking it seriously and perhaps I just don't. It's difficult to not sentinel what other people are doing but sometimes y'all have to remember what yous're focusing on and what your true goal is. I meet people posting the same thing over and over over again considering they know it'll get them likes and views. For me, my priority is making really good music, getting amend at producing, and using every day to go better at songwriting. I want to be happy with that stuff rather than getting joy from TikTok interactions.

Sometimes TikTok views don't translate to bodily streams, as well.

Exactly. You see people thrive on TikTok doing covers and you see their original music online and it doesn't even scratch the surface. I don't have a trouble with that simply I would much rather use my time to make original music that I worked thousands of hours on rather than getting some likes. My thinking is that my priority is to be an creative person which means focusing on the music. I'm happy with the music that I'm releasing. I'm happy I'g believing in trusting my gut.

There's a parallel at that place between you lot starting past playing covers when you lot were gigging on the street and playing in pubs and made that conscious choice to focus on your original music.

You lot have to focus on if you desire to be an artist. If you exercise, the virtually important thing is your music. I experience like a lot of artists forget that or a lot of people who are trying to exist artists prioritize social media and covers. They forget the important stuff isn't followers and likes; in that location are people out there who have millions of followers and they release music and no 1 listens to information technology. It'due south like no one cares because the artist wasn't focused on making music in the kickoff place. Information technology helps grow your fanbase which is swell, just spending likewise much of your listen on it can't always be skillful.

Ireland has had some incredible acts popular out over the last petty scrap — with Niall, Gavin James, and Dermot Kennedy to name a few. How has the music scene in Ireland influenced your songwriting?

Definitely focused on staying in my lane. If anything, I endeavour to not listen to their music too much! I don't desire to exist too influenced by stuff people are doing now. It'due south a balance of acknowledging and respecting other music and listening to it. I'm a huge Dermot fan and Gavin James was someone I was a large fan of when I was younger; he shared my covers and was always really kind to me. There'due south and then much talent in Ireland and then many slap-up artists coming out of Republic of ireland writing amazing songs and doing their thing, I think in the end what makes them great is that they're doing their thing. they're non focusing on what everybody else is doing; they are just trying to make good music.

This year you released your kickoff unmarried 'Not Usually Like This' since signing with Darkroom/Interscope Records. Darkroom in particular is a huge force in music right now as they are the team behind Billie Eilish. How did it experience knowing they wanted to sign you?

[Laughs] Honestly? Crazy. I didn't believe it at all. I was secretly recording the Zoom calls I was having because I just didn't believe it was real. I would wake upwards and heed to them and freak out. It feels like a big joke being played on me, just I'grand going with it. Y'all know when you've been working towards something for and so long and and so it happens and information technology feels imitation? That's what it'due south been like. It'south been amazing to learn from Justin [Lubliner].

credit: Jennifer McCord

'Crocodiles' is your second release this year. Can you tell me a bit near the song and the inspiration behind it?

It's a song I wrote after experiencing a actually hard experience with some friends. They weren't there for me when I needed them the about. It was really hard for me to experience that for the first fourth dimension. All I could call up nearly was how much I would do for these friends and they couldn't do the same for me. It was hard to write, but a keen experience to get that out.

I feel like there aren't a lot of songs most toxic friendships, too.

Yeah, information technology'due south not spoken about enough. Friendship in particular, in my stance, is a lot more important than your romantic relationships at times. Your friends are there for all of the large moments. It'southward funny because I wrote this song with a actually good friend and he had no idea I was writing about my own experience. When I told him, he was stunned.

I just caught the music video right before this chat and it seems to exist a pretty personal snapshot into an experience you had. Can you tell me a niggling flake near it?

Information technology was pretty traumatic actually, I'm not going to lie. It's weird to experience the whole thing once more; the awkwardness, the ill feeling you lot get when you're in an apartment where you're non welcome. It was difficult to be treated like that past friends. I wrote the whole treatment for the music video considering it was a no-brainer for me. It's as accurate to that experience as it perhaps could be.

Did somebody invite you over to have dinner afterward seeing you busking?

Yeah! There is that contrast between what we call 'the stranger' and my friends in the video. She represents the twist in the story. I met her on a trip to LA earlier I dropped out of college. She saw me perform and she reached out afterward, she establish out I was fundraising for some studio gear, and she bought me a laptop and paid for me to stay in an Airbnb. Then I had to motility dorsum to London and she said if you need to be in London, I'll help you. She honestly saved my life.

I have chills.

I would non exist here if it wasn't for her. She believed in me so much. She put a roof over my head and nutrient on my tabular array. That'south what I was representing in the video. Information technology's something I'll forever be grateful for. I told her I'll take her to the Brits and the Grammys if I'm ever able to go.

It's overnice that you could take this traumatic feel with your friends and contrast it with someone who didn't even know you lot and went to the ends of the world to aid you.

I didn't even realize that aspect of it until I realized you could flip the meaning of the song. On one hand, how tin you lot exist friends with someone you lot don't fifty-fifty know? And plough that on its head and say, how can a stranger offer y'all that much kindness when your friends tin can't? At the terminate of the video, you see me with these two strangers, the kindness in their hearts, welcoming me into their home. It'south touching.

Your post for mother's day is something that touched me. I know your mum is a classically trained musician — was music something that was always encouraged in your business firm and why was it so of import for you lot to speak equally openly as you did with that Instagram postal service?

Both of my parents were classical musicians—that's how they met in Paris. Early equally a kid, I was just direct into music right abroad. Since things were difficult at abode, music was something that brought my mother, brother, and me altogether and made us so happy. Information technology also gave my mother the ability to put food on the table and clothes on our backs. It'southward interesting to await back because even then when I was a kid, no matter how difficult things were, somehow I ever knew I was going to exist where I am today. Information technology was simply a dream I believed in. When I was younger I would think in my caput virtually how despite everything, I'll exist okay somewhen. Music played the biggest role in our lives; it gave united states purpose and brought us together.

Is it important for you to speak on topics like mental health on social media?

Absolutely. I think well-nigh it a lot and I recall about how much I want to talk about information technology a lot. It's hard considering you always want to say the right thing and yous want it to be correct the first time. It's of import to me, equally an creative person, to create a place where people feel safe. It becomes more than than the music at that point. Music was a condom place for me then if I tin make money and put it into places like charities and foundations that helped me or assistance others, why wouldn't I? With my platform, I know I have the opportunity to attain people and discuss hard things and that's what I want to do. I can try to evidence people that even if y'all're just a kid from Cork in Ireland with a single female parent and starting right from the bottom, you can still attain your dream.

I read an interview you did with The Irish Examiner where you said "Being an artist is so much more than beingness able to sing well or write good songs" and I actually adore you for saying that. Information technology kinda feels like right now music is and so saturated, it's hard to differentiate. I think your openness and personality and desire to share your artistry rather than have it crafted for you sets you autonomously. Was this something that naturally came to you?

Growing up I was attracted to true artists. I feel similar it's so much more than a good voice and good songs. The truthful artists in this world have something unique in how they are as humans and the things they have to say. They can speak to masses of people and tin make those songs personal and universal at the aforementioned fourth dimension. It's a big responsibility which is why there can only be then many bully artists. It'southward a really special thing to have a true artist be in your lifetime; I don't retrieve they come around regularly. You form an attachment to them when yous're growing upwardly, you encounter them play a gig, and you're just completely invested in the magic in that room. That's the goal.

Interview by Kelsey Barnes

Check out Cian Ducrot'due south new single & music video for 'Crocodiles' out now.

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Source: https://1883magazine.com/cian-ducrot/

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