Exclusive Interview with DISHANT

When you lay in bed at night or take a late-night drive, the song “why” by dishant talks about remembering missed opportunities. From that place of regret, the song was born. The song’s lyrics are about a person who passed up love in favor of healing and now regrets never “being in the right, right place, in the right mind.” Check out the exclusive interview below:

1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?

DISHANT: I am from India initially and moved to the States 5 years ago to pursue a music career. I decided I wanted to make music around the age of 13 when I heard Eminem’s MMLP2. It piqued my interest in music and song writing.

2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?

DISHANT: I am self-taught. I took some summer lessons when I was 14 but they only taught me nursery songs. I used to have an electric keyboard back home and after I was done with my piano lessons I looked up “how to” videos on YouTube and learnt on my own. Same goes with music production. I knew nothing about it and over the course of 4 years I developed an ear for it just because I didn’t want to pay for YouTube beats. (I like to be careful with my money). So, I ended up learning how to make beats. I produce, mix, and master my own tracks and for others as well.

3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name ‘DISHANT?

DISHANT: So Dishant is my actual name. My uncle was the one who gave me that name. It has many meanings, some of which are horizon and ultimate peace. I guess it suits me cuz I am usually a quiet guy who is also very ambitious. My musical influences started off with many artists such as Eminem, Kanye, J.Cole and Kendrick. But over time as my sound changed my strongest musical influences became Joji, Frank Ocean, Kanye, and Aries. I also want to shout out Lil Peep. He isn’t as much of a musical influence, but he has influenced me. I love how his art created a sense of community and I hope to create a strong community of my own one day.

4. What do you feel are the key elements in your music that should resonate with listeners, and how would you personally describe your sound?

DISHANT: I like to focus on nostalgia a lot. My sound and my voice has a nostalgic, yearning feel to it. When I make music, I want people to seek comfort in it. The whole idea of me making music was that “Oh I wish I heard something like this when I was younger because it might have comforted me the right way.” And I love dancing so I guess the best way to describe my music is “sad music that you can dance to in the club.” I want to give people their own indie movie, so I focus on lo-fi, pop, and hip-hop elements.

5. Do you think is it important for fans of your music to understand the real story and message driving each of your songs, or do you think everyone should be free to interpret your songs in their own personal way?

DISHANT: No. I think it’s better for people to make their own meanings to a song. There have been plenty of times where I thought an artist said one thing but turns out they actually meant something completely different, and I liked my version better. A song has more meaning when interpreted in your own personal way.

6. For most artists, originality is first preceded by a phase of learning and, often, emulating others. What was this like for you? How would you describe your own development as an artist and music maker, and the transition towards your own style, which is known as POP?

DISHANT: I did actually copy a lot of other songs. I looked up how exactly a certain song was made and would copy the video as best as I could just so I could understand the thought behind everything. There is a theory in film that every scene you see is intentionally put there by the director and I think any creative person has that same sense of intentionality. It took me a while to learn that and slowly I would take some other artists style, be it chord progression, sonic aesthetic, or drum pattern and I would try to make my own version of it. Gradually my ears tended to lean towards a sound that is an amalgamation of lo-fi, pop, hip-hop and some indie elements. Now I am in a state of constantly having melodies and rhythms running in my brain, so I’m able to produce more tracks than before.

7. Creative work in a studio or home environment, or interaction with a live audience? Which of these two options excites you most, and why?

DISHANT: I definitely enjoy both. A home studio is one of my goals. Right now, I’m working out of my bedroom with just a pair of headphones, a MIDI, and my phone. I do love a live audience and I like performing. I hope to perform more shows in the future. I recently moved to the East Coast after living in California for the last 5 years so I’m starting all over again on this side of the country.

8. What’s your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles – and do you try and affront any of these themes in your work, or are you purely interested in music as an expression of technical artistry, personal narrative, and entertainment?

DISHANT: I think back then music was used more for politics. With modernization and the rise of capitalist structures music has become more commercialized. So, you won’t find as many big musicians in the media trying to make a political song, unless of course you’re The 1975. Punk music has always been anti-establishment. But I think in current times you won’t find punk music dominating the charts like it did during the 70s. I think the 80s was when commercializing of arts began within the capitalist structures that are present even today. Music has always been a vehicle of culture, spirituality and social commentary. Those aspects will always remain. Will it have any commercial value or a massive reach every time? Maybe who knows. I feel in these times all of us are seeking answers to our emotions through the arts but won’t focus on socially important aspects in a song. I personally think every artist, including me, does try to provide a sense of culture and spirituality through their art. I do create art as an expression of me and for entertainment but also to provide comfort. Art is about connecting. Nobody creates something just to isolate that work and themselves, unless of course that’s you’re style then go for it. I feel anyone who creates wants to share. Every great artist seeks connection and that is what I strive to do. To connect people through me and my art.

9. Do you feel that your music is giving you back just as much fulfillment as the amount of work you are putting into it or are you expecting something more, or different in the future?

DISHANT: Yes and no. Creatively yes, I feel fulfilled. I take every moment of creativity with gratitude because it’s a gift from the universe. I want to have a bigger reach, and in that sense, sometimes I might not feel fulfilled, but I also take every moment someone says anything about my work, be it good or bad, as a moment of learning. I either learn to be more patient or to try something new. I am always growing.

10. Could you describe your creative processes? How do usually start, and go about shaping ideas into a completed song? Do you usually start with a tune, a beat, or a narrative in your head? And do you collaborate with others in this process?

DISHANT: Melody is what I like to focus on first. If I find a melody that I like I put it down and figure out the right instrument for it. I like to create a phrase through the melody so that I can find the right words. From that phrase I create the rest of the song. It’s usually a free-flowing method, something like a freestyle. After the first draft I see if there’s anything I would want to change and go on from there. When it comes to collaborating with others, I have had a difficult time. I work at a different pace and I haven’t found someone who can keep up. I think I’m just thinking in a different lane and I haven’t found artists who are in that same lane to work with. I do collaborate in other ways. I’ve been producing for an R&B singer for the last few months. She’s planning on putting out an EP this year.