Check out the exclusive interview below:
1. Can you tell us a bit about where you come from and how it all got started?
Ivon: I grew up in a small town called Rosscarbery in southern Ireland writing music. I wrote my first song when I was 9 years old. It was my escape and my outlet in my youth when I didnโt have many friends to talk to. I worked on my craft for a solid decade before I even entertained the idea of making music publicly. I wanted to make sure I had the pipes and the lyricism to pull off the songs that I wanted to write. Then when โ2020โ happened, there was nothing to use as an excuse not to release the music Iโd been recording and writing over the years. So I released 2 EPs in June of that year and I just went from there.
Cian: Well I began writing music in 2016 and didnโt write a good song until probably 2019! Producing was something I picked up in 2017 and I loved it and just kept doing it. In 2020 I realised, โwow I might actually be able to produce good quality musicโ, and so I started producing for artist friends โ such as GER, and thatโs how I became aware of Ivon. 3 years later, weโre releasing a song together and I couldnโt be more thrilled!
2. Did you have any formal training or are you self-taught?
Ivon: I began teaching myself the basics of singing so I could ensure I had a decent foundation to build on, and then I studied Singing and Theory for 4 years in university to solidify my skills. When it comes to songwriting, I donโt really believe you can teach someone that per se. You mainly need to consistently create and experiment with sounds and themes to discover yourself and your own style with time.
Cian: I am a self-taught producer โ I just found the best way to get better is keep making music, and not acknowledge just how bad I was in comparison to professionals until eventually I was good enough to start comparing my work to theirs.
3. Who were your first and strongest musical influences and why the name โIVON ROBERTSโ/โCIAN OโDONOGHUEโ?
Ivon: I always loved The Corrs growing up and the reinvented sound that they presented with each body of work.
However, my writing became inspired by more outrageous, over-the-top Pop artists like Ke$ha as I grew up and decided to incorporate my brutally honest personality into my music. And I think I speak for both of us when I say we just chose our names because theyโre our names. Weโre clearly not that original!
Cian: As a child my favourite artist was by far โThe Scriptโ. As I started to make my own music, it became Charlie Puth due to him being his own producer and I really enjoyed the R&B/funk/jazz/pop fusion sound he was making and so I tried to incorporate that into my songs.
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?
Ivon: My songs are like โCatchy Confessionals.โ Iโm too honest, and itโll get stuck in your head for days. I canโt help it.
Cian: My sound is based around pop and modern R&B โ think Charlie Puth, Ed Sheeran and Bruno Mars all kind of mixed together. The key elements to my sound are my vocal performances and my chord progressions. I just love to find ways to put non-diatonic chords into very poppy songs. (In โBetter Guyโ, there are 2 key changes!)
5. 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?
Ivon: At this point, Iโve dipped my toe into almost every genre during my decade-long quest for a sense of my own sound in music. From Commercial Pop to Country to Classical to Celtic. (I even had a brief stint as a rapper which we wonโt go into for the sake of my mental health!) But what Iโve found is that the sounds will always overlap and you can find similarities in every chord sequence and melody if you go looking for them. The true sense of a unique sound is making sure youโre using your own voice. Youโre saying what you feel, what you believe, and what youโve experienced in the way that is true to who you are. Thatโs the way you find your own sound. Sonically, you can play off the sounds you enjoy to listen to yourself, and then you simply inject your own personality into these sounds to give the music new life.
Cian: The โemulating othersโ idea fascinates me โ whenever I write a song, immediately I can think of 2/3 songs it is definitely inspired by. I think inspiration is the key word โ every artist is an amalgamation of their biggest influences, and thatโs what makes them unique. For me, it all began in 2016 with Ed Sheeran/Gavin James type of guitar songs, followed by Charlie Puth/Bruno Mars funk/R&B in 2019, and now I donโt even know!
6. Whatโs your view on the role and function of music as political, cultural, spiritual, and/or social vehicles โ 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?
Ivon: I speak about whatโs true to me and true to the experience Iโm talking about in each song. Itโs a case-by-case situation. If the lines of โpersonalโ and โpoliticalโ overlap and itโs relevant to the song then Iโll speak about it, if it isnโt then I wonโt. But I donโt feel any necessity or aversion to speaking about any topic, as long as Iโve done my homework first.
Cian: There is a very powerful space for music in these subjects, but for me I listen to music to connect to whatever emotions I feel at the time. For my music personally, I donโt tackle important topics on any of these levels because that is not how I use music in my life. I use music to engage with my emotions, and I hope people can connect to my music in a similar way.
7. 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?
Ivon: Writing music just feels like second nature at this point. Itโs like skincare or reading โ itโs just something thatโs part of my routine that I make the time for. Now when it comes to releasing music, thatโs a different story. My take on releasing is that Iโll do it as long as it feels worth it and the song is something that I want out there. Thatโs been a less certain aspect for me as of late so Iโm definitely seeing an โindefinite hiatusโ of sorts in releasing music coming in the new year once the current projects Iโm working on and releasing are complete. But I will always create music, whether or not anyone hears it. Itโs part of who I am.
Cian: For sure, I think making music is extremely fulfilling! Thereโs no better high than coming out of the studio feeling like you really created something special. I try my best to focus on the making of the music and not the results, because if you focus on numbers you will never be satisfied. Thereโs always more to achieve.
8. 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?
Ivon: Itโs different every time. Generally itโs lyrical when Iโm inspired. A phrase or quote I hear in my everyday life. But a melody can come along with the lyrics too which is helpful. Sometimes Iโll even hear a full song from start to finish with every layer and lyric complete in my head and itโs just a case of getting that from my head to the point of a finished song. Collaborations are a different story. Youโve almost got to โvolleyโ ideas back and forth until the best ones come to the surface and you build on those until you have a song you all love. It involves a lot more patience, awareness and openness to those you collaborate and share ideas with. You canโt be too proud and too set on an idea when there are multiple cooks in the kitchen.
Cian: Songs for me begin with chords and melodies. When I have those I try to sit with the song, sit with the emotions it creates, and figure out the subject of the song โ whether that subject is something that relates to my personal feelings at the time or doesnโt. If it isnโt something that is inherently personal, I try to embody the songโs emotions and write something personal through this โotherโ bodyโฆif that makes sense.
9. What has been the most difficult thing youโve had to endure in your life or music career so far?
Ivon: Yikes. I think Iโm the more cynical one of the two of us because Iโve got so many disaster stories to tell at this point that I could almost write a book โ Iโve been verbally ripped apart by several communities, Iโve had songs stolen from me and released by others, Iโve been used and abused countless times. If I was to boil it down to the nitty gritty though, I would say when music has caused friendships or relationships to end, or when a song has marked the end of one of those relationships. That would be the thing that stings the most for me. Iโm a very emotional person, so when a song relates to the connection Iโve had with somebody being severed, I always feel that a little bit when I hear the song.
Cian: I have to say that for me so far in my life, I have been very lucky to not have had too many difficult experiences. My music career is very young so I have a lot to experience in my life and career, and Iโm sure when I face those difficulties it will shape my music as well.
10. On the contrary, what would you consider a successful, proud or significant point in your life or music career so far?
Ivon: Iโve been extremely lucky with the performance of my music, especially on Spotify. But I feel like Iโm just proud of my discography in general (both whatโs been released and what has yet to be) and how itโs represented who I am and how I feel at the time. Iโm honest to a fault in my everyday life, and I think Iโve found a way to effectively incorporate that into my music so that itโs true to life. Itโs โcatchy, crazy honestyโ and Iโm proud to be able to deliver that in a way that both I and others can enjoy.
Cian: Well โBetter Guyโ hit 10,000 streams in a week, so that for me would probably be the greatest achievement! Having said that, I try not to focus on these types of things though โ just try to focus on how proud I am of the music I have created whether it is successful or not.
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