An Interview with Yung Dodo

Dami: What led to you making music professionally?

Yung Dodo: I started making music after meeting Slug Christ. For me, it was the greatest form of musical inspiration. After collaborating with him, I met other artists like KirbLaGoop, and from there I entered the underground. What pushes me to do it is a different artistic vision, which stimulates me to produce more and more with as many artists as possible.

Dami: And what is this artistic vision?

Yung Dodo: This vision of mine consists in expanding one's art beyond simple national borders, getting to know as many artists as possible to enrich one's cultural and musical background, always doing a genre that doesn't work in Italy like LO-FI. I tried to see beyond, by connecting with as many foreign artists as possible: Americans, Indians, Japanese etc. In doing so, I made my music move faster and created relationships with people who in their own way gave me something new to work on.

Dami: How would you describe your current sound then?

Yung Dodo: My sound is simple, I don't look for complexity because it doesn't belong to me. I look for the essential, in this sense the music of artists like FATHER has inspired me a lot in the creation of my productions, which are almost all very minimal and created with a simple drum machine. I'm more looking for the melody, a melody that accompanies you from start to finish, and that never ends.

Dami: How much would you say your sound has improved since your debut?

Yung Dodo: At first, when I started experimenting with the first beats in 2017, I still didn't have the vision. It was like I was blind; I knew I had something but I didn't know how to use it. I kept publishing stuff and then deleting it because I didn't like it, I wasn't consistent, but then when I found my path and discovered how to apply my ideas in reality, everything appeared clearer. If I hadn't met some artists, I would never have succeeded on my own, my evolution led me to remove superfluous things, to leave alone the essence.

Dami: Can you tell us  more about your creative process?

Yung Dodo: My inspiration varies across different genres. I listen to a lot of metal, electronic music like DREAMCORE, trap etc. I always try to be different in my productions, I always start from the creation of a loop, which for me is the most important part, the rest it matters less. I don't give particular importance to the drums, the melody is the main thing for me, then I try to experiment as much as possible, making artists sing on completely different beats from those they are used to, to make them unlock the hidden potential.

Dami: You’re currently working on a 28 track lofi album. How did that come along?

Yung Dodo: This project was born from creating something never heard, I call it "fourth dimension" music in the sense that it has transcendental vibes. I also contacted a DSBM group to leave me a verse, to be combined with one of my beats to combine metal with LO- FI. Obviously, there will also be other artists present that I thought would fit well, but the mixtape will be mostly instrumental. I had some verses ready to be used from various artists, most of them are from the old American underground SoundCloud scene.

Dami: What 3 words would you use to describe this fourth dimension music?

Yung Dodo: innovation, calm, madness.

Dami: Do you have a time frame for the release of this project?

Yung Dodo: I hope to be able to release it by April. I don't like having too much stuck stuff to release.

Dami: Any visuals for it?

Yung Dodo: Not yet, I actually hadn't thought about it. Maybe in the future I could work on it, but for now it will just be music.

Dami: With the year just starting, what do you hope to accomplish this 2025?

Yung Dodo: I would absolutely like to sign a contract with a label, even an independent one, possibly in America or in any case outside Italy to be able to better expand my sound.

Dami: What’s the struggle like pushing your music to a larger audience, especially coming from Italy?

Yung Dodo: The difficulty I encounter most often is in finding artists who share the same vision as me, but fortunately abroad they are much more mentally open to experimenting with new things than in Italy.

Dami: How do you deal with writers block?

Yung Dodo: Listening to music. If I have no ideas on how to continue, I put on headphones and travel in search of inspiration. I am normally a very productive artist because making music relaxes me, makes me feel alive, if I stop, I die.

Dami: What’s been the most difficult part of being an artist so far?

Yung Dodo: Definitely being understood.

Check out his new EP here