Courtesy of Alaya.
A year ago, I came across Babel’s track “Life of Eve feat. LÌ´psley” remixed by Tülpa. Immediately, I fell in love with the low-key, melodic and ethereal track. I even included it in a mix that was featured by 8tracks and coincidentally, I submitted that same playlist to WVAU when I first became a DJ here. One year later, I talked to Ivan Zhyzhkevych — the 16-year-old pianist, producer, rapper and Pittsburgh resident otherwise known as Tülpa — about his latest projects since his 2014 “Life of Eve” remix.
WVAU: What are you thinking for your future plans after you graduate from high school?
Tülpa: College is a lot of time and money. I want to just travel and make music full-time I think, maybe work in like fancy restaurants playing piano.
How long have you been playing piano and producing music?
Playing piano since I was 8; I started producing in 2012.
What inspired you to start producing your own music?
I suppose it was the time when I started feeling that playing other people’s songs was wrong; it didn’t fit my personality. I wanted to do my own thing, untouched inspiration and stuff.
Do you have any particular influences?
Everything is an influence. Smoking a cigarette on a wooden deck and looking at the streaks of smoke, looking at the light bulb…I’m always hyper alert; I take everything in. I try to mold my structures off how things are made.
What can we expect to hear from your upcoming album? Any artists you anticipate working with in the future?
I’m working with XVII, Village, that’s all I can say at the moment. This album is a very big project. I want it to be my breakaway; I want it to sign to a major and all that.
You’re also working on a rap side-project, Lonli. Will you be including any of that on your new album?
Possibly. I don’t know if Lonli’s place is there yet, or will be for a couple of years since I just started being a poet [laughs]. It’s just a little fun project at the moment, but it’s getting received well without much promotion on my part.
What made you want to start doing Lonli?
Well, I always liked rapping, but people said I sucked in middle school. I felt like I was decent at writing poems and stuff, since I liked being isolated and doing my own thing. So, I started Lonli as a way to vent. I just wanted to always do something vocal and all.
Have you ever considered joining (or starting) a music collective?
I’m a part of Modern Filth. I don’t like being put into a collective; I’m kind of the lone wolf.
What are your thoughts on Soundcloud’s music culture?
I think it makes it too easy to follow trends though because you can get 10K on a future bass or vibe track easily and you get trapped into that mentality. I’ve only done a few tracks like that; they didn’t do badly, but I personally didn’t want to. I didn’t wanna do something just to get recognition off it.
If you could collaborate with anyone on a project ÛÒ living or dead ÛÒ who would it be?
Miles Davis, hands down. He’s so revolutionary.
Anything else you’d like people to know about you?
Not really much, just the fact that I’m doing what I want. Not really following anyone. I want to do something that makes people happy.