KIRARA on accepting herself and making music without messages

Interview by Doheon Kim (@re_nez0)
Photos by Min Kim (@wallyoil)
Translation by Seongkyeong Lee

Almost two years after the release of her critically-acclaimed album, 4, KIRARA returns with a brand new EP, cts7, on May 26th. The electronic producer has become one of the most celebrated performers in Korea due to her biting musical style and exhilarating live shows.

KIRARA's latest EP shows the producer in a positive and resilient mood. Over the course of five tracks, KIRARA helps us to reject meaningless rituals, empty formality, and hasty generalisations. The EP forgoes anything hard or serious and focuses on her light and cheerful side, shown by the simple drawing of delicious walnuts on the cover (she often returns to the motif of fruits for the EP). Title track 숫자 (Numbers) contains a catchy and singable chant of 'il ee sam sa oh yuk chil pal gu' (numbers one to nine in Korean). The other five tracks on cts7 include  ct22031, the recent opener for KIRARA's live sets, 오의 (Profound Meaning), a collaboration with a fan who came across her during a live stream, ct21071, which features a sample from Korean fusion band Second Moon, and ct22061, which was once intended to be used for an art exhibition. Here she talks to Doheon Kim about returning to her roots and making music about "nothing".

In the opening part of your previous album (2021's 4), you say, "Enjoy it; it's just dance music," - but there's an irony here, as 4 has some quite aggressively delivered political messages. 

When making 4, I was experiencing my darkest time as a transgender person. I hadn't hated myself as much as that before. I felt so much sadness and anger about who I was and about Korean society. Even my close friends couldn't understand me. I thought that if I could make an album that expressed these emotions, I could clear my mind. A survival instinct pushed me to move to an island and work on this emotional album. 

Recently, I realised that, instead of releasing 4, I should have listened to the apologies of people who hurt me. I don't want to diminish what 4 means to me because, if it weren't for making that album, I wouldn't have come to this realisation. 

I knew that I couldn't make the whole world say sorry, so I wanted to do it myself. It was I that suppressed myself and made myself suffer just because I'm transgender. So 4 was my way of apologising to myself.

What is the purpose of your new EP?

I accepted the apology from myself and feel much better these days, having some time to contemplate the things around me and just live my life. Working on this new EP is a way to show the light and cheerful side of KIRARA. I want to show that side to people and especially to myself.

Your EPs always reflect what you are interested in at that time without any specific theme. What are your main points this time?

I want to make listeners have fun with the EP. It's about catharsis coming from musical structure, maybe, and a beautiful aesthetic which comes from the weaving of compelling sounds and sudden punchy lines. Other ideas differ from track to track ─ the KIRARA-style interpretation of big beat on ct22031, the comedy of 숫자 (Numbers), the use of samples on ct21071, a journal of the time I worked on live streams on 오의 (Profound Meaning), and showing that "KIRARA can make non-dance music" on ct22061.

You describe the tracks on the EP as 'light' and 'fun'. What does 'light' and 'fun' music mean to you?

I’d say that it’s fun and light when there aren't any political undertones. If I'm not talking about the unfairness of the world around me, I consider that to be light and fun. 

You said 숫자 (Numbers) is "a simple song and doesn't have any deeper meaning", but listeners will speculate about different aspects of your music. 

For example, some of the numbers you have used sound like slang words in Korean (1,258, pronounced as "cheon eebaek oship pal', which sounds similar to Korean phrase "sibal" meaning "fuck off"). The birthday of a Wonwoo from Seventeen (717) got into the song because of one of your live stream viewers. 

In this way, your music can be fun but simultaneously has the power to make people feel passionate and enthusiastic. How do you feel about that? 

I think it's because most of my music is loud, and listeners can perhaps perceive different nuances from the loud, vivid, and sharp sounds. I wanted cts7 to be "fun without meaning", so if someone said that "there must be a hidden message within it", I would feel a little bit bitter. 

Communication with your audience through live streams was a large part of making cts7. What is the significance of live streaming to you?

I'm a sociable person, but I also need time to stop socialising for my mental health. Streaming online is the perfect way for me to meet new people. I can talk with viewers who don't know much about me but are interested in music. 

I can also control the amount of attention I get by controlling my streaming schedule. I'm talkative during live streams, but I don't often know who I am talking to - the viewers or myself! I like myself on streaming, though, even love myself. That's a big deal to me.

You collaborated with many different artists on this EP. How did that come about, and how was it working with them? 

Yes, I worked with so many artists for this EP, and I'd like to highlight their contributions and talk about how they influenced me.

One of my jobs is teaching, and both jangmyungsun and MADDYXP are my former students. They're now my colleagues, close friends, and great musicians in their own right. jangmyungsun has so many talents besides music, and I always ask her to draw cover art for my EPs. 

MADDYXP was in the recording studio with me and coincidentally took on directing my vocals from 숫자 (Numbers). I was concerned about how I was using my voice, and she gave me very great advice. She's such a professional, so if I work on this kind of music again (I'm not sure I will), I'll definitely ask her for help again. People around me can do some magical things, and they always support me in my musical career.

dolgim, who often took part in my live streams, is not a musician but makes music as a hobby. He gave me some of his brilliant, unique music to use for this EP. I immediately began to use his music to make satisfying songs. When it comes to composing and soundscaping, I don't think I'm technically great, but what I do have is editing and sampling skills. It was such a joy for me to work on this collaboration. 

I also worked with Bagagee Viphex13, who is undoubtedly one of the best DJs representing Korea. If someone said we have an electronic music scene here in Korea, I would put myself on the edge or on the outskirts. Not in the centre. Many of my friends and collaborators are the same - working on the edges of the electronic music scene. 

But sometimes, I want to get away from the edge and meet musicians in the centre and collaborating on remixes is a good way to do that.

I had already learned how to DJ, but after meeting him, I became more interested in DJing and had increasing respect for it. I got a proper DJing setup about six months ago, and I've been practising since. While I was digging for music that I wanted to play while DJing, I was surprised that what people usually call 'EDM' suited me well. I usually do live sets when I play in Hongdae, but I think I’d also do well playing in clubs in Gangnam.

Compared to the huge amount of music I've collected, I am not completely satisfied with my DJing ability. I'm going to practise a lot more.

Finally, Second Moon were also an important part of this EP. I love discovering music that has been a part of Korean music history, and during my research, I came across the music of Second Moon. They have so many beautiful melodies and riffs. Actually, I've been secretly working on music that uses their catchy riffs for a long time, but ct21071 is the first time that I felt confident enough to send the song to the members of Second Moon. They loved the track and cleared the use of the sample. In fact, they had already heard of me and my music when I called them for the first time. It was really an honour.

What is the most important thing for you when sampling music?

Good sampling makes the sample stand out. If you could have made the same music but with a different sample, then the song will have less meaning. The biggest challenge is keeping the flavour of the original while also putting my own spin on it. It isn't easy to do, but on Rain Dance (from the 2018 album Sarah) and ct21071 from my new EP are times when I have achieved that. 

I often use riffs and textures from other people's music, but my approach is always the same - I try to keep some traces of the original.

Could you tell us about the music videos released with cts7?

I've produced three videos for this EP so far. 

The video for ct22031 was made by Uryeong Kim, who directed my HRT video in 2021. We also made a video for ct22061, directed by Haeun Choi, an artist who has designed posters for my live music events. Having worked with them before, I knew what they were capable of, so I didn't hesitate to reach out to them for this project.

A well-respected typography studio called DDUNGSANG, who had previously worked with GOMPYO (from Daehan Flour Mills), directed the video for 숫자 (Numbers). They're the newest addition for this EP. I was looking for visual artists who could capture my style, and then I found out that they wanted to work with me. It worked out really well because I needed a video that focused on number-based typography, and then suddenly, they came into my life. I love the video and hope to work with them again.

If someone asked me what the underlying message is of these videos, I would say the same as the music... "nothing!" I want to make the audience feel a sense of catharsis when they watch them. None of the tracks are supposed to be serious, and I wanted the videos to match that. I think that, in hindsight, the directors of the videos understood that.

Visuals are an important part of your live shows, especially for your "audiovisual set". What is important for you when putting together live shows? 

I'm a musician with an audiovisual set. It's a core part of what I do, and I want to continue focussing on that. When I was young, many of the musicians I looked up to were doing audiovisual sets. Acts like The Chemical Brothers and Cornelius. The Chemical Brothers, especially, have been a big influence on me. I would love it so much if someone referred to me as The Korean Chemical Brothers.

What would you like to do in terms of visuals?

Whenever I talk about music, I always say, "texture is boring." Making textures in music isn't really my thing, partly because I am not that good technically. Instead, I'm interested in arrangements and sequences - which sound comes out and when it comes.

I have a similar attitude towards video. I prefer time-based components, as opposed to pretty figures or paintings. I'm now working with a visual director, and we are doing some interesting things exploring the power of synchronisation.

Why do you think people have connected with your music so much?

I always make whatever music I want to make, and it comes from who I really am. Musicians like that aren't that common, so maybe that's my strength. 

I always try to convey something through my music, even when there aren't any lyrics. The sounds need to be clear and vivid for me. The kick should sound like a kick. The snare should sound like a snare. The square wave should sound like a square wave. Maybe that's why people like my music - because they can feel the music the way I made it.

Do you have any plans to release your EPs as a full album? 

The notion of a full album has been in my mind recently. I've been thinking about combining all of my EPs into one album and calling it ctsb. But I'm not sure if releasing a compilation as a physical CD is a good idea these days.

cts7 is an amusing album without any political messages. You went through difficulties and chaos to get here. What would you say to someone who is facing similar hardships that you've faced?

I wouldn't want to say anything. Maybe it sounds harsh or cold-hearted, but I can't save anyone. I've been hurt so many times, and now, I am focused on protecting myself. 

The world can be harsh and cruel. Maybe I have hurt people, too. I hope that people learn to say positive things to themselves, just as I have. I hope everyone learns to be strong and protect themselves. But if my music can be part of that, then that would be great. I'll just keep making music and working hard. Just like everyone else.

For more information, follow KIRARA here.