In this freewheeling chat with Brut, Ritviz spoke to us about what makes his sound so unique, how he composes music on his couch and his thoughts on auto-tuning. #SmartMoves #Smartwater smartwater India.
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00:00So, I started learning classical music around 5 and this is what I sound like now.
00:17So, you know Ritwish, you're known for your own style of music.
00:20Whether it's Liggy or Udgay.
00:22How do you think you've managed to achieve this?
00:24For me, when I was starting out, the only thing that I really cared about at the time,
00:29like when I was learning Indian classical music,
00:31and this is when I was like in like 6th, 7th standard, right?
00:34For me, it was like, okay, I'm having all these emotions come to me
00:38and obviously the need to express was coming about, right?
00:42And around that time, I was also listening to VH1 Top 40 and Hip Hop,
00:46which is just like all of us.
00:47So, I think that very core opposite set of music and influences
00:53that were happening for me at the time,
00:56I think subconsciously that format sort of took place, right?
01:00And like when I started expressing the kind of music that I was making,
01:04it was very west-oriented in the format,
01:06but the content was very, you know, Indian classical and desi
01:09and the things that, you know, all of us relate to and talk about.
01:12So, I can tell you that I've not like formatted that, okay, this is going to be a sound.
01:19I expressed freely and it just so happens that this is unconventional
01:25and is something that I found exciting.
01:27So, because you've had such an unconventional approach towards music,
01:31did you ever have any naysayers along your way?
01:33People not necessarily understanding something can result in hate.
01:37That's why I never take anything too personally.
01:40The day people stop talking is when it gets, you know,
01:42I'm like, oh, then it's not causing impact,
01:43but as long as it's grabbing the attention.
01:47I think that's all my agenda is and always been with music
01:50that I need to be honest with what I'm doing
01:52and in the hopes that people also connect to it.
01:54And it's been a very, very epic five years.
01:57Not gonna lie.
01:58Yeah.
01:59So, talking about those five years,
02:00what do you think was that one turning point in your career?
02:04I mean, the obvious one is when Udge...
02:08Yeah, I think when that happened, obviously, like life changed overnight.
02:10Life changed.
02:11Everything like that I had been imagining and wanting
02:17post that December release in 2017, things just took off.
02:21We're talking a lot about music.
02:22Talking a lot, yeah.
02:24No, no, no.
02:24But I really want to check out where Ritwis creates his magic.
02:27Where you're sitting.
02:28Really?
02:29Yeah, yup, yup, yup.
02:29I thought you have like a full-on studio or something.
02:32So, I'm horizontal here.
02:33Okay.
02:34With my laptop like this.
02:36And that's actually an ideal day of a professional musician working.
02:45A lot of people are now dissing auto-tuning or the new remixes.
02:50What's your take on that?
02:52Auto-tuning, if used right, is a beautiful way of formatting the sound.
02:58It's a very effective tool.
03:00As long as it's being used for the right reasons.
03:04I think I am not walking into this music realm thinking that
03:08I want to be the greatest singer.
03:10Even though I've learnt Gaya Ki, like I've given my 10 years.
03:13I've learnt Khayal and Drupad.
03:15But I don't think that's what my agenda is, right?
03:17I want a song to sonically sound a certain way.
03:21And that's why I use a certain set of tools.
03:24If your fans could get like a small raw ritual, it's Ud Gaye.
03:28I'll have to now remember the lyric.
03:30You have to help me out with the lyrics.
03:42You said it wrong.
03:44Oh, ****.
03:45Your song Aavegi made it to Miss Marvel.
03:49Do you think this has been a wow moment in your journey?
03:52Absolutely, absolutely.
03:53The fact that I was included on a part of such an epic soundtrack.
03:57The bigger thing here is the showcasing of South Asian sounds.
04:01I think that was really important.
04:02And this is the sound of modern India, modern Pakistan.
04:05And I think that's really, really cool.
04:08If you had the opportunity to go back in time,
04:10what would be the one thing that you would probably like to change about it?
04:13I wish I could redo this.
04:15If there was a way to actually do this,
04:17I would love to just go through it again and again and again.
04:21You know, just because the process of music making is so spiritual in nature,
04:26where I discovered myself while making the music.
04:29In a lot of ways, being at home, I didn't go to college.
04:32And I can maybe try and explain how my home was college in a way,
04:37where I think at home, sitting every morning and figuring out,
04:40I'm just so excited about this melody that's in my head.
04:42And I've learned so much about life and people because of the music that I made.
04:47I feel so lucky that I was allowed and I was able to make the music that I make today.
04:53It's not about the numbers.
04:54It's not about what this does for you professionally.
04:57It's about what kind of a person it makes you.