Alina Pash, one of the hottest artists from Ukraine right now, will play at EC_Special on Thursday, 12th of August, at the Muzeul de Arta Stage by BT LIVE. It will be her first show in Romania. We spoke to her about her career, the Carpathian Mountains, her possible Romanian roots and what can we expect from her live performance:
When did you start making music?
It probably started almost four years ago when I released my first song that had a style I always wanted to put out, finally. With one shot I got a big hit and everything started to turn around. So I understood that I took the right step by making the music I wanted.
There are a lot of folk elements in your music. Did you grew up with that music?
Yes, I’m from the west of Ukraine, so it’s not just a musical project for me. It’s something that was always inside of me but I couldn’t understand that it could work. We had some other bands who used this type of music, like Onuka, but that’s more electro oriented. I’m happy that I could use elements of folk and have success with it.
Do you think Eastern-Europeans have a deeper connection to their roots? Maybe that’s why there are more folk influences in music from this part of Europe.
I think people in general have a connection with their roots, but it’s not quite the same everywhere. I think we should have it because of the political climate, but to be honest our traditions, culture and language are so old and beautiful. And I would like to transform it because it makes us really special on the map of the world. With music it’s possible. We have a lot of details that we can show. Romanian and Bulgarian music is very rich as well. I know that people from US are very impressed with our music because they don’t have it.
You combine a lot of different styles, from rap to electronic music and traditional folk. What do you find appealing about combining all these musical genres?
I was kind of an hardcore girl in my teenage years, I loved drum and bass music, rock music and hip-hop, and also some pop, like Christina Aguilera or Britney Spears. And I can’t push it outside of me. There is a part of me that’s pretty pop, and there is a big side of me that like rave music and hip-hop. But my rapping isn’t because it’s trendy, it’s because of my dialect. In this part of Ukraine we talk fast so that’s why I decided to use hip-hop as well. I need to just be myself. And I try to show the world that you can be different even when everybody tells you you have to be sexy and make trendy music. Believe me, it’s annoying.
What’s the story behind this new record? It’s even more folk oriented than your previous one.
Yes, and it’s much more serious, no more mixing languages, no English on this one. It’s from the Carpathian Mountains, from the side of Ivano-Frankivsk. I’m from Zakarpattia, which is very close to Romania, but you don’t find a lot of traditions there. But on the Ivano-Frankivsk side they still have a lot of traditions, because it’s higher in the mountains. So when I travelled there I started working on the album.
But it’s a darker album because I had two years of depression and with COVID it was even harder. I changed my life, my relationship, and I had to stay away from dark waters. I was a suicide teenager and it started coming to me again. And it’s so strange because I am a very positive person in general. But for two years I had a lot of darkness in my life and I couldn’t get myself out of it. I worked with different psychiatrists, spent time in nature and a lot of other things. Music helped me big time. Music can really release your pain.
Your live shows are full of energy but you also have a lot of acoustic performances. Which one do you prefer?
I like doing big shows, and in Romania it will be one of those, but when I play acoustic shows I realize that it works even without all the other parts. So of course I would love to one day make a show in two parts. But everytime I go on stage I do it thinking it’s my last one. It’s the end. It’s coming from my childhood. I remember one time this artist who is also a priest told me “think of it like it’s the last show in your life, after that, you’ll never be afraid to sing”. Back then I thought “great, this gives me more pressure”, but as I got older I realized he was right.
How was this last year for you and what was it like being back on stage?
I was so hungry to come back. The feeling when you have that adrenaline come back to you is magic. I was begging for it. Please give me live shows! I love the process of making music but nothing can be better than a live show. I’m a fighter there. After the stage there are 20 minutes when I’m speechless.
You’ve mentioned the Carpathian Mountains in one of your songs. Are you planning to see the ones in Romania while here?
Of course! Some of my friends have told me recently that the Romanian side is even more beautiful. I would love to go. And I would love to go on a folk expedition in Romania, because there is a lot of cool stuff I could find. And I even have Romanian blood, on my father’s side. I don’t know exactly the family tree but I have some relatives. Actually, my first record is called “Pintea”, and I know there is a Romanian folk hero called Pintea The Brave. It says in the legends that he lived in my village, and everyone called my father Pintea, so maybe I have some connection to this real hero.
Do you have anything special planned for your first show in Romania?
I would love to sing a Romanian folk song on stage. And I would love to burn the fuckin house down. To show that Ukrainian people are really new age people. Really open to transfer our music and culture. To share. And I think we are so similar in a way. Let’s put away these borders, because especially in music there are no borders. So let’s do it together.
