AN INTERVIEW WITH SKAIVI
ARTIST’S HOUSE: Who is Skaivi?
SKAIVI: I’m an electronic musician based in Chicago! I compose, write lyrics, and produce my music. I’m also the vice president of Artist’s House, and I like to dabble in various other artistic hobbies from time to time. Music is my biggest passion and basically my life’s main purpose. Poetically, I consider myself a melancholic dreamer…I feel like the scenery of mist floating on top of an ocean…the moon showing up in the orange-y, pale sky during the early evening, and the sun has not yet set.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: Why did you pick “Skaivi” as your stage name? How did you come up with it?
SKAIVI: Picking my stage name was a difficult process because I wanted something that truly felt like me, yet was a name that was memorable and had a nice sound to it too. I brainstormed so many ideas and wrote down so many names and combinations. I realized that I definitely wanted to incorporate “Skai/Sky” into my artist name, because that was a name I really loved when I was a kid, to the point I sometimes even wished I was born with that as my regular name, haha. I picked the “Skai” spelling because I liked it better. I still needed to add on to it, though, because it just didn’t feel like it was bold enough on its own. I tested different ideas, the closest winner being “Butterfly Skai,” but, while it was cute, it wasn’t right for me. I actually even made an Instagram account to try the name out mentally, and I just wasn’t feeling it. I was wondering about what sort of personal touches I could add to “Skai,” and I thought about my real name. I ended up taking the first two letters, “Vi,” of my middle name, and tacking it on to the end, making “Skaivi.” When I saw it written down, I immediately felt a connection with it. Other than feeling like the right name for me, it also just has cool vibes to it, and it can go with many genres and styles of music.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: How did it happen that you became an artist? What was your calling to go in this direction?
SKAIVI: About my calling, I've talked before about how Tyler Joseph from Twenty One Pilots, and my mom, a lyricist, inspired me back when I was around 13. My mom’s song “The Moon Wants To Sleep” was genuinely one of my favorite things to listen to, haha. It was a cute concept. And Twenty One Pilots were a huge part of my life in my early teenhood. They showed me a more poetic and meaningful side of music I haven’t seen yet at that age, and Tyler was such a talented songwriter who created some pretty cool and unique music–and he still is doing that today, along with the also-talented Josh Dun. I knew since the beginning of my life that I wanted to be involved with music in some way, but my mother’s and Tyler’s writing, and Twenty One Pilots as a musical act, really pushed me to try and get involved in music professionally. Obviously, I started as Skaivi only a couple years ago. Like I talked about at other times, that was an issue of me wanting to be hands-on with my music and create it myself. It just wasn’t enough for me to have people create their own version of what should be done with my lyrics. Although, I never believed I could be good in music production until I was 17. At that age, I’ve been a Grimes fan for around a year. Seeing her and her journey (at least, all that was documented on the internet) was fascinating. I could actually listen to a lot of her very early works and see how she improved over time. It showed a more realistic view of an artist’s path, which I don’t see a lot with other musicians. Oftentimes, people just pull their old work out of existence and pretend it doesn't exist, and you think they started with those perfect and polished production (or writing) skills they currently have. So, when I saw Grimes, I had a thought that maybe I could become good too, and that producing music might go well for me. After I learned music production, it all just went up from there since I could now finally express myself and my ideas. That’s how I started my artist journey as Skaivi. I’m glad I learned that it’s all a process and that everyone has to learn and start somewhere. No one is amazing at a skill right away. I have to say, though, seeing Grimes’ older work really gave me an appreciation for more unpolished sounding music. I don’t know if it’s just that music these days–not only in pop, but in other genres too–has become quite sterile and perfect, but I often find myself preferring something that has a bit of a “homemade” quality rather than overproduced, if that makes sense.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: You are a music composer, music producer, and a singer. Which of those brings you the most joy and why?
SKAIVI: All of those truly bring me a lot of joy. They’re all facets of music I like being involved in. If I have to pick one, though…that would be music producing. When I learned music production, it’s like something clicked in my life. There’s just something incredible to me about listening to all of these options of synthesizers and other instruments I have to choose from, and building something together with them, basically puzzle-piecing an idea I had in my mind and bringing it into reality. It’s really so cool. Producers also all have their own sounds and styles, so my creations and vibes are all unique to me. No one can create in the way that I do and vice versa. Not to mention, being in charge of a project and being the boss, essentially, is pretty fun too. A producer is an extremely important role to have, so it feels kind of special to put on that hat.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: Your voice has been described as ethereal. What inspires the dreamy quality of your voice? Do you plan to stick to these kinds of vocals only, or do you want to experiment with different ones?
SKAIVI: My vocal inspiration comes mainly from artists like Grimes, FKA Twigs, and Enya. They all often do this sort of voice that’s kinda stylistically operatic, yet not entirely opera. It’s this in-between vocal, being somewhere in the middle of opera and contemporary. We all sound unique in our own way, but there’s that general similarity there for all of us. I think it’s a very beautiful style and I’m always eager to use it when it fits the song. I’m really glad that people like my voice and think of it as ethereal and beautiful. When I see those compliments, it really brightens my day, especially since I’ve been really insecure about my vocals at times…especially as a kid. Anyways, at the end of the day, I’ll definitely use whatever vocal style will fit a song, but that specific style is such a favorite of mine. In terms of experimenting with new vocal styles, it’s something I definitely want to do. I want to eventually venture into powerhouse vocals and harsh vocals–both of which I will go to a teacher for…I always think it’s better to be safer than sorry, as I don’t want to risk unnecessary harm to my vocal chords.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: You have a role as the Vice President of Artist's House. What does it mean to you to be vice president and how are you involved in Artist’s House? Does this influence your own artistic endeavors?
SKAIVI: Even though music is my main focus in life, I’m still really glad to be vice president and be involved with Artist’s House. It’s a good way to build community with other artists, and I also feel like I can “give back,” in a way, by offering that sort of promotion. It can also be quite fun. I’m one half of the interviewing team (for written interviews), and I love getting to know all about these different artists and their careers and lives. On some days, it’s hard to think of questions compared to others, and that can be a challenge, but we still pull it off. I also manage and maintain the website, edit interviews, and sometimes post on our social media. I would say my role influences me to strive to become a better artist and to have more of a presence. Seeing these other artists, many of whom are in a similar position as you, doing their best and building their way up…it can be pretty inspiring.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: Which artists would you like to collaborate with in the future and how?
SKAIVI: There’s so many artists I would love to collaborate with! Firstly, I’d say working with BTS, whether it’s the whole group or a solo project, would be such an unforgettable experience for me. I would love to write with them and, if possible, produce a song too. Not sure what kind of direction they’d want to go in, but I definitely wouldn’t mind producing some kind of electronic hip-hop song for them…something similar to Idol or Mic Drop. It would also be very interesting if they would want to go down a more experimental route and try something different musically. Of course, I would also want to collaborate with Grimes–the artist that inspired me to try music producing. A collaboration with her can go any way, I think. She seems to be singing on other people’s productions lately, so maybe I could write and produce a song and she would do vocals…or we could also work on every aspect of the song together. I’m up for anything. Don’t want to make a giant list of people I want to work with, so I'll say just one more... Lastly, I would like to collaborate with my favorite guitarist: Daron Malakian of System Of A Down. One time, I had a dream that I made this really epic, ethereal, electronic-metal album. From what I remember, it was basically vocals and instruments with lots of reverb, there was some nice guitar stuff going on, and there were also various synthesizers in the song doing their thing. Now, I’d be glad to have him involved and playing guitar in any kind of project with me, but I’d be curious to see what he would come up with in a song with that kind of vibe. Again, that’s just one idea, but I’m open to others. It’s a pretty specific project, so I’ll end up doing that someday no matter who it’s with, because that’s one idea I really want to get done eventually.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: What kind of lyrics do you like to write the most and why?
SKAIVI: I like to write lyrics about all kinds of things! Firstly, the more poetic and/or abstract it is, the better. I often enjoy lyrics that don’t entirely make sense literally, but you can “feel” them, lyrics that use figurative and expressive language, as well as lyrics that are subtle and don’t straight up “tell” you what the song is about. Anything too simple, I hate. Basic lyrics, when it comes to my own writing, literally annoy me, haha. There needs to be something more going on in the lyrics for me to be satisfied with my work. When it comes to topics, again, I like writing about many things. But if I had to choose, maybe topics related to mythology, magic, and the like are my favorite to write about.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: Do you think artists can be genuine friends with each other? What if competition is involved? Can they truly support each other? What do you think about that kind of friendship?
SKAIVI: I feel that artists should always put aside competitiveness in favor of fostering genuine connections with their industry peers. Unfortunately, there are many times where this does not happen. I think that quite a few artists out there have their eyes set on whatever prize they're after, and they get almost territorial about it to the point they see literally everyone as competition. That’s not healthy, and it will not help you out in the long run. Being famous isn’t everything either. In my opinion, it’s a lot better to be kind and give respect to others, show gratitude, and lift up your fellow peers by showing support for them and their projects. Artists can absolutely be genuine friends with each other…they just have to remember to stay grounded and remember the reason they started art in the first place. Don’t let the idea of fame hinder your relationships and how you treat others. And, to add on, don’t go chasing after certain artists only because you think that being friends with them will give you some kind of ticket to fame, because it doesn’t work like that. Stick with real friends, and be a real friend to others.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: What do you imagine the world will look like in the future and what kind of role will music play in people’s lives?
SKAIVI: I honestly have no idea what the world as a whole will look like in the future, but I do know that music will forever continue to be a big part of people’s lives. Since the beginning of humanity, music has been something special for humans–and for many years, it’s been something that gives listeners true solace and a reason to live. I don’t think that’ll ever stop. Even with A.I. growing, people will always crave that connection to the human experience that music gives them. It’s other fellow people’s emotions and ideas being poured out into these wonderful sounds. Creativity, and the act of creating, is amazing and always will be.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: Some people say they hear music anytime and anywhere. Is this the case with you too?
SKAIVI: I would say so! I very often have music floating around in my head–both other musicians’ works and my own. For mine, I often get random ideas that range from little melodies to full arrangements. Sometimes I think it’s such a pain that I can’t just copy and paste the exact arrangements in my head out into real life, because I’ve had many that were just too complicated to bring to life myself, but they were so beautiful, and unfortunately I ended up losing them and they floated away into the void. Luckily, melodies are very easy to deal with because I can just hum an idea into my phone or put something down quickly in Logic.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: Would you like to consider singing on the stage in the future, and if yes, where and with whom would you like to share the stage?
SKAIVI: For sure! I’d love to sing on a stage someday. I just need to build up a bigger catalog and make sure I have effective in-ear monitors that will protect my ears and hearing properly. I would enjoy sharing the stage with J-Hope of BTS! He’s such a fun performer that really lights up a room. I consider his Lollapalooza performance in Chicago a masterclass in stage presence, haha. I’m not really sure where I’d like to perform. At the very least, I know that it’d be pretty amazing to eventually get to the point where I can sell out United Center!
ARTIST’S HOUSE: What projects are you currently working on, and what can your fans expect from you in the near future?
SKAIVI: I’m currently working on a specific song that is–what I’m hoping will be–my next single! I have finishing touches to make to the instrumental, which I’m being quite picky about because I really want it to shine, and then I gotta do vocals for it. I think fans can expect more songs that are in the style of “Selene Of The Night,” and music that has dark production, as well as ethereal, kind of witch house-y vibes, and general experimental electronic. As I have written on my website, lately I’m really inspired by artists in the realm of Grimes, Purity Ring, FKA Twigs, HANA, Crystal Castles (plus Alice Glass’s solo work), Pastel Ghost, and the like.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: What’s your favorite meal to eat? Favorite thing to snack on?
SKAIVI: Hard to choose! Recently, I’ve been loving pasta a lot…especially when it’s cheese-y (vegan cheese, of course) and has some olive oil added. So, I’ll go with pasta. My favorite snack? Also recently, I’ve been munching a lot on Aloha protein bars–the chocolate fudge brownie kind. They’re so good! Being packed with protein is a big plus and they do strengthen me a bit. I am also still in love with my precious oat milk chocolate. Lindt makes the best ones. Their bars are divine! I would eat their oat milk chocolate bars all day if sugar wasn’t an issue, haha.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: Can you share a nice childhood memory with us?
SKAIVI: When I was a kid, I always loved when my mom and I had a fun girls’ day. We would drive in the car and listen to CDs, go to the mall for a few hours, visit some stores and buy some cute clothes…I think sometimes we’d get food to-go…it was simple but provided me a lot of joy, especially when I had some rough times. I would love to keep doing that these days, actually!
ARTIST’S HOUSE: If you could, where would you like to travel and why?
SKAIVI: I want to travel all over the world! To name a few…I would want to go to Poland and Slovakia eventually to visit my family again; Japan–because I’ve thought that it seems like a pretty interesting place since I was a kid, and I even used to learn Japanese; and various countries in West Asia and North Africa–to visit historical regions of ancient civilizations such as Mesopotamia and ancient Egypt.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: What do your fans mean to you as an artist? How do your fans impact you and your life?
SKAIVI: My fans mean so much to me! And they really do impact my life in a really big way. When I have someone messaging me and saying that they enjoy listening to my music, that I’m their favorite artist, or some other sweet words, it makes my life so much brighter. I absolutely love when my music and I affect other people’s lives in such a positive way. It fulfills my sense of purpose and it makes me happy that my fans’ lives are better in some way because of me. Right after the act of actually creating my music, making people’s lives happier with it is my passion and life goal. The way music can connect humans with each other is just beautiful and it’s a wonderful feeling to experience when you know that someone is in a better state because of your work.
ARTIST’S HOUSE: Anything else you want to say to your fans and the people reading?
SKAIVI: Thank you so much for supporting me through everything! And thank you for being patient while waiting for new music…I know I can be a bit of a slow worker sometimes, but I just want my music to be the best it can be. I hope you liked reading the interview and that you found out some new, interesting things about me!
APRIL 18, 2024