At the end of September, the new season of the talent show X Factor begins, in which soloists, duets, groups will compete. Singer and composer Jānis Stībelis did not participate in a reality show in his career, but he studied rhythm blues vocals for a few years at the Hollywood Music Institute in the USA. It is a pity that Jānis is not invited to the jury of the show, because he knows how to play the piano and the guitar, as well as sing and write a song. When they are happy, they write sad songs, when they are sad, they are ready to sing their hit, I’m just laughing.
At the moment, Jānis has his hands full, preparing the presentation concert of the new album Smaidot, the program of which, hopefully, will be played again someday. Stībelis admires the intelligent, beautiful interior of the VEF Culture Palace. Harmony and positivity are also key words in the musician’s work, in which he does not seek cheap popularity, but proclaims his belief that we are responsible for our own well-being.
I am a little bit offended by the political elite who are taking away our jobs. As if they should improve the state administration, the tax system, but they start working in the entertainment industry – as clowns, magicians – and more and more visibly.
It is cool that we are aware of our sense of community, value and statehood, but there are many good examples around, such as Estonia and Lithuania. If you start to compare, then you understand – it’s crazy how inefficient our state administration is, half of the civil servants should be thrown out because they don’t do their job at a proper level. This can be observed in the gross domestic product, in the national debt, which accumulates over the years, in the total of billions. I don’t want to sound like a bitter pot, but sometimes I get angry because we are not made of a different dough than the same Lithuanians. Why can they do better and we can’t?
Now we have a new government. Do pop musicians somehow feel the Ministry of Culture’s concern for their activities?
In recent years, maybe yes, Dace Melbärde was the first one who was felt to be ready for conversations with, so to speak, the light genre, contacted musicians’ associations and at least a small piece of the pie from the State Cultural Capital Fund could be given to pop music. But, excuse me, academics, the nation consumes that light food on a daily basis, and the gourmands who go to the opera are relatively much less. It is clear that it is high art that should be donated, but not all pop musicians make a living at the drop of a hat. For us to make records of popular music in our language is not a profitable thing, we know what happens in the recording industry, as we did during the two crazy years of covid. It would be very nice if we get more support, taking the example of Great Britain, Sweden, where this support is at least half. In Sweden, pop music brings a quarter of the gross domestic product, so a tangible benefit, they export a huge amount not only musicians and songs, but also services, studio recordings, producers. The singer himself is the tip of the iceberg, at the bottom is a giant industry. There is also a board of professionals who invest in new artists every year, so Swedish musicians also have success all over the world. After ABBA, there have been countless success stories, we don’t always know that it is a product of Sweden.
Probably, in teaching young talents, you should start from the basics, how to move the house. For example, you also played Talsa in Dixieland Sprīdīši, just like Intars Busulis. Do your children also attend music school?
We didn’t have the X factor, but there was the Ko tu proti? competition. Everything depends on the young talent himself – whether he has enough determination, time and nerve to knock on doors that are mostly closed everywhere. Then comes the big wave that wipes out everything else in terms of publicity; a new performer can’t compete with that. It is clear that you need to slowly build up your muscles, find your strengths, then the TV show will be useful if you have already reached a certain professional level. You don’t need a show to play a ball at the Pastende Culture House. Practice, do it when you’re ready, then appear on TV, but for us it’s often the other way around – start with a show. When that unripe fruit falls, take the next one.
Yes, my children study at a music school, but this is also a painful question compared to, for example, the Nordic countries. There, the old traditions that a child must be able to play an instrument well have been put aside. In my opinion, maybe you shouldn’t start with Bach, but the blues, you should learn three chords. But as before, we try to raise everyone as the next virtuoso. Well, it won’t be. Maybe one out of a hundred will be a world-famous musician, maybe one out of a thousand. It is good if we ourselves are able to prepare musicians for our orchestras, of course this should be supported, but basic education in music schools should be differentiated so that a child does not dislocate his fingers while learning the guitar. It would be good if every guitar teacher could immediately accompany Zīlīti when I sing, but it is not the case anymore.
Maybe one day I will have my own academy, where there would be not only a vocal pedagogue, I could teach studio arranging, production, publishing, concert organization. First of all, I have to raise my three aspirants, with whom I can barely cope already. Maybe one day there will be an ensemble called Brāli Stībeli, but I don’t force them to choose this path, just like my parents didn’t force me what to do. My mother even told me to study to be a doctor. Yes, musical education is great. The sons also sing along with my songs, learn instruments, but everyone has to experience what they feel. Otherwise, it comes out like Michael Jackson with a spoiled childhood.
Jānis Stībelis offers us a glass of milk here, which became the most popular song of 2008, here is an example of optimism or invites you – always be positive! Please share your recipe for joy in life.
Many people write songs for themselves, maybe they are medicine for different states of the soul. When I’m sad, I try to write crazy fun music. If it’s black, I want it to be white, and vice versa. I would be happy if you could hear my humor in the songs where I joke, even goof around. It is the universal language in which you can talk to any person. Maybe you won’t be friends, but at least you’ll joke around. I agree that Latvians have a hard time with humor. British humor seems wonderful to me, the real stand-up guys there gather a full hall of the Apollo Theater in London for their humor evenings, and they have no taboo topics.
Latvians also like to laugh, for example, at the movie Limousine in the color of Midsummer’s Eve or Scroderdays. Improvisation theaters, young billboards, I’ve even collaborated with one another, for example Spidiena, make me very happy. Now and then I keep up with the Latvian billboard, but I would like the development there to happen faster. For example, the British get together in a pub and start muttering – it’s in their blood. A Brit grabs a beer, goes outside and starts talking to a complete stranger about any topic. It’s normal there, but if I started discussing, let’s say, the president’s pants at a bar on a Thursday night in Latvia, someone would definitely turn around and leave. Maybe no one would even talk to me. Well, Talsos would probably laugh with me. The simpler a person is, the easier it is to talk to them. I’m a complicated sparrow, a moody person, but I really like to laugh, so I try to include these emotions in my songs.
Speaking of Talsi, the days when you, as a 12-year-old, could play in the pub all night are long gone. Now there would be an orphan’s court, a labor inspectorate, trouble for the parents and the employer.
Of course, it is easier to live if the legislation is in order, but – if it works. When we had to order songs back then, we paid five lats for each one. Now an official from the SRS would come and say that tax must be paid. Nineties – it was real freedom, I could do what I wanted.
Yes, a lot has changed, for example, in the nineties the party just started after the concert, but now – all the musicians are at home, the table remains laid, the alcohol bottles are unopened. The pragmatism of this century and the terror of capitalism have swept away the bohemia, frivolity of the last century. You have to have a rehearsal tomorrow, then the recording, then you have to be there, otherwise you won’t be able to pay when the distribution network raises the rates again.
2023-10-09 04:13:00
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