Ghyst in the Dark
The subgenre known as dark pop is one I don’t know much about, despite my love for all music genres. It’s not a matter of not liking it, but of exposure. For that reason, I’m glad to have had the opportunity to interview someone whose profession is composing such songs. For the first time, I was able to sit and enjoy what others have been enjoying dark pop since its emergence.
From our first communication, it was apparent that GHYST was the kind of individual who didn’t mince words, and her uncensored manner comes through in her songs, which tell stories of pain and rage.
There were two things about your new project that jumped out at me when I was reading up on you, and one of which was that this single is “an Anthem for the Villain Era. What is it, and should we all be concerned about it? I suffer from anxiety, so this is also a personal question.
I think we all have a little villain in us. Our society teaches us that rage and anger are something to push away or consider “bad”. I think rage is actually really useful. It alerts my body that there’s something wrong. And right now… to be honest… there’s a lot wrong with the world, so it’s hard not to be angry. My music is really a way to release that pageful revenge feeling somewhere that’s safe, and you can feel without acting on it. My song is an anthem for anyone who is tired of being “quiet”, tired of being “too much”. Villains are loud. They are unapologetic and intense. It’s ok to let our villain side out a little bit. Let yourself feel the villain's thoughts so you don’t do something stupid. At least that’s how I’ve used my music.
The other thing is your new single, “Radon”. If I remember correctly from science class, it’s a radioactive gas. What’s the relationship between it and your music?
You are not wrong there lol… It’s definitely dark. Radon is actually a claim-your-power-back song. I had a horribly abusive relationship that made me question my own morals and my own dignity, with how much this person hurt me. I just wanted to hurt him back… but that was against who I am as a person. So how could I get the feeling out? Write a song about gassing him. And so Radon was formed. It’s dark… It’s supposed to be so I don’t have to be. I put it in the music. It’s quite therapeutic.
Why do people watch horror films? If you look at horror films, most of them actually have a much deeper meaning. It elevates your heart rate and temporarily takes you out of your own reality and emotions. My music does that WITH talking about the emotions… almost like a horror film with an even deeper meaning.
When you began playing music, did you start off with traditional instruments, or was it always electronic?
I started in bluegrass actually lol…. I know how to play the banjo, mandolin, and even the washboard, lol. I grew up in Colorado, so I was heavily influenced by our folk scene. It wasn’t until middle school that I became absolutely obsessed with making music with my computer! My single mom worked 2 jobs and got me one of those old-school Mac computers that had the first edition of GarageBand. IT. CHANGED. EVERYTHING. I never went back. In high school, I learned Ableton, and then I actually went to college for recording engineering, and now here we are!
How and when did you decide to make dark pop? Did you ever think of recording other genres of music when you began?
I’ve written and recorded so many different genres over the years that it’s kind of exhausting, lol… but dark pop came sort of by happenstance. I was getting into darker synth sound design but was still really passionate about songwriting and didn’t quite know how to bring the two together, so my weird dark rage pop genre was born to do exactly this… blend EDM, pop, and good storytelling songwriting.
There’s a guitar in VOMIT. Is that you, or someone else? And have you recorded any of your music with other musicians?
It depends on which song. The guitar in VOMIT is actually my buddy who’s got the most wicked rack set up… much more metal than mine, but I do play the guitar in most of the others.
Being a musician who incorporates different music genres, what did you start off with first? Which genre did you begin with when you decided that you wanted to make music?
When I was in college, I really mastered the craft of EDM and dubstep. I had a separate project that gained a lot of traction playing shows with Mitis, Nurko, etc, but the true art of songwriting was missing. It was then that I decided this should be an edm pop hybrid that’s a bit more aggressive than your average Pop.
Where did your name come from? Does it come from the German word for “spirit”?
Yes. Taken from Poltergeist… in fact, my independent label is called polterghyst, through which I release everything. No one actually knows my true identity, which is part of the fun! I registered my project GHYST under another pseudonym… Luci Fir. Which, as you can see… is Lucifer. It all seemed fitting, considering I was going to be writing such dark music. Kind of adds to the darkness and mystery.
On social media, typing in all caps is considered shouting, and I noticed that the titles of all of your singles are capitalized. Is that what you wanted to convey?
Yea my music’s pretty loud and shouty, so it’s fitting…
I’m AuDHD and have had to deal with depression, anxiety, and trauma. The way I get through it all is through listening to music and watching anime. You work through your psych issues through your music. How has that worked out for you?
First off, thanks for sharing that with me. It’s so awesome seeing others be as open as I am about mental health cause it’s everything. I actually have had bipolar depression my entire life. I actually don’t experience a lot of rage, though, and I think that’s a huge part of my music. It holds my rage when I can’t.
There was a time when I watched American Idol, and Simon Cowell always seemed to be a “scary” figure. Did you ever feel any trepidation standing and performing in front of him and the judges’ panel?
OMG, it was the scariest moment of my life. I was only 17. It’s weird, not a lot of people know this, but they make you sign these ridiculous contracts that say that they can basically film you wherever, whenever, while you are there. I’m not kidding when I say that the camera man followed me into the bathroom… like it was fucked up. I will never say anything good about those “star-finding shows”. I dodged such a fat bullet.
Who influenced your rapping? Was it someone currently popular, or someone from a previous generation?
I grew up in Y2K Pop and Rap, so my main influences were Missy Elliot, Eminem, Dr. Dre, etc. But I also have so much influence from the Pop Y2K, like Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, etc. It’s been fun to merge the two.
What’s it like where you grew up? Is it conducive to your kind of music?
So I was actually born in LA to two parents who were both in the entertainment industry (no, I am not a nepo baby lol… far from), but my parents were always so artsy. My dad is a musician and actor, and my mom is a designer and model. They both played a huge role. They both had a hard time in LA, so we moved to Colorado, so my Dad could go back to school. But I think the LA girl in me just stayed cause now I’m back out here (not to mention my mama still helps style some of my shoots).
Aside from American Idol, have you performed at any venues, and what has the response been like to your music in general?
I have actually! My first two projects did pretty well. I’ve performed at several venues in Colorado, with the biggest being Red Rocks. I’m still getting my live set together for GHYST, but I am really looking forward to taking it live eventually!
Is there anything you’d like to add to your music that you haven’t done yet?
Tbh… I want to get more in-depth with my lyrics. More introspective rage. It’ll be fun to see the evolution…
I know that it’s hard enough trying to get a single out, even more so working on an album. Do you have plans to eventually release it?
Yes! It’s so tricky being independent since I literally do everything… so it’s been slower than I’d hoped, but… I have two more singles coming out, as well as several collabs and features. All of them will eventually be compiled into a full album. Hoping to do the full album within a year!
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