Alex Kavvadias was born in Australia and is currently based in Athens. He rose to fame as the lead singer of the Greek band, Matisse, and he also had a great career in modeling as well. Alex decided to start a solo career having a faithful audience instinctively following him.
After the release of his new song, entitled “Wonderland”, and the premiere of its official video, we found a great opportunity to talk to Alex about this release. He also shared with us his perspective about art through graffiti and beliefs about writing a “successful” song. While he is thankful for his past and his career so far, Alex is full of goals and dreams about the future.
With an absolute thinking about his choices so far and inexhaustible positivity, Alex wants to try new things all the time and make new collaborations. As he said, in his upcoming song he is going to team up with a famous artist. Would Alex Kavvadias make a political comment via his song? What is his motto in life?
Read below the whole interview he gave to SounDarts.gr!
Alex, welcome at SounDarts.gr! Recently you announced the release of your new song, “Wonderland”. Can you tell us more about it?
My new song, “Wonderland”, is written by Fraidra Grammenos and produced by Greggy K and Ren visualized by Konstantinos Grigorakakis, with Konstantinos Tzoumas and Dorothea Merkori as cast members. “Wonderland” as a meaning in the song symbolizes the gift of unfulfilled love. Denaturing and reconnecting with the broken, romantic innocence of the child’s side of every soul. It is the authentic romance that the modern man often renounces in order to fit into a raw, cynical reality. The world and the planets were born through the ultimate darkness of the universe, and just like this, through the darkness of the unfulfilled love can finally spring up and emerge a new being, a new creative, romantic self that is no longer in lethargy.
How did the collaboration with Konstantinos Tzoumas and Dorothea Merkouri happen?
Me and Faidra Grammenos, who wrote the song, always admired Konstantinos as a personality and artist, as I always adored the rare, classical beauty, dynamism and finesse of Dorothea. We thought that both of them would be a special combination for this particular song and so we suggested that they should collaborate with us and they accepted.
With your song “Abnormal” you touched the issue of bullying, a severe social issue. Would you ever have a political commentary in your songs? Do you think music is a means of personal mobilization or is it superficial ?
I like to raise issues through music without making political comments. Art is a means of mobilization at all levels and I think that its purpose is to do it in a magical way. There is no need to involve fanaticism, dogmatisms and limited absolute convictions. Art is supposed to help us open our horizons and reconcile with the unknown and the uncertainty.
You have been in the music industry for many years. What do you think has changed in the audience’s hearing preferences, through this time?
I think that I have the same audience pretty much, maybe with a little differentiation, but I’m not sure how to define it.
How easy is it to make a “success”, nowadays? What role do the record companies and the internet play in your opinion?
It depends on what someone considers as a “success”. It is certainly harder to make money nowadays, while it was easier in the past, but I think that when a good job is done, it will be heard and recognized as it always happens… the internet certainly makes the situation easier.
Have you ever regretted something you did or something you didn’t do in your musical career so far?
I have regretted nothing!
Matisse is an important chapter in your life and career. Would you pursue to be a member in a band again? And if so, in what terms?
It was an abundant experience, but I am satisfied with my solo career and I don’t believe that I would go through this procedure again. Nonetheless, I am interested in collaborations with other artists and I’m planning a surprising collaboration with a known artist for my next song.
How much have you changed your choices and your collaborations over the years?
I like maneuvering and trying new things that may seem disharmonious or contradictory to some people. Although, I feel that the experimentation and the collaborations with different styled artists and sounds enrich and evolve me as an artist…for example I have teamed up with Psarantonis and also with Lady Gaga, on a song against trafficking for MTV EXIT.
Regardless of music, you find the art through graffiti in every corner in Athens which is shown through your photo shootings. Which story behind these graffiti made the greatest impression to you and why?
I love street art. It gives life and color in the town. There’s something special in everything I have photographed so far and it’s hard for me to focus on just one.
Considering the difficult times we’re going through, would you pursue to travel abroad and follow a career there?
At this point of my life I am satisfied with my life in Greece, but I don’t think this could rule out the possibility of moving abroad, if the occasion arises.
What do you love about Greece?
I love the weather, the warmth in the climate and the psyche of the Greeks.
Finally, we would like to know, what is your motto in life?
It’s quite cliché but it expresses me perfectly: Ceise the day!!!
Interview: Elektra Limnios
