Fudasca: ‘It’s always and only people who make the difference’

In view of the next edition of the Milano Music Week, scheduled in the Lombardy capital between November 18 and 24, NUOVOIMAIE – among the promoters of the event – proposes a series of meetings with protagonists of the Italian music scene not only to delve into the artistic dynamics that characterize the work of those who work in the sector, but also to take stock of how the current market scenarios impact the professional opportunities of those who have chosen creativity as a profession. Today, the word goes to Fudasca…

Starting from his home in the province of Rome, where he still lives, Fudasca – born Simone Eleuteri – has established himself in the space of a few years as one of the most appreciated Italian producers at a national and international level: inspired by the contemporary sounds of Drake and XXXTentacion as well as by classics such as Pink Floyd, Phil Collins and Michael Jackson, the artist boasts collaborations with British and American artists such as Snøw, Resident and Hashir. The unreleased single “Immagina”, made with Tredici Pietro, Francesca Michielin and Mecna, is available from today, Friday 20 September. Fudasca is among the protagonists of the Suzuki Music Party, which will be broadcast by 9 / Discovery in prime time next Sunday, 22 September.

You presented your new single at Suzuki Music Party, at Amadeus…

Yes, “Immagina” is my new piece with Tredici Pietro, Francesca Michielin and Mecna. It talks about relationships nowadays and how, among us young people, there is often a great desire to live love stories, to commit ourselves, but at the same time, there is also a lot of mistrust, a lot of trauma and a lot of disappointment in carrying them forward. As if we were living in “disposable” situations, in contrast with the values ​​and the strong and lasting love of our grandparents…

Last summer “Bloody Mary” was released, which you made with Willie Peyote and PUGNI: when you introduced it, you said that for this song you “let the flow” much more than in the past, having much more fun than in the past. How did you come to this conclusion? What are the differences compared to your usual way of working?

There has simply been less rationality and less desire to “fit” into the world in general at all costs. Unfortunately in today’s society, especially in art and on social media, we receive constant input that to be there you have to be there: 1) always and 2) always positive and energetic, which does not fit well with human nature and which often leads me to force myself to do things and do them in a certain way. In this case there was simply a desire to experiment, without pretensions and without particular directions and everything was more natural and smooth like a flow, we let time and ideas flow observing where the current took us and we liked the result.

You’ve managed to build an international career thanks to the Bootleg Boy channel and Discord, practically without ever leaving home: do you feel that technology, which is absolutely fundamental for artists of your generation, as well as offering enormous opportunities, has also taken something away from you?

Well yes, it takes away a bit of real human contact, even if in some periods it can literally save people’s mental health and lives: it is still a beautiful way to connect, meet people and build relationships. Since I’m working more in the studio in Italy, or even meeting artists in person in Los Angeles, I’m seeing that the human component is fundamental, the feeling is different and it’s something that no technology can replace.

Compared to your experiences with your foreign colleagues, how do you see the Italian scene? What are the differences in interacting with an artist who is our compatriot and a foreign one?

The main difference is not so much the nationality, but the person himself: I have had several situations with many artists from all over the world, almost always very positive. A “cultural” difference was pointed out to me by a sound engineer at Paramount Studios, in California, telling me that we Italians are more methodical and meticulous, and that we try to give a reason and a motivation to each step in building things, in this case the song, with criteria: it is an aspect that perhaps makes us more solid, but inevitably slower, while in America we work more for “vibe”, and we try to listen more to the “flow”, without following trends and fashions too much. This analysis inspired me a lot to try this kind of approach, coming back to Italy.

What is your creative and composition process? Compared to the classical composer / author, who starts from the relationship with the instrument, how does a producer / beatmaker like you work?

I actually almost always start from the instrument too, I play guitar and bass, and I jot down ideas from there. I often record a progression with a topline on my phone and then I transfer it to the DAW.

Lo-fi is a genre that has achieved great numbers on platforms abroad, but in Italy it has not yet achieved great commercial penetration: how do you see the prospects of the genre in our country?

I think that LOFI as it is known abroad, namely Powfu, xxx, is difficult to get across here. Producers and artists, including me, have been trying for years and what I have seen is that the lofi sounds and influences work much better than the pure genre, as we did with Pietro and Alfa in “Lentiggini”, for example.

In your works you often have a very “cinematic” approach: what is your relationship with cinema? Is there any work – film or soundtrack – that has particularly inspired you?

Of course! I am very passionate about Italian cinema, especially that of Sordi, Verdone, Troisi, Fellini, Vittorio De Sica and Nanni Moretti, Mastroianni and others: I have always been fascinated by the aesthetics and the never carefree lightness of their films, how they frame, describe and criticize Italy in various eras, the poetic imagery, not to mention the soundtracks that accompany their films and catapult you into the scenarios.

What do you think of the network of friends and collaborators that you have built up over the years of your activity as a producer? Do you think that today, in Italy, we can talk about – as we used to say years ago – a scene? If so, what do you think distinguishes it from others with which you have had the opportunity to come into contact?

Honestly, I don’t think there is a “scene”, neither Italian nor international, not in the sense that was given to it in 2016 for example: I think that, now, there are only artists who want to collaborate and artists who want to stay in their bubble. I am of the opinion that art should be made and shared, and I find it very sad and provincial to close yourself in your own bubble and work only with those 3 or 4 people without opening up to other visions and influences. It seems to me that the trend, from post-Covid onwards, is exactly that, and I see in it a bit of a death of music and of the concept of “scene” especially in Italy.

Being part of the Sony Music team has allowed you to get in touch with artists and insiders from their global team – recently, for example, you were in South Korea (where you already performed last year) and Los Angeles: how does the artist’s work change when you move to a major? What differences have you observed compared to when you worked independently?

Actually, not many, apart from the timing and the more reasoned schedule and honestly I prefer it that way, I prefer to have a team that helps me organize the work to be done and how to get it out in the best way.

Speaking of your ties to South Korea, what do you think is the reason for the power of the country’s music industry products? K-pop aside, what strikes you about the way South Koreans work, musically speaking?

I am very struck by their energy and dynamism, their desire to experiment and to make the song something more than simply “listening to it”, but that it becomes a piece of people’s everyday life..

Some people say that producers are the new authors today? Do you agree?

Partly yes, not all producers compose and do authorial work, but very often and more and more producers also coincide with composers and authors, as mentioned above, I myself compose and write the harmonic part of 90% of my pieces. For the more complex things I then get help, sometimes, from arrangers, who are a figure still little explored and – in my opinion – of whom little is spoken.

Despite the many important goals you have already achieved, is there one – or more than one – that you consider particularly important, and that you have set as a goal? How would you like to see your career evolve?

Yes, I would like to make a record with only Italian artists, put a piece in the nation where I live and bring my vision of the producer and of music and what I have learned working with artists from all over the world.

For an artist like you who works internationally in such different fields, how important is it to be protected regarding the related rights of your works? How would you explain to a younger colleague of yours, at the beginning of his career, the importance of collecting in the professional life of an artist?

It is an essential part of our work, it is important to know that our work is protected and to reap the benefits, also to be encouraged to continue, and NUOVOIMAIE can give us a big hand in this.