A Chat with John Kampouropoulos (31.07.23)
Embracing his natural musical talent early in life, singer-songwriter John Kampouropoulos brings a sense of honesty, diversity and passion to his music. We speak with John Kampouropoulos about his EP Dark Matter, AI music videos, what music means to him, and more.
OSR: A cliché question but what drew you to music? Why did you decide to become a musician?
Kampouropoulos: Music was an influence long before I could even speak and a need I would feel, long before I could comprehend its very fabric. I was raised in a family of musicians; my father was a former Greek National Opera singer back in the 60s (he sang as a lead in various operas) and my mother was a soprano leggera, with a vast number of collaborations, including the Ministry of Culture, the Foundation of Hellenic Cultural Legacy (later Foundation for the Greater Hellenism), and performed at the Cannes Festival. Recently I found an old 70s photograph of a 2-year-old me and my father trying to co-ordinate a “guitar and voice rehearsal”. My first ever recorded vocal performance took place when I was 4. I’d always feel and think in a very creative way, which eventually led me to music and storytelling. But music kept a special place in my character, so I guess it was the natural course of things, and the most honest thing for me to do after an odyssey of other jobs in my life.
OSR: What does music mean to you?
Kampouropoulos: Expression, creation, creative work, imagination, freedom, responsibility.
OSR: What or who inspires you to create music?
Kampouropoulos: Life is the greatest pool of inspiration. Things I go through; things other people experience; the ideas; the feelings. It all boils down to a creative process that, in the end, when the song’s completed, makes you feel peaceful and a tiny bit wiser – or not. Emotions and ideas keep the engine running.
OSR: What can you tell us about your EP Dark Matter?
Kampouropoulos: Dark Matter could be described as a dark release in terms of mood and ideas told and shared. But as a scientific term, dark matter consists of a non-emissive substance. It devours light and energy, yes, but doesn’t react and doesn’t affect other entities, as a Black Hole does. So I made myself an observer of some things that happened in my life and in the life of other people around me, and delved deeper into a more philosophical quest to express feelings about lessons learned in life, to describe how the twisted-minded people might feel and act (it’s always easier to point fingers at the inflicted, much less easy to try to understand what’s happening in their soul), about the strength of romance in a married life with kids and the presence of human instincts of prevalence inside a socially imposed institution, the loneliness of a lover gone separate ways with his other half just because of their human nature, and, last but not least, about the oddities of life.
I’ve always been fascinated by life’s depths, in a more philosophical aspect that touches both the everyday existence and lands to the meaning of time, war, peace, love, hate, and all the elements that consist of the driving forces of life. And as songwriting can be a short space to deploy, I expanded this quest and questions into my own sci-fi saga books. Dark Matter could be named as the descendant of another older EP, Hero and a Crucifix (2020), but instead of focusing on the personal experiences which Hero… mainly deals with. This recent release delves into a more dark and deeper corner of existence, but without “emitting a dark energy” – exactly as the scientific explanation suggests.
OSR: What were the most exciting and most challenging things about creating Dark Matter?
Kampouropoulos: Now, I won’t lie on this: the biggest challenge while working on Dark Matter was actually exhaustion. I’ve been releasing songs since 2017 almost on a semi-annual basis; every 6 months new songs were composed, recorded, produced, uploaded and promoted. Videos were created – either clips or live performances – as well as two compilations were made; one as a “summer version” of selected songs, and another as an unplugged version of my most popular songs. Dark Matter’s recording and production took place a few months after my mother died, and 4 years after my dad’s passing. Many things had to be taken care of, as well as my musical activities, which included many weekly online streams due to the pandemic restrictions. That was the first time in my recording history when I let my physical and mental fatigue be deliberately depicted in my vocal performance. The song ‘Fighting Spirit’ is a typical example of this practice, as well as ‘Stay Alive’. I also had to minimize my otherwise “rich, wall-of-sound-like” arrangement and production style. I just didn’t have the strength to do more. But that is also Dark Matter’s strong, distinctive asset; it’s the deepest, most inner point that must get across, so both production and arrangement finally contribute to that. Which, by the way, was also a challenging thing, as I’m used to producing in a more pluralistic manner.
“Wall-of-sound” style had been one of my strongest influences in music production, and most of my releases are characterised by that technique, in a variant which I call my own. Another big challenge was that even in the most personal stories, such as the opening track ‘Fighting Spirit’, all storytelling had to be done in a more educative way, rather than just “let it all out”. The same goes for the song ‘Implode’, which is a dark ode to the mentally ill, with sociopath symptoms. The middle rap part is both a statement and a teaching confession of a mentally ill person. Now, don’t worry, I’m not the mentally ill here! I just had the chance to meet and socialize with such people, once or twice. Trust me, their behavioural impact is, sadly I must say, very recognisable.
OSR: What do you hope people take from the EP?
Kampouropoulos: I hope they feel the vibes, listen to the story, and have their own conclusions. My music has never been a “product for entertainment”; I’m a storyteller and I like to think deeper. If all the good people out there listen to the EP as a whole and that gives them something they have to think about, or feel the vibes, or maybe relate to the songs in their own special ways, then I guess my message – my questions, in fact – had fulfilled a purpose. That’s the biggest thing about Art; it’s all about the spirit of the message, not the message itself. Modern times have deprived works of art of this axiom, leading to a much… “attractive” look.
OSR: What are the pros and cons of being a solo artist, particularly in this digital age?
Kampouropoulos: Well, it’s an era of creative freedom. Being a solo artist – much more an indie artist – is a difficult task. Technology and the internet create an abundance of means to promote music, but all the while feels like swimming in the Atlantic Ocean wearing only insulated overalls. Everyone can make their music public, but it’s unlikely a guarantee. An artist nowadays must combine art, performance and production skills, marketing knowledge, promotional organising skills and effective execution workflow, must have the budget required to create paid promotions, must have an adequate budget to spend on third-party services, and must be able to get funds in order to schedule and realise tours in small and medium scale. it’s a one-man show. However, I don’t believe in such “laxed means”; when everything depends on one person, the slightest glitch has a huge collateral impact. The old “regime” had not disappeared; it only had been reformed to a so-called “open society of creators and agents”, so as to adapt to the new challenges.
A solo artist, albeit free to act in whatever ways he sees fit, is nevertheless tied to a vastly overpopulated field of opportunities by opportunists, social media algorithms, a constant shout-out and buzz everywhere, resulting in an endless try to cut through that noise by creating more noise, which eventually leads to an indefinite budget rising with uncertain results. An average person’s mind can only absorb a certain amount of information at the time, however, modern industry is set to emphasize quantity, not quality, relying mostly on a social media presence rather than the music created. The digital algorithms, a very sophisticated and useful tool, has become the ruler of all things – but this is not its designated purpose. Some artists, as well as a few industry top-level pros, know that, so this is why there is a turn to a more ‘close-to-human-habits’ kind of promotion and production.
Last but not least, streaming, instead of helping spread Art, has turned into a means of demoting artists’ invested money into productions by giving away bits and pieces of royalties per stream. Nowadays, the gross value per released track has dropped down to less than a dollar, whereas in the late 90s, an average CD track’s value was almost 5 dollars.
OSR: We’re seeing more and more AI music videos being released. What are your thoughts on the use of AI in music videos?
Kampouropoulos: I think it’s a brilliant idea. You see, the biggest problem we music creators used to face was, in fact, creating a video clip. With the use of AI, every artist has now the ability to present something that might not be 100% unique, but at least it will help promote the brand. Legit video clips will always remain in demand, but will only be used when bands/artists are truly able to sustain such an investment.
OSR: Do you have any future plans as an artist?
Kampouropoulos: I’m focusing on planning my next tour abroad, and probably will visit Scotland again, maybe Ireland too. I’ve been kept busy for quite a long time now, tending to other crucial things – and still will be for the coming months. I’ll organise a month-long tour, but that won’t happen until early 2025. In terms of creating new songs, I am taking some time off, as I feel I’ve nothing new to say at the moment. One thing that had a serious impact over the past 6 months is losing hearing in my left ear. Now I have to adapt to a new reality, which includes many dangers in everyday life. Anyway, everything will be done in due time.
OSR: Do you have a message for our readers?
Kampouropoulos: Enjoy the music, support all aspects of Art and the artists, and of course, never stop dreaming of a better world!
Many thanks to John Kampouropoulos for speaking with us. Find out more about John Kampouropoulos on his Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Spotify.
