Dupla 02 and the singer RUBI teamed up again to compose a song, after the success of their collaboration in “Balalayka”. The new single, entitled “Russyan Tanjiro”, through the main audio platforms distributed by Universal Music Brasil. The song is a characteristic mix of Dupla 02’s irreverent work, with references to Russian rapper Instasamka’s sound style. The chorus mentions Tanjiro Kamado, main character of the Demon Slayer anime, uniting both inspirations for the song’s title.
The production of “Russyan Tanjiro” is quite aggressive and frantic, with distorted synths and 808’s and a very evident kick. In the first half, hyperpop introduces what’s to come, while in the second half, the sound speeds up to drum’n’bass, like a car going 200km per hour. The lyrics follow the intense and diverse rhythm of the beat, calling the audience to “stick” with Dupla 02 and RUBI, and touching on deeper themes throughout the song.
The clip for “Russyan Tanjiro” features new production techniques, directed by Cainã Tavares and Joma Nigra, promising to surprise fans of Dupla 02 and RUBI.
This is not the first time that Dupla 02 and RUBI collaborate together, in addition to “Balalayka”, the singer has also participated in some of the duo’s concerts. ENOW points out that working with the singer-songwriter is always very productive. Check out the interview!
Dupla 02 and singer RUBI teamed up to release “Russyan Tanjiro”, after the success of the partnership in “Balalayka”. I would like to know how was the experience of working with the singer on both songs and how did the idea of inviting the singer for these singles come up?
It’s always great to work with RUBI, before being professional partners the three of us are very good friends, so since the beginning of Dupla 02 we’ve wanted to make a sound with her because we’re on the same path and share the same dream. RUBI has a very different, aggressive sound, she likes beats that deviate from mainstream standards, so when ENOW started making Russyan Tanjiro’s beat, we thought of her at the time. When creating, we understand and complement each other, it’s always a light atmosphere in the studio that ends up resulting in incredible songs.
The production of “Russyan Tanjiro” is quite aggressive, frantic and influenced by Japanese pop culture. Specifically, what were the influences on the production?
The main influence was neither Japanese nor Russian culture. The main influence of Russyan Tanjiro’s production was the Belgian electronic music producer Apashe. We used the music he made with Instasamka as a reference, in addition to using the characteristic timbres that Apashe uses in all his productions.
Promoting a mixture of styles, the song sought a lot of reference in the sound of the Russian rapper Instasamka, who have accompanied them since their partnership with Apashe. What attracted you most to her sound?
The sound of Instasamka is very different from what we are used to hearing. She explores all timbres that her voice can reach, whether in the bass or in the treble, in addition to exploring different genres such as Trap and Pop. But by far her music that caught our attention the most was the Drum and Bass she recorded with producer Apashe.
Just as life inspires art, one art can also inspire another, as was the case with the anime “Demon Slayer”, which through the character Tanjiro Kamado is mentioned in the chorus of this new song. How did this cultural cross happen?
Thalin had just watched the anime when he wrote Russyan Tanjiro’s chorus. The song speaks a lot about the life of the Brazilian musical artist and in the chorus he wanted to emphasize the various demons that we have to face throughout our career, soon the relationship with the anime Demon Slayer came to mind, then came the quote to the character main anime.
Still regarding the music creation process, how does your creative process usually work when composing?
The creative process varies a lot, but in the case of RUSSYAN TANJIRO the beat made by ENOW came before the lyrics or the melody of the voice, as soon as Thalin heard it he wrote the lyrics right away, in the studio, as well as the vast majority of times since the end of the Coronavirus pandemic. ENOW already made the beat with reference to the song Uebok VIP by Apashe in partnership with Instasamka, the second part of the beat, Drum and Bass, ENOW, Thalin and RUBI thought together in the studio, as they felt that the beat needed to speed up. The chorus was only thought of at the end of the demo recording, when we heard it and felt that we had to repeat Thalin’s final verse.
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*With Regina Soares