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ABOUT

 

THE STORY BEHIND PETER POP//

 

Peter from Gothenburg, Sweden was born in the 70´s into a musical family, more or less growing up in church where his father was a priest. Tell us more how it started.


4 years old I started accompanying my mothers guitar workshops on snaredrum and following my dad singing at the elderly homes and participating at an early age in the services. When the church is at it´s best, it really gives you the possibility to play in front of a lot of people who actively listens. You also experience the power that music has to touch it´s listeners in an unexplainable metaphysical way.


When did you know that you could have a life in music?


That was a dream from early on. During elementary school I had no classmates that shared my world of music which was my escape, then in high school the whole class was full of music nerds where we totally understood each other musically. In my early teens I really new that music was my road in life. 

You call yourself a singer/songwriter and musicactivist. What does that stand for? 


A singer/songwriter to me is not fixed to a genre like Dylan or Seeger with a six string, to me it´s someone who performs original material, singing their own penned lyrics. That always gives a third dimension to the songs, cause it´s not interpreted, it´s the main source. Then "musicactivist" I use cause I´ve seen what impact music can have on people, and I want to use that responsibly. To me, music is a sacred gift to cherish, not that I also can sing lyrics with "Baby-Baby" in it, but we all have different tasks in life and I believe mine is to point with my songs on the unequalities in the surrounding world as long as they refuse to go away.

You sound pretentious...

I´m ok with that. Being pretentious in my view is wanting something, taking a stand for something you believe in. There´s so many hipsters running with the latest trends and concepts afraid  of being a square. I´m not one of those.

How would you describe your music?

Boooring question! My music is the sum of who I am and what I´ve listened to so far in life.
Being a drummer who later started to sing, I really appreciate a nice, steady beat that the vocals and the other instruments can lean on. I listen to so many different styles myself, cause in all genres you´ll find people who put their heart and soul into the songs and try to convey that to the listeners. That´s what I´m about too. Go with the goosebumps and hopefully someone out there will feel it also when they listen to your recordings.

What are your musical influences?

Well, I´ve been very producer oriented, following the works of Quincy Jones, Brian Eno, Daniel Lanois, T-Bone Burnett, Hugh Padgham, George Martin, Butch Vig and many artists that has come out of productions by these. Then I´m greatful for all the church music I´ve consumed especially black american gospel. The Motown and Stax catalogues. A big portion of brazilian and african rythm oriented music. One thing except for the rythms that gets me going is strong melodies that explains why I´ve dug deeper into the Paul McCartney catalogue than the Lennon.



And other influences beyond music?



I´m a heavy Bible reader cause I really feel something within when I read. 

There´s so much uncomparable and clever wisdom, poetry, parables, storytellings and real history that you can draw from when you write songs.

But mostly it inspires to live trying to choose the path of love and mercy, which is a challenge in our self-centered self-absorbed society.

 

 

Some of the projects Peter Pop have produced:

 

- South-African hiphop group Black Noise in Cape Town

- Composed/produced music for the internationally well received and

  rewarded motion picture  ”Before The Storm”
- Stagekids, a music and cultural anti-bullying programem for kids.
- Creative Kids, a music and cultural programme with 300 children in Uganda
- Black Biist, composed/produced music for the Gothenburg Ballet Company

 

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