When Mavi Phoenix started writing music on his own, he didn’t really think of what kind of music it should be but rather just having fun with sounds and experimenting with everything. “Boys Toys” is his last project, a concept album in which Mavi Phoenix has found himself. During the lockdown he could concentrate on where he wanna go personally and what kind of man and musician he want to be. It’s true that Mavi Phoenix is one of the most iconic and interesting newcomer of the new pop panorama.
Name: Mavi Phoenix Age: 24 City: Vienna Nazionality: Austria Released Tracks: 12 Inches, Fck It Up, Bite, Aventura Released Album: My Fault, Young Prophet, Young Prophet 2, Boys Toys Activity period: from 2014 Genre: Pop Digital Stores: YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music, Deezer, Amazon Music, etc.
Who is Mavi Phoenix?
My name is Mavi Phoenix, friends call me Marlon and I’m a musician and artist from Austria. I was born and raised in a small town called Linz but moved to Vienna some years ago.
Recently I released my debut album called “Boys Toys”.
Mavi Phoenix is the result of a research of yourself first of all, being an artist comes after, isn’t it?
No, that’s not true. I wanted to do music, in fact I started producing songs at a very young age, and I just needed an artist name. The search for myself or however you want to call it started after, and being “Mavi Phoenix” helped with it I think.
You’re Austrian, but you’re bond to the international panorama. What’s the connection between you and the music?
I’ve always looked up to artists from all over the world, especially the U.S.. My favorite artists were from there. So I never really wanted to do “home-bound” music but have a more international approach.
People should listen to Mavi Phoenix and have no clue where he’s from.
We think you’re already a pop star. Your music perfectly reflects the new pop wave, the pop which follows electronic rules. How did you define your sound and your style?
Wow, thank you so much! I grew up listening to a lot of Hip Hop, but also a lot of punk and rock and of course Pop music.
When I started writing music on my own I didn’t really think of what kind of music it should be but rather just having fun with sounds and experimenting with everything. Nowadays everything is so connected and you can download sample packs and sounds from every style from anyone all over the world.
We’re pretty sure you listen to a lot of pop music and that Charli XCX is your artist, is it true? Which are your favourite artists?
I like Charli XCX but I wouldn’t call her my favorite artist. My absolute favorite is Tyler The Creator. Then of course Frank Ocean is a big one. I just recently stumbled upon “JAWNY” and he’s really cool too. Growing up I listened to a lot of N*E*R*D, Snoop Dogg and The Black Eyed Peas.
Now Mavi Phoenix is a brand and he’s found a place into the music. How is changed during the years your way to make music?
I think with my first album I really didn’t give myself boundaries and let everything happen naturally. That’s why there’s also songs with a more “punk” approach which I love. You can’t really pin me down to one genre which isn’t always something to strive for. But I just can’t do it any other way.
You talk about sensitive issues in your songs. Why do you deal with those topics?
I think it’s very important for artists to talk about the not so happy fun stuff too once in a while. I for myself have decided to talk about being transgender in my songs, because I believe representation is very crucial as it’s still a topic that’s being looked over.
Which were your first projects?
When I was 13 I already uploaded songs to myspace, Soundcloud and Youtube. Those were just all over the place and very electronic and pop.
In 2014 I did my first EP called “My Fault” with which I really wanted to approach a bigger audience. It didn’t really work but it certainly paved the way for everything that came after so that was a very important release. The sound of My Fault got a bit more Hip Hop also.
“Boys Toys” is your last project, an album in which Mavi Phoenix has found himself. It’s a concept album: what does that mean? Which themes have you dwlled on?
Boys Toys is the name of the album but also of the Alter Ego persona I created for myself. He’s Mavi Phoenix but as a little boy and he’s in every song of the album. You can recognize him in his high pitched voice.
Last year I made it public that I was transgender, female to male, and then decided to let it flow into my music. Making this album was a very difficult yet freeing process and the lyrics are very personal. Sound wise it’s all over the place but I’d say it’s still Pop and Hip Hop.
I’ve worked with my main producer Alex The Flipper and we traveled to L.A. to get the album done. There we worked with NVDES and Yakob for different songs and it worked incredibly well. I love the album and I think it perfectly paved the way for me as a male artist.
We think your name will be everywhere soon. What are your plans for the future?
Thank you very much. I just want to take this time now that we have during the COVID-19 lockdown to concentrate on where I wanna go personally and what kind of man and musician I want to be. I certainly want to make an album again, rather sooner than later and in the nearer future finally complete my tour!
Is there anything you’d like to say to our readers?
Thanks for reading my interview and hope to see you someday on tour. Oh, and listen to my album! 😀
Mavi Phoenix for Siloud
Credits: Ufficio stampa Astarte Agency
Siloud 