Q&A: Da Pop Talks Their New Sound, “Tug,” Collaboration & More

Q&ASpotlightMusic

Mar 4

☆ By SHARON LAZO ☆

NO STRANGERS TO EVOLVING AND EXPERIMENTING — alt-indie pop/rock trio Da Pop have accepted this change-oriented challenge, while making sure they’re having fun. This three piece band consists of Roberto, Robert and Jesse, who are all self-taught musicians as well as producers. Based in New York, they claim the city has a huge impact on their sound and who they are individually. Da Pop are constantly reshaping the so-called “mold” in the music industry by diving headfirst into new projects that expose them to new sounds. Making them a remarkably unique group, Da Pop refuses to be characterized by a specific genre, and carves their own path as they go along.

With their brand new release “Tug,” Da Pop continues to explore the world of R&B while still staying true to their alt-indie rock roots. Helping them navigate their way is Jovian, who is featured in the song as well. This is not the first time both artists have worked together — earlier in January they released “Wait,” and as a listener, you can’t help but realize how they work so well together. Da Pop and Jovian have found a way to mesh both their individual sounds together in a way that seems wholly effortless. From the smooth guitars to Roberto’s velvety voice and Jovian’s thoughtful flow, everything harmonizes beautifully.

Have a look at what Da Pop have to say about experimenting with their sound, their beginnings and their love for the New York music scene, and be sure to check out their new single “Tug” featuring Jovian out now.

LUNA: Can you tell us about your latest single “Tug”? What was the creative process like?

JESSE: “Tug” started at my place in BX (Bronx, NY), and Roberto came through to lay down vocals on it and it was a very easy process for everyone — like everyone’s part just kinda came together almost effortlessly.

ROBERTO: It's like a new sound for us, too. We used to just be rock ‘n’ roll, and “Tug” is more experimental R&B, kind of like singing differently, [with] some electric drums; so it was, like, one of our first songs to explore a new sound.

LUNA: This isn't the first time you guys have collaborated with Jovian — what was it like working with him again? Any difference from the first time?

JESSE: Well, this is the first one that we worked on with him: so “Tug” was made first and “Wait” was made after. We decided to release them in this order for some reason (laughs). I can’t remember.

ROBERTO: Yeah, he's dope! He gives, like, back massages while we work. He’s nice.

JESSE: He brings acai bowls also!

LUNA: Speaking of: “Wait” or “Tug” — which one is your favorite from your collabs with Jovian?

ROB: Well, I know his [Jovian’s] favorite is “Tug.” Our favorite — I don't know.

ROBERTO: I think, personally, right now I like “Wait,” but I think I’m gonna start liking “Tug.”

JESSE: I don’t know — it’s hard for me to say; I see them as like my babies. How am I gonna like one more? It's just like a body of work that came out of us. Once it's out, I don't like to judge it in that way.

LUNA: Would you guys say that being based in New York has had an impact in the ways you create your music? Has it influenced your sound?

JESSE: For sure! I feel like New York is just filled with so much diversity. You can just wake up in the morning and go outside and there will be a bodega playing salsa music and you can hang out with your friends and listen to some indie rock. And, you know, there's just so much good music out there, and I feel like it oozes into us even if we notice it or not, subconsciously.

ROB: Yeah for sure — like we definitely don't stick with one genre of music. We’re always creating and trying new things, and a big part of that is probably that we’re surrounded by so much diversity.

ROBERTO: New York is a melting pot … no I’m just kidding. New York is dope. I feel like [with] the music scene when we first started I just learned everything off YouTube, and then [when I saw] the New York rockers and the energy that New York brings, I was like, “We gotta amp up our live set,” because you wanna play in New York Underground, [so] you gotta be able to bring like a pretty rock show.

ROB: Bring the heat!

LUNA: How did you guys come to become Da Pop? How did you guys meet?

ROB: Roberto and I knew each other in high school, and after high school we took interest in playing guitar, and that kind of became like a friendly competition between us. Then I inherited a drum kit somewhere down the line and we started making and writing songs in my garage. It started out as one of the many hobbies we picked up, but we really stuck with this one — with music — because it was really fulfilling in many ways. And then our friend suggested we start going out to see shows because Roberto and I were completely unaware of what the music scene was — we only knew radio music. And our friends were like, “Yeah, you know, there's a whole scene out there,” and so we started playing shows — just me and Roberto at first, just as a two piece, and then we went on to this show our friends recommended that we go to; it was a band that Jesse was already in, and we struck up conversation with them, just [to] try to learn how to get into the scene and get shows, and I think we hit it off with Jesse.

I remember one day I texted Jesse — who is like a super musician — because Roberto and I were so new, and Jesse was, like, super talented, and I texted him one day and I was like, “Hey, would you wanna come jam with me and Roberto?” and he said, “Yeah,” and me and Roberto were like, “Yo, no way!”

JESSE: I actually remember that text — I was sitting in a bubble bath … (Roberto and Rob laugh) I was sitting in a bubble bath just looking at my phone and you guys texted me, and I was like, “Sick, I’ll jam with you guys.”

ROB: We didn't think he’d say yes.

JESSE: So they just started playing music, but their songwriting skills were so on point. My songwriting skills weren't there, and they were way superior than me in that way. So I jumped in because I wanted to kind of learn how to write songs and they guided me through it. So here we are now!

LUNA: What is the best part about being able to both create and produce your very own work?

ROB: It's the most fulfilling process — the most fulfilling thing I’ve discovered so far in my life. From day to day — even if it's not with Da Pop — [but] when it is with Da Pop it feels [like] a certain dynamic, because it’s all us three contributing. But on a day-to-day [basis] we're all producing music probably just about most of the day's duration, and it's the most fulfilling process I’ve discovered yet.

JESSE: Songwriting is just a part of us now. We just sit at home and write songs — this is what we all do. Being able to produce it is amazing because we’re calling the shots and we can take it so many directions, which can get a little wild sometimes, but since there's three of us, one of us will be like, “Yo, that's a little too wild.” I love producing with the band because it's just amazing — it's like no one is telling us what to do. You get to write it, compose it, and get as wild as we want, and if there’s something weird, one of us will say it. And we’re all just chill about the arrangements — like sometimes Rob will play guitar or bass and I wouldn't even like to play on a track sometimes. I would let him do that because it's for the song — it's not really for us or the ego.

ROB: It takes time to get there when you're working with people; you wanna be playing that part … but sometimes it definitely takes time to get there to remove the ego. It's a practice, I feel, at least for me. But I think we’re at a place now where it's just really fluent, and ego is [been put] aside, and just like whatever is gonna work for the song … let’s just get this process going and be effective.

ROBERTO: It’s rewarding! I compare it to solving a puzzle. Solving something brings that rewarding feeling.

ROB: And sometimes the effects last longer than the other for some songs.

LUNA: What has been your most memorable show? (Pre-COVID of course!)

ROB: We played that birthday show in Bushwick. That was a wild show.

JESSE: It was in this basement — it was crazy! That was like the last one right?

ROB: Yeah, that was like the last big real show we played. It was just insane — we closed out the night.

ROBERTO: We also had a show in Richmond, Virginia that was really cool. So many people that were excited for rock ‘n’ roll and our performance.

ROB: Yeah, VCU was an experience for sure. There were like 400 people in and out throughout the night of this house. It was a great time!

JESSE: What about that show at the SoHo house party that we did? That was pretty nuts, too. That was like the most New York experience that we could have given our fans that came through. It was our buddies house in SoHo — and he has the most baller house — and he’s up for anything that’s music related; it was sick! I think people were crowd surfing. That’s definitely the most memorable one for me.

LUNA: Out of all your songs, which would you guys say best represents you as a band?

ROBERTO: It’s hard to say because this is our transition period for Da Pop — we’re kind of really experimenting right now.

ROB: I guess it would depend on the genre of music that the person likes or is most inclined to listen to, because there’s a bunch of different genres on our songs.

JESSE: I would say “Tug” is the one I would recommend to people, because it's more of the modern sound that we’re going for and it also has guitars in it and these dreamy effects, so I feel like that's the most Da Pop [one].

ROB: Yeah, but then again our really lo-fi surfy rock feel song “Save Me” — that's one of our most popular songs that people love, and the mix is super lo-fi or whatever; but it would just depend on the person's taste, because we really experiment in all different genres.

ROBERTO: I feel like Da Pop right now [is] “Tug” or “Wait.”

JESSE: I’d definitely go with “Tug,” just because it has more of our old guitars, bass, and drums in it.

LUNA: Any new exciting projects in the works for 2021?

ROBERTO: So, Drake — I don't know if you’ve heard of Drake?

JESSE: Yeah he's pretty awesome!

ROBERTO: (Laughs) New exciting projects — we are planning to do a couple more songs with Jovian.
ROB: Yeah, we have a bunch of singles lined up, and new projects.

JESSE: We have a live session coming up — it's gonna be pretty sick to take over a bar for a couple hours, and we’re just gonna be able to film and show everyone our new sound on stage, which is gonna be great, virtually.

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“I want to set the mood for younger emerging artists in Toronto, to be like, ‘Hey, you could, like, fucking work with literally anyone who has a kind soul.’ I do want to uplift the artist community. I do think collaboration is important, because if you wanna be in the community, you're gonna have to collaborate one way or another." - Cruz ⭐️ 🎞Allowing themself to take a more vulnerable & meaningful approach with their work, photographer Cruz is combining her creative talent with her passion for mental health advocacy. Read more about this incredible artist & how quarantine shifted her work + about the work they are doing for the community in our feature on the site now 💞