Whisnu Santika Tries To Change The Paradigm Of Pop Song: From The Galau Space To The Dance Floor

Whisnu Santika (Doc. Ist)

JAKARTA - Disjoki (DJ) and Indonesia's proud electronic music producer, Whisnu Santika, are trying to change the paradigm of many people towards Indonesian pop music that is synonymous with ballads, melancholic, slow, and full of broken heart lyrics.

With the Indonesian Bounce genre approach which he created himself Whisnu introduced a new format for local pop songs: from the upset room to the dance floor.

The pop song doesn't have to be sad and slow. Songs about taste can also have energy. It could be a club hit," Whisnu told VOI, Saturday, June 21.

Two popular songs he remixed 'What If I'm Not OK' from Judika and 'Mangu' from Fourtwnty and brought back with a very different feel,

The original version of the two songs has emotional nuances. With Whisnu's creations, both of them are reprocessed into electronic versions with beat rhythms and a more dynamic atmosphere, but still maintain the meaning of the lyrics.

I don't want to lose the soul of the song. I just give you a new point of view. So that these songs can be enjoyed in different spaces, from personal headphones to dancefloors," said the 33-year-old DJ.

For Whisnu, this project is not limited to remixing pop songs. More than that, he sees it as an effort to dismantle conventional boundaries in the music industry.

What has been done is part of a bigger change, namely when Indonesian music opens up to new formats that were previously synonymous with outer music.

With Indonesian Bounce as its production base, Whisnu wants to create a space where Indonesian songs can be more flexible, can be used for dancing, but also touch. For him, many local songs actually have extraordinary emotional strength and stories, only limited by perceptions deep songs must be slow.

"Music we have to be able to have multiple interpretations, multi spaces. You can do it at the club. You can hear it yourself, okay, make it live together too," he added.

Furthermore, Whisnu sees paradigm changes as important to open new markets, new listeners, and new energy for the Indonesian music industry.

"If we keep talking about the genre, our songs won't go anywhere. But if we open up new possibilities, maybe it's the world that comes to us," he said.