EVITA, Collaboration With The Themed Of Longing In The Middle Of The Pagebluk Of COVID-19

Illustrations (Doc. Circus Records)

JAKARTA - Producers Rifo Octavian aka Rifofo and Gandhi Prasetya (Gandhi Shiro) are collaborating again on a new single, EVITA. Previously, they worked together on Evelyn who was nominated in the 2019 AMI Awards for Best Progressive Production Work.

Staying with the nuances of East Java, namely Banyuwangi, the making of EVITA's single song involved three other collaborators; they are Radhica Isac from Moldova-Romania who lives in England, Eka Ayu Wulandari from STKW (Wilwatikta Arts College) Surabaya and rapper DRT who has been working with Rifofo since 2017.

EVITA tells a story about longing for someone who can calm and reassure, someone who is unforgettable and always adored. It is also told that this figure is being separated, far away from those who miss him; then what can be done is to continue working with patience waiting - until it is time to meet again with the reassurer.

In this song, Rifofo and Gandhi explored the arrangement and in directing the language for the lyrics and also the inclusion of poetry. EVITA is made in a package that combines Banyuwangi music with Chinese music; both have a similar tone. The mix is also given a modern twist on trap music, originating in the southern part of America, which is now widely heard as an accompaniment to rap - part of the hip hop culture in America.

The language used is Romanian for poetry, Indonesian for rap, and Banyuwangi, namely Osing, for singing. The poetry in Romanian was read by Radhica, as a migrant to England and has not returned to his hometown for a long time. The poem begins with "Mi-e dor de cineva care mă poate înțelege .. (I miss someone who can understand me ..)"

"If you miss it then distance is where 'I'm headed", the beginning of the poetic lyrics of the DRT rap is then greeted with an Osing chorus from Eka, "Durung wayahee, kembang isun teko" (not yet, come who is worshiped / butterflyja) ; The lines of words and sentences from the collaborators also reinforce the theme of the song about deep longing, so it is hoped (“Sing sun angen-angen”) that it rings ('kantru-kantru') - with the realization that meeting someone who can cure that longing can not happen, until the time comes because there is already an 'agreement' to meet again ('semayane').

The combination of music and languages from various places / countries in EVITA which symbolizes distant distances also reinforces the theme of longing which - has not and - in time will be released.

As for the process of making EVITA, it had been running before the aftermath of COVID-19 which is now sweeping the world; the circumstances also influenced the release date that was previously planned.

With the enthusiasm to work, I hope that the calming figure that is awaited in EVITA, which was released during this morning, can be interpreted as the calm that was felt before this crisis occurred; that this longing for tranquility is felt by all. Yes, the combination of music and language in EVITA can be said to represent us as citizens of the world.