E Lina

We’d like to introduce you to our next guest for our Sundowner. mix series: E.LINA, a talented multidisciplinary artist from Ukraine. Get to know her better in the interview we had with her and enjoy a one hour mix of her punchy and selected sound.

Inés: Hi Elina, how are you?

Elina: Hello from Koh Phangan! I’m feeling very relaxed on the Island now, trying to synchronize with the energy around me.

Inés: Where did you grow up and how did that influence your sound?

Elina: I grew up on the streets of Kharkiv city. I began dancing hip hop and freestyle when I was 15 years old, so my way as an artist started from hip hop music. I was in love with dancing to old school rap, boom bap, and some space instrumentals. For me, the most important thing in music is that it should make you move and groove.

Inés: Could you tell me more about your musical background? Apart from being a DJ, you are also a producer and a singer, how do you combine them all in your career?

Elina: I have been playing piano and singing since I was a kid. At 7 years old my mom brought me to music school but I didn’t finish it, I was too lazy haha 🙂 But all my life I was in close connection with music. When I was 20 years old I recorded my debut Ukrainian neo-soul EP, but at that time I didn’t know about electronic music like house or techno. When I moved to Kyiv and heard this kind of sound for the first time I was really amazed! It inspired me and I bought my first groove box, Korg Electribe 2 and started trying to make something similar to this music. Now I’m working on a new EP together with Hopper F. from Criminal Practice. We are combining electronic music with my vocals. Sounds pretty cool! I sometimes play our songs in the discotheque and I love to see people dancing on my vocal tunes ❤

Inés: Ukraine is facing a difficult situation right now, as an artist how are the current circumstances affecting you or the music scene?

Elina: Honestly I’m trying to ignore Ukrainian news and media, because I’m too sensitive for this. I left Kyiv for Thailand and want to abstract from world problems. I love all the humans from any country and pray for peace.