Enfnts Terribles

Releasing a first EP is an important milestone in many artists’ careers. How did you look at this challenge?

THE LOVE I HAD was suddenly in my life. I often have this thing where I do things and only think about what I’m actually doing later in the process. What started as me writing some songs behind my piano and making demos in my room quickly escalated to “actually I’m really proud of this, so why not share it with the world” and so I started. One thing led to another. The challenge was not on the creative level, but more on the when it cam to organisation cause I had never done this before. It was a bumpy ride, but I’m glad I took my time and I have the luck to be well surrounded.

THE LOVE I HAD puts love at the center. Why the decision to choose love as a common theme?

The red thread developed very organically. It was not a conscious decision to write about love, but I just started writing about love in general and what I felt I needed to write about at that moment. Throughout my creation process, I realised that I wrote each song in a different emotional “phase.” For example: I wrote Beautiful sister I during a period where I was working very hard on learning to (finally) love myself and my community, while in No goodbye I was clearly writing out of anger towards my cheating, abusive ex. Love is not just falling in love, it has multiple facets

How was the creation process for you?

The creation process of the album felt pretty slow. I really wanted to take my time for this and stand behind each song a 100 percent. I write and create music very impulsively. If I have something in my head and I’m vining, I have to record it immediately! No matter what I’m doing, I have to be able to capture in the moment what I hear in my head. Following that impulse is what led me through the first part of my creation process. In May 2021, I was at a barbecue with a good friend and there I met Matthias (Dilemmaprod), we immediately had a musical crush and did a kind of residency of a few days in his apartment: we fine-tuned everything and that’s how most of the productions came. I also had a deadline for my residency at Botanique at the time, which gave me that extra push to really go for it.

What did you particularly want to showcase on this EP?

THE LOVE I HAD is about vulnerability and daring to be vulnerable. That is something I have struggled with a lot through my life and I am now trying to embrace. It’s also a relief to finally release music that is truly me. I want to make people feel like they know me when they listen to it all the way through or when then leave after a gig.

Where would you like to be with THE LOVE I HAD?

I want to be everywhere where people want to listen to me. Small venues, big venues, small festivals, bigger festivals, a living room… It doesn’t matter to me. My music is very intimate and doesn’t fit in every context, I’m very aware of that. So for me it’s important to be in front of people who want to open themselves like I’m opening myself to them.

What are your plans for 2023?

In 2023, I want to play a lot. It’s been taken away from us long enough, you know. I also have lots of new ideas for new music and video’s, so I’m going to take my time with that too. I need to find a moment where I can lock myself back in to work on that and maybe rest a little. There are a lot of beautiful people out there I want to work with, so I’m going to make that happen too. Everything is achievable, I like to tell that to myself from time to time. And who knows, maybe there will be a THE LOVE I HAVE? I’ll see. I’m manifesting a Colors show too (haha). I like to take my time with these things, but also can’t sit still, so I’m very curious to see what the future has in hold for me.

Oriana Ikomo’s debut EP ‘THE LOVE I HAD’ is out now on all platforms. 

Pictures by Alexandra Beyer Agostini
Styling by Miss Party Girl of Antwerp