Singer, guitarist, songwriter, producer
What do you work on?
At the moment, I'm working on my third solo album, Safiir, which will be released this autumn. I also have a band called Haldi & ans Flamingo, with whom we perform Estonian-language soul, funk, and estrada music hits. I'm also actively performing concerts with them.
What would you change?
If we focus on music, I wish the music industry wasn't so mainstream-oriented. I'd like to see more space and visibility for different subcultures. That would also help audiences become more aware of the diversity within music culture.
I would definitely change the music education system in Estonia as well. I think a certain level of conservatism is good, and having knowledge of classical music is an important foundation to start from, but introducing students to the wider musical world is equally important. There should be more room and time for that within the school system. I also think academic music education could lean more toward listening and intuition, rather than being so heavily focused on technicality.
What do you love?
I love every aspect of being a musician: being on stage, that peak moment of synergy that happens during a performance, and the bittersweet feeling when a concert ends and everything suddenly feels a little empty.
I love the process of making albums. First comes the search for an idea - what the new album could be about. Then the songs begin to emerge, followed by recording, mixing, and all the preparations for releasing the record. And when it's all over, there's that same emptiness again - after which the whole cycle starts from the beginning.
Favorite sound?
Without a doubt, the sound of my son babbling in the mornings when he wakes me up. He's only seven months old, so it's the sweetest little baby chatter.
