E THE ARTIST

Always versatile in his craft, E The Artist (a.k.a. Daranijoh Sanni) released his wild debut Six in late February. We had a chat to find out more about his art and vision.

E The Artist - Six

Why is your debut album named Six?

E: The album deals with the seals in the Bible. The first six songs on Side A are the main album, and the final song on Side B is the spoken-word version of Side A. I think you need multiple worlds in what you’re doing, especially when you’re talking about the end of the world.

Every generation has their own “We're approaching the end.” mindset. Do you think about the end times? Does the concept worry you?

E: Not at all. I think people are too focused on reality. A lot of art reflects the times, but I don’t fully agree with the times. Imagining the end of the world, and making poems with Ruby Eastwood, was a way to step away from everything. The album was made in her house, which felt safe. When you’re somewhere like that, it’s easier to think and imagine, instead of just scrolling through the news and people who say the world is ending. That’s why I try to inspire imagination with my music rather than tell people what’s happening.

During what time period did you make these tracks?

E: I’m a very bad worker. In October 2024, Willie from Nyahh Records texted me saying he wanted to release an album with me, which felt huge, but my life was too good and I struggled to get started. In the end, I recorded the album in a week with Ruby, who pushed the project forward. It was easier because we were dating at the time. Ruby isn’t a musician, she writes and reviews music. Having that intimate, honest critical perspective helped a lot. Sometimes she’d say, “You should make a pop song.” At one point, I recorded her screaming from the other side of the room, which ended up on the album. I like working with people who aren’t trained, they approach it with the curiosity of a child.

Listening to the final track “DROGO”, I failed to understand what was spoken, but I assume it doesn’t matter?

E: Yeah, it doesn't matter. It’s a conversation I had with Drogo Sebourg, a.k.a. Bulgarian Umbrella. He was the first visual artist I worked with and he’s an important character in my life.

You know how The Cocteau Twins songs have gibberish lyrics, but you fill in the blanks yourself? There’s a feeling that comes through. The words become what you make of them.

But the lyrics here are not gibberish.

E: No. Drogo’s Polish and grew up in Sweden and Venezuela, so his voice carries all those places. Mine doesn’t really do much.

What are some other interesting production stories from Six?

E: Julia Louise Knifefist and I had worked on 30 songs before, and the first song I made for the album was this grungy track with him. We worked on it for about a year and there was a bit of tension and exhaustion, and at one point he said, “My bus is in 30 minutes. Can we work on something else?”

“BLACKOUT” with Julia was the easiest song to make. It was basically one take. Sometimes you work best when you have 15 minutes. Duke Ellington once said he doesn’t need time, he needs deadlines, and that really rang true there.

The first track, “IDTYEK”, was special. Making music for me feels like channeling something from God and hoping it brings people fulfillment, like glimpses of heaven. That song came together very naturally.

Working with Mel Keane on “BRIDGE” was great. He thinks beyond anything I’ve seen, and I was surprised he even said yes.

KRAF did vocals on “LINT”, which first appeared on a compilation tape by Faoi Thalamh Records, and he had recorded it as a spoken poem two years ago. I’m grateful he let me invite him into my studio.

There's a strong visual component to your artistry. Do you watch music videos, and do they give you inspiration?

E: I love rap music videos. There’s so much focus on visuals because the story is already there. You’re seeing someone with a strong culture behind them. That’s sometimes missing in European film, because it's kind of nice living in Europe [laughs]. I want my music to show the harshness of life, and the visuals are the flowers on top of the vase. It is important to be genuine with what I'm doing. I don’t really care about followers or numbers. I care about how much the music matters to the people who do connect with it.

Do you keep dream journals?

E: I used to, but they became too real. I started becoming aware that I was dreaming. I had a dream where I was walking down a corridor, and people who were terminally ill or suicidal were asking me questions, and the further I went, the more important they became. When I couldn’t answer, I thought in the dream, “I need to get to a place where I can help as many people as I can.” I don’t think you should write things down unless you have to. We should focus more on creating history than reading it.

What is happening in Dublin right now that is worth checking out?

E: I have to mention my collective, Bitten Twice: Fomorian Vein, Rory Sweeney and Julia Louise Knifefist. I wouldn’t be the artist I am without them. Growing up in Ireland, I often felt outside the culture. I looked more toward American or British music. But with these people in Dublin, every time they release something it feels completely new, and I’m very grateful to be around that.

There are a lot of strange people in Ireland, in a good way. There’s 2MANYCOLOURS, who is on a different planet. The Nyahh Records people are amazing too. We went to Copenhagen where I played with Méabh McKenna, Ultan O’Brien and Mohammad Syfkhan. Mohammad, who’s from Kurdistan and has been a wedding singer for decades, is one of the most charming people you’ll meet. I opened for his first gig in Dublin, and when he saw I was nervous he told me, “You shouldn’t be nervous. Your music will tell us if you’re a good or a bad person regardless.”

What are the last three songs you played on your streaming platform?

E: There’s YT, a brilliant Nigerian-British artist from London. He went to Oxford and has all these achievements, but makes really silly jerk music. He’s everything you want to be in life and also very funny.

I was listening to Lazer Dim 700’s “Laced max”. It was recorded on a stream. Usually musicians hide their process, so seeing someone record vocals into a phone and upload it to still get millions of views feels very genuine. With AI becoming more popular, humanity feels like it’s moving to two extremes. I love where we are.

The last song I played was “I Remember” by Deadmau5. It’s still as good as I remember. Back when it came out, people seemed to believe life would keep getting better, and you can hear that feeling in the track.

If you could choose any of your lyrics as your personal mantra, what would that be?

E: It's not necessarily a mantra, but I will pick “Staring in the face of memories I don't speak about.”

One small final thought: I think that we have existed for billions of years before life, and we will after life. And life is the only time that we can talk about what is before and after.

Six is out now on Nyahh Records.