Formula Indie Sessions _ Interview with STIKKABUTTA
What is your earliest memory connected to music?
My earliest memory is probably as a kid sat in the back of my dad’s old Jaguar XJSC, listening to songs like Chestnut Mare by the Byrds as we cruise across the English countryside.
How did your passion for creating music begin?
It began at a very young age. My father is a professional musician and music teacher with an impressive resume, so I was exposed to a whole world of music and instruments right from the start. I would always find myself messing with all kinds of instruments before I really knew what I was doing. As soon as I was old enough to properly hold them, I knew I wanted to make some kind of music. Just like dad.
What’s the story behind your current music project?
I’ve been in and out of bands my whole life. The most successful being a Alternative/Funk Rock band that ran from about 2010 to 2020, with a few of those years being on an Independent Record label. That band achieved local success, but ended naturally with us all just kind of parting ways (as they often do).
Once that was over, I found myself searching for another way to be creative. I tried putting together different groups, but was never really able to get something going.
One day I heard a kind of joke song that was made by AI on YouTube and I found myself genuinely amazed and interested. Naively, I thought ‘I bet I can do this better’’.
I came up with the idea of STIKKABUTTA, an AI character that could sing/play any song in any style. This allowed me to experiment with lots of different genres and not be tied to just one. I knew straight away that I wanted it to be anonymous, as I’ve always been fascinated with anonymous bands (like early Ghost). But really, it was so that if I created something and it was bad, I could distance myself from it easily haha.
I began by creating a few semi-funny songs and then found that actually I could use these new tools to create the kind of songs that I had always wanted to, in different genres and using instruments that I can’t play. A load of albums later and I’ve got listeners all over the world which amazes me constantly, and that mix of genres has become a key staple of a STIKKABUTTA album.
How would you describe your sound to someone who has never heard your music before?
It’s made with AI, so that already gives people a bit of an idea. People are either open to the idea or completely against it, which is fine.
I try to make my music sound different to the masses of AI slop that you find on the internet.
A STIKKABUTTA record typically contains around 10 tracks in a range of different genres and styles of music. Each song has been written by me and messed with repeatedly until it sounds like what I had in my head.
What is one thing you’ve learned that completely changed the way you make music?
Run with every idea.
Some of the songs which I think are my best began as just a few lyrics I that I couldn’t get out of my head.
You’re never going to know what your idea could turn into unless you give it the time it deserves and try and make something out of it.
What tools, instruments, or software are essential in your creative process?
So I write all the lyrics first every time. I come up with a tune that I write the lyrics along to, and then I try to recreate that tune using Suno.
It’s getting better and better as a program, but because I have such a strong idea of what I want the song to sound like, 9 times out of 10 it does not give me what I want. The one time that it does, it’s up to me to keep working on it and tweaking it and make it sound as close as possible to the song I have in my head.
I then use basic programs that I’ve been using for years such as Apple’s GarageBand and Audacity to add the extra bits that the song needs. This includes extra vocal lines, sound effects and/or real instruments. After that, I mix the song again and it’s good to go.
Which indie artist or song are you loving right now?
I am absolutely loving Bilmuri at the moment. I love to see that they are becoming bigger.
I love how they combine elements of country, metal and modern pop to create something that I feel is truly unique. If you haven’t heard AMERICAN MOTOR SPORTS (420CC EDITION) by Bilmuri, honestly, go and listen to it.
How have your personal experiences influenced your music and artistic vision?
Massively. Very few of my songs are completely random and do not have any sort of connection to me. I usually try to begin a song by coming up with an idea that I am familiar with. For example, my song ‘Apple Flavoured Whiskey’ which is a popular one about a girl who loves apple whiskey and can out drink anyone in a bar, is really just about a guy I know. Albeit gender-swapped and massively exaggerated haha. He does like apple whiskey though, which I think is gross!
In 2024 I had a son and that hugely affected my creativity. Suddenly I found I was writing more songs about change and what it means to have someone truly rely on you.
So yeah, my personal experiences definitely influenced my music. Even the ones that are intended to be slightly wacky or funny have some basis in reality.
What emotions or messages do you hope listeners take from your work?
I honestly just want the music to move them. Literally.
My main test before I release anything is does it make me want to dance or headbang or jump around. If the answer is no, then it’s not getting released.
What’s the most important lesson music has taught you so far?
Always try.
If you have an idea go for it! If it works, excellent! If it doesn’t at least you’ve tried and grown from that experience.
What is a dream venue or festival you would love to perform at?
Honestly, any big open air festival. Although I’m not quite sure how well my music would translate live. I wouldn’t want to just be stood there pressing a button playing a backing track or mixing live.
However, I think that some of the songs would work really well if they were played by a live band. So I have often thought about putting something together and potentially performing live. It’s definitely on my list of goals if STIKKABUTTA continues to expand.
If you could collaborate with any artist, past or present, who would it be and why?
Being someone who loves pretty much all types of music, my mind is racing with ideas here. I don’t think I could actually could give a specific artist I would love to collaborate with, there are just too many. A bit of a weak answer I know.
I would just love to hear one of my songs covered by a huge artist. Whether that’s one of my pop songs performed by someone like Lady Gaga or Miley Cyrus. Or one of my more country tracks performed by someone like John Pardi or HARDY.
Where can our listeners follow and support your music? (Website,Spotify, IG, links)
You can follow STIKKABUTTA on IG at www.instagram.com/stikkabutta/
You can contact me directly at stikkabutta@gmail.com
you can listen to all STIKKABUTTA releases including the latest album ‘A Reason to Leave’ on pretty much all of the streaming services.
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/38PD1WOnEQobXGgXVw9BD3?si=wYsU1yiGRnSKYkLVq-Yr3A
Amazon: https://music.amazon.co.uk/artists/B0D6KX1QCT/stikkabutta?marketplaceId=A1F83G8C2ARO7P&musicTerritory=GB&ref=dm_sh_8MeuzTGETUAp90JnwADr1SwHM
YouTube Music: https://music.youtube.com/channel/UC11DzzlfnYCvbUlZAkpGpMA?si=ErHg6Zq_thCdZVeT
Looking toward the future, what’s your dream for the next chapter of your musical journey?
I think the dream would be to continue making music and start performing some of the tracks with a live band.
I would love to sell some of my songs too. I have had a lot of really positive feedback about the lyrical quality of my tracks, and I just have so many that I think would just be perfect for an artist to really make their own. I would even be happy with just a writer’s credit haha.
What do you hope listeners will discover about you along the way?
I know there is a huge debate with about the use of AI in the music industry at the moment, a lot of it very negative. And yeah there is a lot of music out there which is created with the click of a button purely in an attempt to go viral and make some money. Regardless of your opinion of the use of AI in music, I hope that people discover the human element that I, along with other AI musicians, put into their music.
I try to make songs that I think sound good. Songs that I would genuinely listen to and I really hope that other people enjoy them too. Fortunately, as my fan base grows, it seems that there are a lot of Buttaheads out there that do enjoy the sound of a STIKKABUTTA track. That makes me incredibly happy and proud. So Thank you.
