“I think my direction musically is to be able to seamlessly fuse ambient and musically soothing elements with heavy chaos and energy. Finding a balance to it all that’s the hardest part but when you do, it’s an indescribable feeling.” Polaris 

1. We would like to start our interview by asking you about a bit about your origins. We did our homework so we know that you were born in Romania, but we would love to hear the whole story from you.  What links you to this country and how did you end up living in Toronto?

I was born in Bucharest and lived there for the first 10 years of my life. Around the end of 99′ my parents had saved up enough money to make the move to Canada. At the time, it was a good option for us. Better opportunities and such. My entire extended family is in Romania and we were always together for any sort of holiday or big event. Everyone would show up and believe me it was A LOT of people. It was definitely a difficult transition and adjusting to the culture differences was huge.

2. Obviously, after having known about this chapter of your life, we would like to learn about your relationship with music and how everything started for you. Could you name a specific moment in which you had known that music would be a point of departure in your career?

I was put into piano lessons at a very early age (5 years old i think) and i was attending a music school, as well as having a private tutor. My father was a violinist for the symphony orchestra and my uncle was a performer in theater, so most of my childhood and young adulthood was filled with music. I played piano recitals a lot, I played in quite a few bands and eventually started producing trance. One of my friends took me to my first rave in 2009 and that’s where i stumbled upon drum and bass for the first time and got addicted to the sound.

I always knew i wanted a career in music, It’s been a thought in my mind for as far back as i can remember. Of course I’ve thought about other professions throughout my life and even though some of those avenues might be a lot more dependable options, I’ve never been able to do anything else for a long period of time because it does not feel like me. I feel I am someone else when music is not the main source of my life.

3. After listening to your tracks we can definitely say that you have got what it takes to be a producer. Based on your discography we recognize many soulful vibes, maybe even a bit of melancholy in your music. Has it always been like that or did your music change along with you over time?

It definitely has not been an easy-going life for me up to this point but i don’t think it is easy for any individual out there. I think we just deal with our pain and troubles differently. Music for me has always been an outlet to express how i feel in the moment. I don’t intentionally mean for my songs to sound melancholy or sad, it is just how they end up sounding when i’m going through the writing process. I don’t consciously think “this is going to be a sad tune” I just write and whatever comes out is the end result. I do have one happy song that i never really noticed was actually “happy” called Blue Sky Thinking!

4. Most of your tunes are released on Hospital Records and its baby sister Med School Music. Tracing the parallel between your music and those labels we can tell that you have a powerful connection. Can you tell us a little about your relationship with those labels and their crews?

Everyone at Hospital and Med School is just a big family. It was perfect for me because i luckily also come from a big family so i had no trouble there.

It’s been a whimsical journey being part of the Hospital/Med School family and I want to big everyone up especially at the HQ! The staff there work tirelessly on promotion, and handling artist business, providing us with mixes and opportunities like the Forza Horizon video game. Even when I played Hospitality in the Park, I had a chance to meet people face to face and it was amazing. I felt right at home, and very welcomed with open arms.

5. Sadly, we heard about Med School Music being shut down earlier in September 2019. Talking to you makes us feel a little nostalgic about it, but we are very curious to know the reasons behind this decision. Could you share any information regarding this subject with us?

I honestly don’t know much detail about Med Schools closure other than what everyone else does who read the news publicly. I think sometimes decisions just have to be made and we roll with the punches!

6. Tell us about your plans for the future. Do they still involve music, are there any side projects that you want to take care of? We are interested to know about other passions of yours besides music as well, so don’t be shy!

My life is always going to involve music in one way or another, there is no doubt about that. I currently have a couple of releases in the pipeline for Hospital and am also working on a full length album. I do have a small freelance business on the side which i am also trying to grow. I’ve done some work for Mixed in Key as well as created soundtracks for short promotional material for a few companies throughout the years. I’d like to be able to make soundtracks for commercials/video games/TV and have that be my bread and butter, and at the same time focus on building, pushing and evolving Polaris as much as possible. I also really love motorcycles and have recently learned quite a lot about them. I’m constantly taking mine apart and trying to figure out how certain parts work and how to improve them or fix certain things, on top of the beauty of riding them. It’s a great hobby for me as it keeps my mind focused.

7. Lastly, we would like to ask you about your future gigs and if you ever considered coming back to your birthplace and sharing your beautiful vibes with us. Also, our team would like to thank you for your time and wish you lots of inspired and creative days onward.

I have a few shows lined up here in Toronto, I am looking at expanding to the west coast and getting some shows in B.C and perhaps down south in the U.S. I will be playing at Hospitality on the Beach in Croatia this year in July which I am very excited for.

I have always thought about playing a show in Romania especially since it is my home. I think it would be an incredible experience playing there. I’m definitely going to look into it more and see what i can do to get myself over there for a proper rave!

Thanks so much for choosing me for this interview. I never thought my past would come back and reach out to me like this. It’s been truly nostalgic and wonderful. I hope to see you guys very soon!

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