Via Under the Radar
For Under the Radar’s 16th Annual Artist Survey we emailed some of our favorite artists a few questions relating to the last year, plus some fun personal questions. Here are some answers from Ioanna Gika. Gika was formerly the frontperson for Los Angeles dark electro shoegaze duo IO Echo, but is now focused on her solo work. In 2018 she released a solo single, “Roseate,” on Sargent House, with a solo album expected this year.
For our annual Artist Survey we emailed the same set of questions to musicians about the midterm elections, the Supreme Court confirmation hearings of Brett Kavanaugh, Kanye West visiting the White House, the #MeToo movement a year later, mental health conditions in the music industry, whether or not they have Flossed, childhood birthday parties and vacations, which Muppets character they are most like, whether or not they are going to The Good Place after death, and much more.
What was the highlight of 2018 for either you personally or for the band?
A highlight was releasing my first single and going on tour with Deafheaven.
Despite compelling testimony from Christine Blasey Ford and sexual assault allegations from other women, Brett Kavanaugh was sworn in a Supreme Court Justice and many Republican women didn’t believe Ford’s story. What does this tell you about the general state of the #MeToo movement in 2018?
Humans are allowed to believe whatever they want, but the patriarchy is so deeply entrenched, that until years of archaic structures are disassembled, there will still be people who are incognizant of their own participation in it.
Be honest, did you Floss in 2018? (Meaning the dance craze, not the dental care.)
No.
Are you ready for artificial intelligence and a more automated future? Some predict that it may come sooner than we think and will lead to massive job losses.
Couldn’t be more ready. My Roomba could run our government more efficiently and compassionately than our current administration.
What’s your favorite birthday party memory from childhood?
Standing in a courtyard in Greece holding a small necklace I was just given, closing my eyes and feeling the wind of the Aegean Sea on my face. I had just turned seven. For some reason that memory stuck with me.
What’s been your most surreal experience in the music industry?
This past Thanksgiving, Bono told me that he loves my new single. Didn’t see that coming.
When you die, do you think you’re going to the Good Place or the Bad Place?
Both. #QuantumMechanics
Tell us about your first job. Also, what’s been your most disastrous job interview or business meeting?
I started babysitting around the age of 10. I have supported myself financially since I was a teenager with a million odd jobs. As a result of not having a net to fall back on, my work ethic will never leave.
Where do you stand on social media in 2018, is it uniting humanity or ruining the world? And which platform do you find most useful and which one do you think is doing the most harm?
Milan Kundera said that optimism is the opium of the people. I also think it’s social media. I’ve watched it sedate humans into countless miles of scrolling. That said, you can swiftly organize a protest on social media, so it’s not all ruination.
This year The Doctor in Doctor Who was played by a woman for the first time in the show’s 55-year history. Which other established character would you like to see switch genders?
The President of the United States.