L’HAINE SPEAKS ABOUT EL ODIO SIEMPRE GANA IN CUPRA CITY GARAGE MADRID
On May 28th, I had the opportunity to have a conversation with L’haine, an artist who held a listening party for his latest project as part of the Raval Sessions program at Cupra City Garage Madrid. The artist reflects on the creative process behind “El Odio Siempre Gana” (Hate Always Wins), an album that marks a point of artistic and personal maturity in his career. Throughout the interview, the artist discusses the evolution of his sound, the importance of building from vulnerability, his relationship with masculinity and love understood as a form of resistance, as well as delving into the visual and conceptual imagery that permeates the project. With references to rap, film, and coming-of-age stories, L’haine presents his most cohesive and conscious work to date, without losing the raw honesty that defines his music.
Álvaro Ramos: I’ve been following your musical career since you released «LeBron en Cleveland,» so this is like the first rollout I’ve followed from your album. That’s why I wanted to ask you if there’s any difference between this project and «CONCRETO,» because I also see that work as a central piece in your discography.
L’haine: Yes, even though it’s a mixtape, the rollout felt more like an album. Absolutely. For me, it’s very different because «CONCRETO» was dictated by the context, the need to release it on a specific date. So, for example, «MARLO,» which came out a year earlier, was more of a series of drops. And this one definitely involved more thought, even though it’s been faster than I expected. I felt like we were going to do it much more gradually, but it’s been quite quick. But this one has been a bit more like, well, with a team thinking about what’s going on here.
AR: In what ways do you think you’ve improved since «DE LA MANERA EN QUE YO QUIERO» (“The Way I Want It”)?
L: Mainly in terms of having a production team, a label with people working on things that aren’t music, on the more bureaucratic side of things. So, of course, that’s taken a lot of responsibility off my shoulders, and given me some too. It’s taken away the part I don’t like about all this, but I still make the decisions about the aesthetics. And also, I think there’s been a push in terms of mixing and sound, though perhaps not so much in the more professional aspects because it’s always crazy with PMP and all that. They’re still pretty much family-oriented; the most obvious comparison is the introduction of Lex, who’s ultimately the one in charge of all the music. But more in terms of knowledge I’ve acquired over the years, this type of synthesizer doesn’t suit my voice. I might love that type of synthesizer, but when it’s mixed with my voice, it doesn’t sound right, and things like that, you know? So that’s where I feel I’ve improved. And then the lyrics, I do see it as quite similar to «DE LA FORMA QUE YO QUIERO» (The Way I Want It). Obviously, I talk about other things too, and I don’t know, there’s an evolution, perhaps. I make fewer film references, although I still make them, but well, I use them a little less. But I do see that for me, there’s something of a connection between these two albums.
AR: @elodiosiempregana has always been your Instagram handle since you started your career as a musical artist. How did you choose these words as the album title? Do you feel any pressure having already used this approach in your career?
L: The phrase itself already means something very specific, but for me it’s kind of like, well, I’m signing with MÉCÈN, which is ultimately the label that makes the kind of music I like more professionally here in Spain, being independent. So for me it’s like, okay, let’s make an album that’s kind of like that, the peak of this moment in my life, of this moment in my music. Maybe later on, if a future album is also similar, I don’t know. But I did approach it in that way, you know? Like, I’m going to work with these people, I’m also going to work to make this that moment without getting super solemn or looking back, but also as a kind of honest portrait of who I am now, you know, without overthinking it.
AR: Tell us more about the use of black and white on the cover (which I gather is due to the film that gave you your name as an artist) and your appearance on it (since I’d never done that before).
L: Well, being on the cover was like, «I’m going to put my face on it a bit.» And yes, the black and white came from exploring different treatments we could give it, and we really said, «This feels like it fits best with this narrative, you know?» And having that film as inspiration, well, of course, we had to go for it. The title is also something that bothered me, like, damn, it should be an album that took five years to make, and I also wanted to take some of that weight off. This album is what it is, and it’s great, you know?
AR: Also, where does the contrast of black and white with the cardboard power elements come from?
L: Aside from being, let’s say, this self-referential name, for me it also has a message I wanted to convey, which is this idea that the male world in general, the rap world in particular, is a violent world, a harsh world, and that doesn’t really work for me, you know? I love hip hop, I’m crazy about it, it’s what I enjoy most in the world, but I’m not that tough, that violent person. So, for me, that’s something I’ve realized as I’ve grown up. And I wanted to use this cardboard element and things that are a bit more toy-like, in that vein. Then there are more visuals that haven’t been released yet, but I was trying to create this coming-of-age idea, you know? Like growing up, portraying yourself as a big kid, a bit like Peter Pan, in that vein. It’s true that maybe that concept hasn’t come across as that clear, but well, I think I like it better this way, you know? It’s like it’s okay that it’s aesthetically pleasing, downplaying the message we wanted to convey. For me, that’s also super important, that everyone looks at the painting and sees their own interpretation.
AR: I really liked the part in the press release about «love understood as a form of resistance.» What do you mean by that?
L: Well, it goes hand in hand with what I was telling you. I feel that sometimes it’s easier to be selfish and withdraw and say, «I’m not going to get angry, I’m going to take this path, I’m going to be, I don’t know, make things easier.» And I think that the idea of love as a form of resistance comes from the fact that you often have to make an effort. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve realized that there are many relationships where you really have to put in a lot of effort, and not as a punishment or anything, but like, damn it, it’s true, you have to do your part if you want to be with someone, whether romantically, as a friend, as family, or in any kind of relationship. So it was kind of along those lines, I don’t know, I didn’t read through it a ton, but it was somewhat in that vein.
AR: Now I’m going to highlight some lines from the previews we’ve had that I liked. “I came to vent, not to teach you a lesson.”
L: Which is something that’s happened to me a few times, because when you learn to deal with conflicts with people, it seems like every time someone tells you that you’ve done something wrong or that you seem to be acting super selfishly, you take it personally. And I’m not really telling you my story, I’m not judging you, I’m not blaming you for anything, I’m just telling you my story, and that’s it, you know, it doesn’t go beyond that.
AR: And then there’s also «more than seven years since I took off my headphones.» What songs can you tell us have been on your headphones?
L: Lately, well, I’ve been listening a lot to JID’s latest album. He’s a guy I’ve never really been crazy about, but I think he has something really special in some of his songs, and there have been a few tracks that I’ve absolutely loved. I’ve also been listening to Rodriguez a lot again. He’s the guy who had a famous documentary about Searching for Sugarman, which I loved back in the day, but I kind of put it aside. Recently, I rediscovered the album and thought, «This is amazing!» I even showed the documentary to my girlfriend, who hadn’t seen it, and she was listening to it nonstop. And I’ve also been listening to Michael Jackson a lot again, since seeing the movie, even though I’ve always loved him. And I’ve started listening again a bit because a friend recently gave me a vinyl record of his that I’d wanted for a long time, and that kind of revived that feeling for me. And well, I don’t know, I’m listening to stuff from here and there, and also stuff from here in Spain—I listen to everything that’s coming out. Well, maybe not everything, but I am listening to things, even if it’s just to find out. What I really meant by that phrase was that it’s been more than seven years since I’ve listened to anyone, so I’m just here in my own world.
AR: Let’s move on to «PIRINEOS» with Hoke, where he says: «everyone takes the same steps, they all limp on the same foot.» What do you think of that phrase?
L: I feel it’s very representative of society. In that song, I also say something similar, echoing that old saying. And I think that for me, that phrase means that we all think we’re the most unique people in the world, but we make the same mistakes, we stumble over the same stone, like, for example, my relationship with masculinity. I think it’s something that feels very personal to me, and that a lot of other people feel the same way, you know? I think that’s the gist of it, that phrase.
AR: From “Esta Canción” (This Song), I highlighted that false obligation, “love is loyalty of the heart,” which is what you told me earlier, like, the same thing about love, I understood it as a form of resentment.
L: Yes. And for me, there’s something that I feel is super rap-like about loyalty, like this idea of “you have to be loyal,” it’s like, damn, but if you need to remind yourself that you have to be loyal to your friend. You’re not just loyal to them because you love them, it’s like something that grates on me, you know, like if you have to force yourself to be there for someone, maybe it’s not about just understanding that person and that’s it, you know, it’s okay, you know, it’s just not that important to you, that’s it, you know. It’s cool, it’s true that then there are other meanings and other ways of seeing and understanding it, I don’t know, well, for example, like when you’re going through a bad time with your partner or your friend and being loyal also means making an effort for that, for what we were talking about before. But I feel that if you love a loyal person like Intrinsically, you know? You don’t need to remember it.
AR: Speaking of masculinity, for me it’s very important to see that Cupra is so committed to it, to giving a voice to artists who fight against the classic idea of masculinity. Right now, we identify more with masculinity or femininity, not so much with the artist’s sexuality. Where do you position yourself on that?
L: Yes, I think that happens to me a bit too, on a personal level, in terms of saying that I am, well, and always have been. I feel like the most basic straight guy in the world, but then it’s true that I go back to my friends, the ones who really are the most basic straight guys in the world. Of course. And I say, okay, there are levels. But well, I also know my place and, you know, I try to be in the world in the most comfortable way I know how, and that’s about it, I don’t overthink it.
AR: What was the process of choosing features for the album like?
L: I had the idea at the beginning that I wasn’t going to collaborate with anyone. The album is called “Hate Always Wins,” and I think it’s me. So I wasn’t going to collaborate with anyone. But in the end, it didn’t happen, and the three collaborations that are on it didn’t come about because we were looking for them or anything, but because with Hoke, there was a demo lying around. I was in the studio with Lex, he played it for me, and Hoke said, «Okay, I love it, let me add it,» and I went for it. Same thing with Ugly, same story. Íñigo showed it to him because he was going to be working with him. He showed him demos and stuff we had lying around, nothing fancy, and he liked it too. He said, «Hey bro, this guy liked it,» and I said, «Okay, let him do a bit, and we’ll go to the studio.» And the same with Sammy, I mean, they all kind of happened that way. There were more, but in the end, they fell through because we didn’t really see those tracks on the album, or maybe we see them for something that might come out later, or I don’t know. But I did have this thing where I didn’t want to fill the album with collaborations just to make it bigger and sound bigger, but because I prefer to do something where I’m the one speaking. Although I do think you can also make an album with 10 collaborations and still be speaking yourself, but I felt like doing more less than more, you know?
AR: Although I feel like you’re showing off more than before, do you feel that too? Is it related to the album’s theme?
L: Yes, totally, totally. And on this album I’m much more of a rapper than on others. But also because, like, damn, when I was younger I was doing this all the time. And I started with the L’haine project and I kind of went in another direction and I also wanted to go back to that a bit, like what we were talking about with the kid and all, I don’t know, I wanted to explore other things. And being with Lex and with MÉCÈN, which is basically a rap label, so I’ve kind of gone back to that. But anyway, I’m trying to find my own space for it without saying, «Okay, I’m going to do a rap track like, ‘Now I’m going to do a rock track, now I’m going to say this,’ or ‘I’m not going to do a track,’ well, yes, I’m rapping, but I’m going to do a L’haine track, you know? And then context is context. It’s true that when I’m making the tracks, I don’t see it that much, but then I put the album on and I’m like, damn, it’s true that I see them as very different, but the other day I was with a friend, coming back in a car from somewhere, and I played the whole album for him and he shut me up, saying, ‘Damn, it’s all much more cohesive than I thought,’ you know? It’s true that’s typical, isn’t it? That whoever paints a picture sees it very differently from everyone else.
AR: To finish up, I wanted to ask you, which L’haine song should someone who doesn’t know you and who’s leaving the Listening Party tonight listen to? Because your songs don’t age, they exist in a timeless realm.
L: Yes, I feel that on albums there’s never really a single hit, but rather each song has its own point. Well, from the last album, I think the outro would perhaps be the song where I’m most myself, where I talk more about personal experiences and such. And from past projects, well, I don’t know, maybe look, «Connie Nikas,» even though it’s with Natalia (Lacunza), it’s a song that was later put together and all, but it’s a song that for me was super defining of who I’ve been for a long time, you know, the kind of music I’ve liked, it kind of has a little bit of quite a lot of things. Yes, I’d say those two too: «El Odio Siempre Gana» and «Connie Nikas.»
Questions by @alraco43