Getting to Know… Gavi | Interview

In the 449^th Q&A in our Getting to Know… series, we get the inside scoop from singer/songwriter, Gavi.

“I create Experience Albums, which aren’t just a collection of songs but an entire narrative, blending music, philosophy, psychology, and storytelling,” Gavi asserts. He continues in response to our first burning question, “The music is cinematic, the lyrics are layered with meaning, and I want people to see themselves in the story, not just listen to it.” Deep stuff! We get the inside scoop on the Gavi’s beginnings, goals, musical influences, and current, and future musical endeavors. So, without further ado, let’s jump into Getting to Know…Gavi: Interview No. 449!

For those who may not be familiar with you, what would you say makes your project distinct or unique? How do you rock the audience’s socks off?

What makes my project unique is that it’s not just music—it’s a full experience. I create Experience Albums, which aren’t just a collection of songs but an entire narrative, blending music, philosophy, psychology, and storytelling. Each album is structured like a journey, and every song is a different chapter of that journey. The music is cinematic, the lyrics are layered with meaning, and I want people to see themselves in the story, not just listen to it.

I love balancing depth with accessibility—I’ll write about existentialism, attachment theory, and the psychology of human relationships, in a way that feels raw and relatable. I can take an emotionally devastating story and package it in an upbeat track or turn something personal into something universal.

And when it comes to performing? I want my audience to feel something real. It’s not about being perfect, it’s about being present – letting go, losing yourself in the moment, and connecting with every single person in the room.

Okay, let’s explore some juicy backstories. How did your project get started, and what were some of your early goals or visions?

It all started with a breakup. The stories are all on the album, so I don’t need to tell them again, but I wrote the whole thing as it happened. The emotions were so raw, and I didn’t try to overthink it—I just let the story unfold naturally.

At first, I just wanted to process what I was going through, but the more I wrote, the more I realized I wasn’t just making a breakup album. I was making something bigger—an album about escapism, self-destruction, and the illusion of control. That’s how the concept of The Seasonal Affective Disorder :(SAD): Experience was born. It wasn’t just about the breakup anymore; it was about the way we cope, the way we numb, and the way we try to take back control when we feel like we’ve lost it.

I didn’t want this to be an album you just listen to. I wanted it to be something you experience—where every track feels like a different stage of emotional unraveling. And as I wrote, the vision only got bigger and bigger.

Let’s talk more about goals.  Have your goals or your perspectives changed since starting? What do your aspirations or goals look like now?

At first, my only goal was to write what I felt. Now, my goal is to connect with people on a deeper level. I want my music to make people feel seen, to help them process their own experiences through mine.

I’ve also realized how much I love the intersection of music and philosophy. I used to think of music as just a form of expression, but now I see it as a way to explore and challenge ideas. I want to create projects that push boundaries—that make people think, reflect, and even change the way they see the world.

Moving forward, I see myself expanding beyond just albums. I want to create multi-media experiences, incorporating animation, storytelling, and interactive elements. The idea of faceless content is already forming—the next level of Experience Albums, something bigger than anything I’ve done before. More to come soon!

Everybody is influenced by somebody else. Whom would you consider some of your biggest musical influences, and how are they influential?

My influences span across music, philosophy, and storytelling.

In terms of music, Motown was my first love. Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Michael Jackson—they shaped the way I hear and feel music. The soul, the storytelling, the emotion in every note—that was everything to me. From there, I got into powerhouse vocalists like Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, and Beyoncé, who taught me how to deliver emotion through a performance. Then there’s Ryan Tedder, Jon Bellion, and Labrinth, who helped shape my approach to songwriting and production.

Outside of music, I’m deeply influenced by philosophers like Epicurus, Plato, and Lao Tzu. Their ideas about happiness, the self, and human nature are woven into the way I write. I’m also fascinated by psychologists like Carl Jung and relationship experts like John Gottman, because understanding the way people think, feel, and interact is just as important to my music as the melodies themselves.

And then there are the visionaries—Walt Disney, Michael Jackson, Dr. Seuss—people who didn’t just create, but built entire worlds. That’s what I want to do with my music. I don’t want to just write songs; I want to immerse people in a full experience.

Ah, the fun stuff.  What’s your craziest tour story or the wackiest thing that’s happened during a performance?  Feel free to be creative.

I haven’t toured yet, but one of my most surreal performance moments happened when I was singing “Heartbreak Nostalgia” live. The crowd was really into it—everyone in the room was singing along—and I got so overwhelmed with emotion that my voice just stopped working for a second. It wasn’t planned, but in that moment, I just pointed the mic out to the crowd, and they carried the song for me.

Hearing all these voices singing something I wrote, something that was once just a thought in my head—that was unreal. It was like the song didn’t even belong to me anymore. It belonged to them.

To this point in your career, what would you describe as your favorite song you’ve recorded or performed live? What makes that song special?

My absolute favorites are on the next album, but from SAD, two songs that stand out are “Watch It Bleed” and “Love Dies”.

“Watch It Bleed” is special because of its storytelling. It’s this twisted metaphor of being both the victim and the accomplice in your own heartbreak, and I love how the production and lyrics make it feel like a crime scene—like I’m getting punished for the pain I didn’t cause. The way the song builds and shifts in energy makes it one of my favorite things I’ve ever created.

“Love Dies” is special for a completely different reason. It was written in one sitting, during this huge rush of emotion, and I had to literally record a demo in 30 minutes before Yom Kippur (a Jewish fast day) started. I was stuffing my food with one hand and typing lyrics with the other, running out of time before the holiday. That urgency is in the song itself—it feels like life support, like something fading fast. The fact that I held onto it for so long, kept rewriting and refining it, and now it’s one of the most emotional moments of the album—that makes it really meaningful to me.

Is there anything else awesome, cool, or left-of-center we should know about you? Secret talents or surprising tidbits?

I do a lot of impressions—mostly Disney characters and all the Muppets. If you ever need a full-on Muppet conversation, I’m your guy.

I’m also a massive Disney nerd—I love the history, the storytelling, the way it shaped so much of entertainment. And when I’m not making music, I’m watching football or baseball. Huge sports fan.

What are you currently promoting that you can share with us or want us to know?

Right now, it’s all about SAD—this album means a lot to me, and I want people to experience the full story from start to finish. But I’m also working on something even bigger. The next project is going to push the boundaries of storytelling even further, diving deeper into philosophy, psychology, and human experience.

There’s a concept I’ve been developing, and it’s something I can’t wait to share when the time is right.

But for now, The SAD Experience is out, and I want people to dive in, feel every moment, and maybe even see a little bit of themselves in the story. The goal is to promote empathy, balance, and perspective so I hope we laid out a good foundation with this one.

Thank you so much for sharing and taking the time to answer these questions, and best of luck moving forward. 

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Getting to Know…Gavi: Interview No. 449 [: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Gavi]