Artist interview – IV Dante

IV Dante is an up and coming Australian artist. He recently talked to Traklife about his upcoming live shows, who his dream collaboration would be, and more!

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What inspired the name IV Dante?

As my name is Dante, I always wanted to have an ‘artist’ style name to go by when releasing music and when the idea ‘IV DANTE’ was written up, it just looked really striking. When I searched up ‘IV DANTE’ into google, the only thing that appeared from chapters from one of Dante Alighieri’s poems which was listed a ‘Chapter IV – Dante Alighieri’. Once I saw this is felt like a full circle kind of moment as my Italian grandparents would teach me about the history of ‘Dante Alighieri’ as a kid and the origin of my name.

How old were you when you first picked up a guitar and what inspired you to do so?

There are photos of me playing guitar as young as 4 years old, but I only really started learning at age 11. I don’t really have a specific moment that caused me to want to play the guitar, rather it was something I just always felt like I was drawn towards.

Your YouTube vlogs give fans an insight into your day-to-day life. What is something you hope fans learn about you from these videos?

I think I just hope the fans get some entertainment value from seeing some behind-the-scenes footage. I would always watch documentaries of my favourite artists and any non-related music footage I could of them because I thought they were so interesting & was invested in learning more about them. Most of what I make whether it’s music or other content are things I would like to see from my favourite artists & even wish I could have seen more from many of the older artists I like.

“By Herself” is your most streamed song on Spotify. Why do you think fans have gravitated towards this song versus some of your other music?

I think out of the music I had released at the time, By Herself had all the elements to connect with people. From the lyrics and message of the song to the overall catchiness and simplicity in the chord progression, it just has an energy that people can be easily drawn to upon first listening.

Who is your dream artist to one day collaborate with?

This is such a tough question but probably Matty Healy from The 1975. They have been one of my favourite bands since I was a teenager & have learnt so much from the way they write songs, think about aesthetic & their overall performances. To not only work on a song with Matty but designing the artwork and music video would be so much fun & definitely would tick off a goal and make the teenager version of me lose his mind.

Your show in Melbourne is quickly approaching. What are you most excited about for this performance?

I think I’m just excited to finally get out and play a show again! We have so many new songs to play live that we haven’t performed before & getting to perform these songs to fans & connect with people in person is going to be such a fun experience. So much of what I do is online but to finally meet some of the local fans at a show where we can all sing and dance is going to be amazing!

Ten years from now, what do you hope comes to mind when people hear the name IV Dante?

Great songs, iconic guitar solos, a killer live show & an amazing community to be a part of.

Click here to check out IV Dante’s newest single, Never Be Alone.