Hailing from Germany, Robert Stein, better known as Molone, is an up and coming thoughtful emotional Indie-Rock artist with a penchant for writing infectious tunes and relatable narratives. Molone conceptualizes and writes all his songs by himself. He is a talented singer that plays keyboards and bass as well. Being an avid storyteller, Molone is greatly influenced by real life experiences, drawing inspiration for his music from personal experiences and hardships, allowing him to invoke strong emotions in people.
Apart from invoking emotions, Molone also seems to have a unique innate competency to ingeniously present music in multiple styles, all while maintaining a consistent brand, one of the factors that make this artist one to keep an eye out for. With big dreams and plenty of energy to spare, Molone seeks to positively influence society with his music, and is well on his way to becoming an established musician.
Web: www.molone.net
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/2vjzdOU9wy0flWHeQI3d6c
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/molone_music/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/molone.music
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=In8Hu4MBjzw
1.) What elements and/or characteristics made you say to yourself that you wanted to do music for a living? Who are your influences/heroes/role models?
I remember very well when my father showed me a radio for the first time. It is even one of the first memories I have. He turned that thing on and then there was music. It just caught me and I started getting up at night to turn on the radio and listen to the music. I was just 3 years old and my mother and father were not very amused by the noise at night. As a father of 4 today, I can understand that a healthy portion of sleep is beneficial.
So, my first contact with music was in times of the so called Neue Deutsche Welle. I like that kind of music a lot and it has clearly left its mark on me. It was not that sophisticated but it was catchy music. Later on I was impressed by more sophisticated musicians such as STING and Coldplay. Sting combines so many styles of music and makes it sound fitting. I really like that. Chris Martin and Coldplay are a constant in the music business and their sound is amazing and opens up worlds. I am really grateful for what they give me with their music.
2.) If you could compare yourself to an already established artist, who would that be and why? If you don’t like to compare yourself, then music-wise, what separates you from other musicians?
I make thoughtful emotional indie rock. Of course I am influenced by the music of great artists. But my main focus is to make music that comes out of me. I don’t try to imitate anyone. I think that’s important to be authentic. My music should have a depth but also be catchy. My goal is to give the greatest possible identification potential. I want my experiences and views, which I transport with my music, to reach the listener. This only works if music is compatible with existing tastes. This in turn means that I don’t have to compose something original or fancy in an extreme way. My music is straight and forward and I like it that way.
3.) Everyone in life goes through adversity of some sort. Is there anything in your life that has any influence on the kind of songs you write? What is the most difficult thing you’ve had to endure on your path to becoming a musician?
That’s quite personal. Life is up and down. Everything is wave-like. My impression is that this is a basic principle of the universe. Light, economic cycle, success, failure, love. It’s a recurring pattern. And of course I have had very formative experiences. My father died too young and so did one of my daughters – God bless them. My wife and I have a good marriage and we care for and love our 4 other daughters. My life is beautiful and I have accepted my fate. I am happy that I have been able to keep a positive outlook on things. In my music, this is expressed through a range of emotions. I have recorded a total of 10 songs, which I will release soon. Not all of them express a happy mood as you may imagine.
4.) How do you prepare yourself to write certain songs? What is your song-writing and recording process?
Well, I don’t have one way of writing songs. Usually it just comes out of me. I sit down at the piano from time to time and try things out. Chord progressions, melodies. I play with it. And if I like something, I record it directly. We live in a great time to make music. With my computer, I can record ideas anytime, anywhere and finish them later. I can send songs via the internet to my fellow musicians. They can be creative with my ideas. I give them the greatest possible freedom. It is extremely rare that I refuse creative input. After all the tracks are recorded, they are sent to the studio. And there the arrangement is optimized. I also like to take feedback on what I should do differently or add to make my songs even better.
5.) Unfortunately the music industry is full of talented individuals who just don’t get any recognition for their talent and/or hard work. What do you plan to do to make sure you stand out and get noticed? Would you rather be on a major label or would you rather stay independent? Why or why not? In regards to the music industry itself, do you think that the traditional music industry model as we know it is dead?
The traditional music business is not dead yet. But I ask myself why I should give control out of my hands in this day and age, when I can just market myself. Social media offers so many opportunities and I use them. I place ads myself, identify my target audience and offer my music specifically on different platforms. My goal is to stay independent as long as possible. I would rather build my own business with my music and grow over time than give up control. I am not driven to do everything to be successful in a certain way. I want to bring joy to people with my music. And of course I would rather have more people enjoying my music than less. But the important thing for me is that I love my music. And I am sure that if I love my music, others will love it too.
6.) Are you able to make a living with your music? If so, how were you able to attain a career doing what you love? If not, what do you do in order to fund your music career? What advice would give to someone who’s interested in pursuing a career in music?
I earn money and I invest. I have a job that makes me money and I invest to be able to make my income from music in the future. But I don’t want to make myself dependent on the idea of necessarily being able to get 100% of my income from music. That’s not what music is about. Music is about emotions, about telling stories, about love. That is important.
7.) How do you think the internet and social media affected the music industry and how musicians are able to market themselves? Social media is obviously an extremely important element in today’s world, especially when it comes to business, branding, marketing, etc. With that being said, do you think an artist will be able to survive in today’s music industry if they’re not social media savvy?
The possibilities of self-marketing via the internet bring advantages and disadvantages. It no longer needs a label to build up a large audience. I have everything in my own hands and can build my own fanbase all over the world. However, I see so many musicians placing their music in an aggressive and provocative way via social media just to stand out from the crowd. I don’t like that. I’d rather be a bit boring then and stay true to myself.
8.) Artists who try to make music for the general public and make more money are usually seen as “sell-outs.” Do you see it that way and if so, what do you plan to do to make sure your music stays true to your brand and make a good living at the same time without having to “sell out”?
My impression is that the more successful you become, the more you probably have to live with the fact that there are negative views about a supposed commercialization of your own music. I don’t worry about that kind of thing and I’m far from getting to that point in my musical career. But from my personal professional experience I know that any form of success unfortunately also attracts envious people. That’s ok for me. I have accepted that.
9.) Professionally, where do you see yourself 5 years from now?
Corona is over and I will be touring in many countries….