DellaXOZ: "My music is not about a genre, just a feeling of what sounds good"

Manchester teen DellaXOZ is a genre-defying newcomer looking for connection and embracing being weird. 

Words: Martyn Young.

DellaXOZ is part of a number of artists who broke through in the peak creative days of early lockdown with brilliantly creative and instinctive lo-fi alt-pop music. A bedroom producer working on her own, 19-year-old Daniella Lubasu from Manchester started making waves first on TikTok and then with her debut EP, 2022's 'THE DELLA VARIANT', and now she's back with a brand new EP and an expanded creative vision as the Gen Z alt-pop visionary expands her multi-genre literate alt-pop into ever more creative lanes on her dynamic new EP, 'DELLAIRIUM'.

Hey DellaXOZ, how are you feeling with a new EP on the way and lots of exciting pop stuff happening? 

I'm excited about it. I've been really looking forward to releasing this music for a long time. I'm excited it's finally happening.

How would you characterise your journey as an artist so far? Things feel like they're really ramping up now? 

I feel like it's exciting because I'm building my audience and my small little community. There are so many people when I go online, and I see their videos saying, 'I love DellaXOZ' and people are agreeing. It's weird to see people in different countries listening to me. It's slightly nerve-racking because I love all the stuff that I put out, and I have to top it each time.

What were your formative musical and cultural touchstones growing up? 

I grew up listening to everything. My parents are from Congo, and being in the UK, I'd also be listening to lots of other random stuff. My parents would always play Congolese music in the car, but they'd also listen to the radio. When I was in primary school my dad would play all the hits of Rihanna and Beyonce. My mum loves old-school stuff, like 70s rock, and she showed me people like ABBA. It's a lot of different things. 

How have those early introductions to music shaped you now? 

It has shaped me in the way that I don't listen to stuff because it's a specific genre. I think if it sounds good, it sounds good. I appreciate a lot of music from different genres. I haven't shown it so much as my discography is still small, and I'm still growing as an artist, but over time, I'll show that my music is not about a genre and just a feeling of what sounds good. 

How do you think you've developed as an artist since you've been doing this?