( ENSPIRE Music ) London-Based Artist, Ritho Releases Two Amazing Songs Back to Back, “Fantasising” & “Never Fall In Love”
ENSPIRE Contributor: Wesley Tran
London-based indie, dream pop artist Ritho has just released his new single “Never Fall In Love.” Characterized by dreamy, ethereal soundscapes, colorful, vibrant synths, and sincerely personal lyrics, “Never Fall In Love” is as infectious as it is vulnerable. This newest single narrates the feeling of never-ending unrequited love for someone with whom you share an intimate relationship. Creating deeply introspective songs, his honest lyricism revolves around relatable, everyday experiences in your early twenties, filled with regrets and mistakes. This raw honesty and realism will leave you chanting along to the lyrics of his songs.
Raised in Nottingham, Ritho is a 23-year-old British indie, dream pop artist based in London. Aligned with catchy pop melodies, interesting production, and bold instrumentation, Ritho’s music is built upon recurring themes of dissociation and daydreaming. He aims to offer escapism and provide listeners with a safe space where overthinkers and dreamers can find comfort. Ritho draws influences from the likes of Holly Humberstone with her heartfelt lyrics and Sam Fender with his raw vocal tone. The multi-instrumentalist uses songwriting as a way to cope with the challenges he faces in his daily life, finding solace in the process of creating, and allowing his music to express his innermost thoughts and feelings.
ENSPIRE was given the amazing opportunity to interview Ritho about his new song and his experiences as an artist. Read about it below!
What kind of message do you want your viewers to gain with the song “Never Fall In Love”?
I’ve always felt that every song I have heard about love is always about how happy and euphoric and painting it in rainbows; I agree that it is all of that and more, but I sometimes feel like love can also be incredibly painful. I sometimes struggle with the fear of losing that loved one and it becomes overwhelming. So the “Never Fall In Love” talk is kind of an ironic spin on it because what I am trying to say is, ‘Never fall in love with someone because the feeling can be so extremely painful because you care so deeply about that special person or persons.’
What is your process of creating a song? From finding an idea or choosing what kind of vibe to give it, what makes a song feel like a masterpiece for you?
For me, the ‘masterpiece’ feeling comes from how accurately you can emulate the exact feeling that you intended to. I am a big believer in my music being real experiences that I have had rather than saying things just to sound cool so I think for me I only know when a song is finished when I get taken back to that place or when someone else can resonate with that same feeling in their own life. For me a masterpiece is not about how many people you can influence, it’s about how deep the influence is. If someone can make one person feel something deeply from their piece of art, that is a completely valid masterpiece in my eyes.
My songwriting process fluctuates a bit but I will either have a memory or feeling that I have felt, then I try to create a world that I think that memory or feeling would live in. Once I have that I then go about writing it into a fleshed-out song. It really can be a cathartic and sometimes quite painful process to reflect on particular moments but it makes it worth it when it is done and finished.
Being born in Nottingham, can you describe how your environment, inspires your songs or affects you in general?
Nottingham has been a huge influence on me as a person and because my art is so closely tied to me as a person because I write and produce all of my music, it directly affects the music. I really do love Nottingham; don’t get me wrong, it definitely has its lumps and bumps as a city, and growing up there you see some pretty extreme things but everyone there is very genuine and that is the thing that has impacted me the most. There’s no ‘fluff’ or ‘rose-tinted glasses’ with Nottingham, and especially with the people there. I think that is the biggest factor, the constant pursuit of trying to be as genuine and authentically ‘you’ as you can be, whatever ‘you’ means.
What was the moment that you decided you wanted to be a musician? What about music made it seem like it was the best way to express yourself?
I was lucky that music has been in my life from a young age. Both of my sisters were in a choir when I was growing up and I was always captivated by these sounds that people were making and how they would intertwine, pull and weave between each member of the choir to create one powerful feeling. I was always just amazed by it.
As a kid, I wasn’t very good at talking to people about my feelings and I just kept to myself a lot. I always found more comfort in building worlds in my head rather than doing anything else. I think like most people who write songs, I found a lot of comfort from being able to speak my mind better than I could with words and it just felt like therapy and escapism to me. I could control every outcome of what I was saying. I think I just became addicted to that feeling, so I didn’t want to do anything else.
For the rest of 2023, what can we look forward to seeing from you? Any new songs or events that you are planning to release? What are some of the things you wish you could do this year?
2023 is going to be a big year for me as I am releasing my first EP (on the 1st of September). Off the back of that, we have plenty of shows lined up which I am just so excited about. This EP has been something that I have worked really hard on and I am immensely proud of it and also how personal it is, so the fact that I get to share it is something I am over the moon about. The only hope I have is that it makes some kid who thinks that they are the weird one because they don’t fit in with the other songs about ‘the jocks falling in love with the girl next door’ feel okay with that and proud of that. If I can make one person feel like they can find some comfort or escapism in my EP then it would be the best year yet.
As Ritho continues to grow and evolve as an artist, one thing remains constant: his commitment to creating music that is honest, sincere, and deeply personal. His music is a reminder that it’s ok to retreat into your own mind and find comfort in your own thoughts. The artist shares, “I spend a lot of time in my own head as I prefer to create worlds for myself there than anything else, as it feels like the safest and most comfortable place to fit in.” He serves as an inspiration to not let yourself be consumed by the world and that sometimes, all you need is yourself.
Listen to Ritho’s latest songs, “Never Fall in Love” and “Fantasising” below!
To learn more about Ritho, be sure to check out his Instagram, Tiktok, Spotify, and Apple Music.
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