[FEATURE] VIPER PRESENTS: RINI

One of the most exciting R&B artists to watch, RINI, dropped his ‘Lucky 7’ EP last month, which ushered in a new era of his career. We caught up with the south east Melbourne singer to get more familiar…

What 5 words define your sound?



Smooth, sultry, heartfelt, rockin’ and one-of-a-kind.

Tell me something unique about your creative process.

I use literally anything as inspiration. If I’m with friends and they say something that catches me, I’d write that down or if there’s like a sound/melody that I hear outside, I would record it. I like to include random sonics in records to make them interesting and unique.

Which song of yours would you like people to hear first?

‘Gone with the wind’

What inspired you to make that song?



I listened to George Michael a lot growing up and I wanted to recreate that feeling you get when you listen to his songs. It’s heavily inspired by dreamy 80’s sounds and melodies with heavy lyrics about lost love and yearning which was really a thing back in the 80’s. I initially had the title before the whole song was actually written and I didn’t realise that it was a name of an old school movie which made it even more special.

What’s the most vulnerable you’ve allowed yourself to be when writing/making music?



I think it was when I wrote ‘My Favourite Clothes’, looking back at it earlier on I felt kinda stupid singing about my past relationship because it didn’t really end well but as I got older I’ve learned to accept that it’s part of who I am and I’m glad that I wrote it because so many people love that song [even though I dislike it] and were able to relate to it.


What’s the best/worst experience you’ve had on stage?



The Best was probably one of the festivals in Jakarta. I sang ‘Meet Me In Amsterdam’ in front of over 5000 people and I could see them all put their flash lights on and it felt like I was floating on a sea of stars. Worst experience was probably the most recent tour I did, when we were in Melbourne for the first show out of two, there was a technical difficulty on stage and the power cut off completely causing our the whole sound system to completely die mid show. It took about 15 mins to get it back on but while they were fixing the problem, I went ahead and sang songs acoustically and the crowd still loved it and had a great time, what a save!


What is your favourite song to perform?



At this moment I would say ‘Miracle’. It’s just a vibe playing that song live because it becomes even funkier.


Which artist/song/album made you want to make music?



It was probably ‘Channel Orange’ from Frank Ocean, I remember being in high school and hearing that album thinking damn, how does one come up with these lyrics and melodies. It really inspired me to start writing my own songs.


What’s the meaning behind your name?



RINI is actually the last four letters of my first name Justerini. My first name came from a brand of alcohol [scotch], ‘Justerini & Brooks’. Thanks to my grandpa, he loved his drinks.


If you weren’t doing music, what would you be doing instead?



I think I’d be doing something with old classic cars, either flipping them or rebuilding them. I’ve also thought about being a dog trainer for real. 


What’s success to you?



To me success is based on me becoming the person I’ve always dreamt of being. I don’t care about being the biggest artist anymore or being a celebrity or whatever, as long as the people I love love me back. I’m happy with the music I create and I can live a stable life and still do normal people things and make precious memories with my family and friends, I’d consider that successful.


What moment in your life/career forced you to changed direction?



I think this realisation is very recent actually. I’ve been in the music industry for a little while and I’m seeing the shift in it, I think a lot of people are actually losing touch of what music is all about and I am guilty of being one of those people before. However, I’ve had a lot of time to ponder and I’ve had lots of talks with the people that matter to me and it’s made me realise that I really only care about the art and making the best music I can make. I just want to be able to enjoy that part and share that with the fans without having the pressure of the industry.


Where can people keep in touch with you?



I’m most active on IG but to be honest I’ve never really been the biggest social guy, although I try. Instagram is the best place to reach me!