KOPPS is band from Rochester, NY. The quartet recently released a music video for their new song “Virtual Reality”. Check out the interview to find out about the song, the music video, and what is next for the band!
upfrontNY: Can you tell us a bit about how the band got together ?
KOPPS: same mother, different fathers
upfrontNY: What do you love most about making music?
KOPPS: Seeing the way people are affected by it, helping people to have a moment of “letting go” in a time when that’s nearly impossible. The excitement of being in the middle of making something you know people are going to be into is also kind of a “high”.
upfrontNY: Who were your musical inspirations and how would you describe your sound to others?
KOPPS: Inspirations are pretty mixed for all of us. I’m obsessed with how multifaceted/innovative prince was- I just think he’s kind of it. He was everything you could possibly be as an artist- and that inspires me to not only focus on art as a writer but also an entertainer. We are here to put on a mf show each and every time we play.
Our sound is a mashup of a bunch of different genres and we always joke it’s like a mix of Britney and Korn except I do enjoy full ass vocals
upfrontNY: Can you tell us about your song Virtual Reality?
KOPPS: “Virtual Reality” is basically a song about online stalking someone you’re into. And in that way, we think it’s pretty relatable to basically everyone. We are all creeps, let’s just face it. The song points to how that behavior isn’t healthy while simultaneously taking a non-chalant attitude toward it- which I think as a society we are collectively engaging in right now.
upfrontNY: Can you tell us what the experience was like filming the music video?
KOPPS: We shot in LA with a production team called Bearpunch. We wanted it to have a kind of retro-confusing-aesthetic and they helped us achieve exactly what we had imagined for the treatment- we love working with teams that allow for collaboration, as creating visuals can be one of our strong suits as we have done a lot of in house videos and photo shoots throughout the years.
upfrontNY: Do you feel that it is difficult to know who someone is based on social media?
KOPPS: Yes, and I’ve said this in prior interviews – I think that we use social media today as a sort of personal resume to show either how successful and attractive we are or how much self loathing we can do. There doesn’t seem to be much inbetween and none of it seems to be based on the actual reality of who we are at our core; it’s either providing a snapshot of our best or our worst. So when you feel bad because you’re comparing yourself to everyone’s successes online just remember that you’re only seeing the very best- and just because someone has a house and baby, that absolutely doesn’t mean they are actually happy with all of those decisions.
upfrontNY: Has anyone in the band had an experience where someone’s social media persona was better than the real thing?
KOPPS: Definitely Richard’s. He does very well with fans online, but no one sees him when he is covered in mud/poop and attacking me because I’m trying to get my underwear out of his mouth. Everyone’s got a dark side I guess. Oh and probably mine too. Sometimes I look all glammed up sometimes but 99 percent of my time is spent looking like a Walmart shopper…so much so that at times I question my ability to be an actual adult woman in the world.
upfrontNY: Has social media affected your music, if so how?
KOPPS: Certainly- “virtual reality” would not exist and we probably wouldn’t as a band either. Getting visuals out via socials has been a huge plus for us since way back.
upfrontNY: How would you describe the feeling when performing together on stage?
KOPPS: Performing live is probably my favorite part of being an artist. It’s a culmination of everything we work on, come to life in front of our audience. I don’t think you can truly understand who we are as an artist without seeing us live- that’s where our music and image collide most. It is the most exhilarating feeling I have ever felt besides sex, and it might even beat that.
upfrontNY: What does 2019 look like for KOPPS?
KOPPS: Lots of new music. Lots of new visuals, and definitely some shows. I’ve always loved to throw parties and have for basically my whole life, and I’m thinking of expanding that into KOPPS in 2019. I would like to bring our audience an experience more than just your typical line up of bands- and dancing is a huge part of our performance, so expect events that will be centered around that!
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