No Bullshit Talk with Kate from Ukraine

Hi Kate! Hi! Please tell us who are you, what are you doing in life?

This question always killing me actually. I’m a strategy manager in music industry. I’m doing a lot of things in my life and I’m a musician.

Nice. What is a strategic manager?

So, when you are artist or musician, you have to build a business project from yourself. So, if you’re doing music you have to build this as a project. So, you have to understand the concept and where are you going. So, to understand your goals. And it doesn’t mean just to have all the audience in this world. It’s not actually a goal. And what I’m doing, I’m building the concept of artist. So I’m helping artists to make philosophy, tasks, goals, how you will get there, what you have to do. So actually I’m building this way, but the most important thing for every artist is to understand his values. And I call it red line. So the first thing if you want to be a full great project you have to have a mission and philosophy.

It’s very interesting because values are important not only for musician but in life in general.

Yes, and this is a thing. You don’t have to create something from yourself. You are already ready.
So you have your values, and you have to just put it in your philosophy and do it clearly, that your audience can understand who you are, what you are doing and what are your values. And you will always find your audience to listen your music.

You know, this is actually the same what I am doing because you know, in Jyotish Astrology – your natal chart basically represents your values. Yes, true. So we are doing the same things. Voila.

So it can work and I’m pretty sure that I saw a lot of artists who are, and worked with them, who are on a, like, having everything what you can dream about, like television, radio, all the shows, but at some point it cannot go higher, or even stops, because they have some pattern how to work with TV or radio, but they don’t have this concept of who are they.

That’s true.

So for how many years you doing this?

Oh my god, if you would speak about strategic management, it’s almost 3, 4, 5 years, because in music I’m 15 years. But yeah, I started this because I wanted, I studied on some courses.

Yeah, this was my next question.

I wanted to do this. So I was a musician and I saw the meets and I realized my status breaks, what’s breaking me down in the music industry. And I catch that actually nobody is really doing this except agencies. But let’s be honest, not a lot of musicians will go to agency. At first it’s expensive and second it’s not really what you need because you don’t understand who you actually are and what you have to do. Also it is not working well with agency if you are part of the band for example or doing some music not in format, if I might say like this.

Yeah, it’s also what I was thinking, like I think like the agency is more like a factory, which also specializes in specific boxes, and you are working with something more… more unique and specific. Something individual.

Yes, this is the factory, and when you are going there, you have to understand why. And this is the same actually with TV-shows. A lot of musicians and a lot of guys trying to promote a bit in media like TV shows or trying to do like radio rotation and everything. But for what you will do this? Just imagine for now you have, I don’t know, three radio stations that are making your track of the day like, three times per day at least every day. So you’re thinking that it’s Yeah – that it’s success. But these people will never find you they will just listen to you and okay what they will do is that they can Shazam this. Okay, they will find your track and they will forget about this tomorrow. Nobody cares. But if you are in touch with them as a personality, they will think, oh, okay – that’s you. So if you’re building this connection with them, like, I don’t know – Nikita, DJ, Jyotish, Yoga, something like this, when it will pass by in their life, they will make association with you. So they will think about you, just because you are in their informational space. This is the thing how to make this work to be in touch. But you have to be yourself.

Nice, I like it. So let’s speak about your music career. Ok, let’s speak. What are you doing about music?

So, I’m playing bass guitar. I’m playing more than 14 years. I started by myself, I didn’t go to special school or something like that. I had my brother, my twin brother, and we wanted to play the electric guitars for a long time. And my father was playing all the instruments in this world just as a hobby, so he’s like super special in that, because he can play any instrument without knowing any notes, so he can hear music and just play this. It was for me, oh my god, how he can do this? And I chose the bass guitar and the secret – it is very easy.

The bass guitar – my father bought first, I wanted to be first, so my brother had to wait for guitar. I started to play straight onthe stage. I was following the Blues Jazz Orchestra, something like that, but of course it was for young people who were really not special, and it was something special to have a bass guitarist girl. And yeah, it started to work, I started to play, and very fast the band invited me to play, and it was a band with very professional guys, and I was wondering, guys, why? I don’t know how to play this instrument. I’m a typical bass player, you know, 0-0-3-5, 0-0-3-5. And they were teaching me a bit, and it started to go. The drummer invited me to another professional band. I was just surprised, because I was, for example, just zero, you know, really zero. But I worked hard.
I had, like, you know, five, six days per week with the rehearsals, with playing whole nights to just be able to play what I have to play. Yeah, and it started to be on the stage.

So, when you started to do this, you were focusing only on music or you were doing something else, like studying?

Of course, I was studying and I was doing the social cultural projects. So, basically, I was solving the problems of the cultural sector with my projects and I was I was doing the modern art exhibitions:
Someone from California with Ukrainian roots brought a Berlin-style art gallery to Ukraine. It was crazy, because people were not used to it, and we did a lot trends, like 40s, lasers, 3D. And then we had classes, which I can’t even explain – The guys were teaching, how they there creating
music with coding.
So I was building my own way, my personal brand.

What you can say about this mind setting – that «by music you can’t earn money?» Which is typical for all post-USSR countries ?

I have a story about that.
When I realized that you can have money, but I was sure that you cannot, because I was only spending, spending and spending. For gear etc, when we were doing some shows, it was always
just for fun.
But some people invited me to play as a session musician in a church!
And they were paying good money. And I was like, oh my God, so I’m not even 17 years old and I can have money for music? What? Of course, it was a bit trash, but it teach me a lot to how to jam, how to play music. For example, you will never believe me, but we were playing three songs one hour. And nobody knows what will be next. You know, you just have to follow the singers, and they will be like: «Oh my God, hallelujah! »
And then it’s ridiculous because my first band was the band from the guys who were like 18 years old and I was 17 or something like that. And we created the band. We had five songs. And after first pre-show, we had an offer to make our solo show. And! We had 100 people in our show. We were literally Kids, you understand? And we started to travel, drink a lot, I mean like really having fun. But at some point I started to grow in that, in music, and I wanted to do something more serious, because we had shows, we had sometimes salary for that, but no vision, nothing. And
our band collapsed, of course.It was hype with no direction.

But I was going very fast in music because I was spending a lot of time with that.
.. actually all the problems will come to you when you’re making recordings. So while you’re thinking you are very good, just try to record yourself and you will understand this piece of shit and you have to spend like 10 hours to just record this in the right way. Yeah, it was fun.

So, what is more, most memorable, most nice, you know, experience that you had during your career?

Okay, actually it was not a long time ago. I First time I really liked that. It’s a huge stage. It’s thousands of people. And it’s this feeling when you’re playing on the same stage with Lordi, with the, like, Status Quo. You understand? This feeling. And you’re playing cover music. You’re just in a leather costume and in the huge high heels playing like ACDC. This was amazing, it was in Sweden and this world of amazing artists and I had an amazing network with guys from the United States and for one networking I booked the show for my band in New York. It was a sponsorship. But you know what? We did not go. But this is another story.

So, you come to Belgium from Ukraine because of War.
How did you build up your path from zero in Europe and Norway ( where you got most of the bookings) ?

I did a networking. First of all, I found all local Facebook groups, related to show-business in Belgium. And I made a 2-3 posts in all of them. In one month local famous Artist, who also made cultural projects – contacted me and said – I want to help, so I will book you for the show.

On this show I met 5 different people and made a networking for my other shows in Belgium.
People started to talk about it.
Me and my band – all girls from Kyiv, we came to Europe without any instruments. And I started
this project of Cover Band from zero. We didn’t have any work to support ourselfs.
I searched heavily Facebook groups to borrow a bass-guitar for myself.
And then I remembered that I knew one guy in Norway – he offered us a project with Pop-covers
for 3 hours of show. In two weeks. And we didn’t even have any instruments. We didn’t even have a place to practice. I accepted of course.
So we didn’t slept for 2 weeks, because we had to make a project with costumes , and about 60-70 songs.
It was very stressful, but we did.
We had only one rehearsal one day before the show.
But after this challenges you understand – that you can do everything, if there is no other way.
Basically we had to cover basic needs – so it was a matter of survival.

Where did you live?

Аt first our friend – vocalist-girl hosted us, but after 2 months we had to go. And we didn’t have
any documents in EU for that moment and in Belgium you can’t rent apartment if you don’t have a
work contract and so on.
So we moved to dormitory for refugees. And you sit there – and you remembering that back in
Ukraine you had your own life and plans, and now everything is gone in one single moment. Your
social life is ruined, for many of my friends the relationships are ruined as well.
And you just have to start everything from the scratch.
But it opened the new horizons.

Your plans, goals, ambition, inspiration about Future?

I am still ambitious ( laughing )
Universe gave me situation to check how purposeful I am – Very Much!
I don’t want to stop what I am doing, I see how I can develop people personally.
I see how I can give a motivation to people.
I am the same person like anybody else. But the Life which I can build very quickly – I know this is my great achievement. I know that you need a lot of energy to do this. And I have enough of this
energy.
And I know we can help other – artists, musicians and people. It’s not by pitying them. It doesn’t help. To let them know that they are now victims, but winners.
When you are refugee – you don’t have energy to live. But then you are winner – people are
inspired by you. They will be like: «Oh my God, you survived !»
If you relate to the people you want to help like heroes and winners, their attitude will change and they will have energy to move on. The hardest point on the way to gain a success in life – its to
move yourself from position, when you think you are missing something to have this success. So I think then you want to help Ukrainian artists – it’s not about money, the best what you can do

…its to make a collab ! Collab is the best when you want to offer some help to artist or creative person – just engage this person in some project.
I really grateful to Universe and World to the help they are giving us. And speaking for the Laws of the Universe – the best what you can do for a person engaged in culture and art – is to give a place ( opportunity ) to realize oneself.
So this is my position.

Very cool. Very inspiring. I subscribe to every word
I may add, that during all time I spend with you and before – I can feel that something is
switch on – Desire to Live and to do something.

I want to share also my insights on project which I am working on. It’s about the Refugees in Belgium from different countries, like Palestine for example. And it’s another world. It’s not what I
have seen as a Refugee. This people have to wait for 2 years for their EU documents. They are living for 50 euros a week which government pays to them. They live together by 4 people in one
small room. And everybody is pitying them, and feel sorry… And for 2 years they live without any
prospect. So then you come there- you feel as the «Life is stopped already»
So my project in collaboration with other EU organization which makes Festivals called «How to
«Belong» (to other country) .
I want to make a «Universal Table» for this people with a chic table – to make so great dinner for them, as nobody else tried before, even we. I will be making it on the base of this organization, because their specialization is food and nutrition. So I want to make them «Winners» so they can feel that they can live this live like this. So they understood that they are «Here» and Life is «Here»
and its going somewhere.
I want to make «Zero Location» in EU this table, but not this scary room what they have.
Because to really «Belong» – you need to make the most hardest transformation – To allow
yourself to be a Winner, to understand that Life is not finished.
Because all system in EU is about to make You to feel as victim, and waste all your life as
cleaning-lady somewhere.
For example, I was given the conditions that if I don’t go to work now – they will not allow me stay
in the country. But I am let’s say tough, and I am not broken and I did not accepted those conditions. But for other people this kind of pressure may be very hard.
And they are following this system. Why? Because this system tells them – we are not interested in who you are, and what interests you have in your life. And still I might say that I am surviving in this system.
So my main goal – is to give space to people like me – to be oneself, and at the same time adapt
to the system.

As a main contact with me I want to send my facebook
CLICK HERE

About my business in Ukraine:
My YouTube
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Project YouTube
CLICK HERE
Project Facebook
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