Rumah Sanur’s regular Monday night musician is anything but regular, the mighty Made Mawut plays the delta blues like he is straight out of the deep south of the USA. Here he talks about his inspirations, future plans & involvement with Rumah Sanur. Catch up on the 1st & 3rd Monday of the month.
When & why did you start playing?
Since I was kid, from a really early, my family liked to play records & there were some songs that I liked to hear, again & again. When I was a kid I just pretended to play music.
I really wanted to be a musician. In my imagination & dreams I played music & when daydreaming.
What was the first genre you learn?
Reggae, Redemption Song that was the first song that I learnt on guitar in 5th grade. Now I play the Delta Blues.
Who & what are your inspirations for creating music?
I started to buy records on cassette when I was in the 4th grade of elementary school. I bought a lot of records, randomly picking, stories & soundtracks from movies because I loved watching movies.
In the afternoon I remember waiting for a kids show but there was Bob Marley clip that played, I remembered the song Iron Lion Zion & thought the music was really cool.
So I asked my neighbour who is musician & his friend sold records & cassettes. He said Bob Marley so I asked him to bring it for me. I was in love with Bob Marley then my repertoire developed.
I was interested in what they said but I didn’t understand English very well, just a few words so I searched word by word in dictionary. I am interested in Bob Marley’s song when he talks about justice, freedom & bribery.
What skills do you think are most important for blues singers?
You should be true because blues is about feeling, it’s about soul. That’s why I love it because it kind of represents my feelings so that’s way I like to listen blues & think “oh my God this is true”.
What are your plans for future?
Of course to make album I really want to play music in Mississippi in the south belt because I love their style.
What has been a big challenge for you as a singer?
The challenge is “are you making a good living” especially because recently artist started getting recognised in Bali. Before, when I had just graduated from high school, I started wanting to play in café with my band but we didn’t earn money.
We needed to sell tickets so the café led us to play at an event. My band was happy.
Do you enjoy visiting & playing at Rumah Sanur?
I like it. Rumah Sanur is getting cooler, now they put music in front.
It’s a great place good friends good beer they have a lot of beer option different than other place especially for the event they have really good event here. Also because I have a lot of friends who are here.
Why do you think spaces like Rumah Sanur important for creatives?
It’s accessible for locals because Rumah Sanur is a place to introduce people to something important happening here in Bali or Indonesia like Kendeng Berdendang & Tolak Reklamasi.
Have you collaborated with any other musicians? One who have met at Rumah Sanur or other?
Yes, at Rumah Sanur with Ari Burhani he is a saxophone player, he played for Kla Project with Fendy who is a bassist & also Fendy at the regular Monday Mawut events.
Discover designers, artists, musicians & creatives with Rumah Sanur’s Meet the Makers