Marika Rossa: "Discover yourself through others"

Every era creates its own way of bringing people together. Ours often mistakes comparison for connection.

Yet perhaps the future of creativity will not be defined by those who compete the hardest, but by those willing to build something that could never exist alone.

In this conversation, Marika Rossa reflects on connection beyond networking, on listening as an act of presence rather than silence, and on the idea that another person's success is not a threat, but a possibility. Instead of opposing ambition, she questions the mechanisms that too often turn creative environments into spaces of constant comparison, proposing collaboration as a conscious choice rather than an idealistic alternative.

What emerges is not a manifesto against competition, but a broader reflection on the social structures surrounding art today: how communities are formed, how identities evolve through encounters with others, and why the most meaningful creative experiences often begin where certainty ends.

For Moan Studios, these conversations are never only about music. They are about the cultural shifts that shape the way we create, relate and imagine the future.

Welcome.

CONNECT is built on a simple yet radical idea: collaboration over competition. In a society that constantly encourages us to compare ourselves with others, do you think genuine human connection begins only when we stop trying to be seen and start learning how to truly see one another?

First of all, I don’t consider this idea to be radical. CONNECT wasn’t created to fight competition. The project simply offers a different path and shows that there is another way to do things. I have no illusions that competition as a phenomenon will ever disappear, and honestly, I don’t see any point in trying to make that happen. I’m all for healthy competition where it’s appropriate. But far too often, our industry behaves as if it expects artists to take part in “The Hunger Games.” And in my opinion, that’s very often completely unjustified. That’s why I don’t believe that, in order to build genuine human connection, we have to stop wanting to be seen.

Wanting to be seen and heard is completely natural, especially for an artist. The problem begins when that becomes the only goal — at any cost. In my opinion, real connection begins the moment meeting someone stops being just a presentation of yourself. Instead, it becomes a search for common ground, a shared effort to bring an interesting idea to life, and genuine curiosity about the result you can create together. That’s what collaboration instead of competition means to me. It doesn’t require giving up your ambitions or stopping your pursuit of success. It requires realizing that another person’s talent and presence don’t diminish your own value. On the contrary, they can help create something that simply wouldn’t have existed without that combination.

Your manifesto describes connection as something that transcends borders, languages and cultures. Before we can genuinely connect with others, do you think we first need to reconnect with ourselves?

We often say that we first need to find ourselves before we can build meaningful connections with others. But in my opinion, it’s impossible to fully know yourself. We spend our entire lives discovering who we are, and that process never really ends. Very often, it’s other people who help us understand ourselves better at a particular moment. It’s through interacting with others that we discover new sides of ourselves, and every new experience changes us a little. And that’s completely normal. That’s why, to me, CONNECT isn’t just about connecting artists or cultures. It’s also an opportunity to see yourself from a different perspective through collaboration.

Listening is often mistaken for silence, when in reality it is an act of presence. What has truly listening to another person taught you that no achievement, recognition or success ever could?

I think the greatest thing that truly listening has taught me is that my own perspective is just one of many. Traveling, performing, and meeting artists and people from completely different cultures have shown me that two people can look at the exact same situation in completely different ways, and neither of them is necessarily wrong. No achievement or success can teach you that. They can give you experience, but not the ability to see the world through someone else’s eyes.

Underground culture has always been shaped by communities rather than individuals. Do you think we’ve forgotten that helping someone else grow doesn’t diminish our own journey, but gives it greater meaning?

I think the industry has conditioned us to believe something that simply isn’t true: that someone else’s success somehow means our own failure. And in my opinion, that’s one of the most damaging ideas that can exist in a creative environment. Instead of seeing someone else’s success as a threat, we should see it as proof that it’s possible in the first place. In an ideal world, that would be what drives us forward. But we don’t live in an ideal world, and we work with the reality we have. That’s why so many people approach collaboration very cautiously, and I completely understand why.

For a long time, this industry has created the feeling that if you help someone else grow, you’re doing it at your own expense. I don’t think a single project can change that. But CONNECT isn’t about creating growth for just one person. It offers a path where both sides are equally valuable.

https://youtu.be/u4tY50kATfg

Many people say music brings us together. But what truly brings people closer: sharing the same sound, or having the courage to let someone else into our inner world?

Nothing brings people closer than shared interests, similar values, and, as a result, working on something together. Finding like-minded people. Music is simply one of the ways to find your people without saying a word. It can be the reason people meet, start a conversation, or recognize shared interests. What happens after that depends on the people themselves.

We live in a time where conflict often speaks louder than dialogue, certainty louder than curiosity, and individual success louder than collective growth. What responsibility do artists have in reminding us that empathy, listening and collaboration are still radical acts?

Basic things shouldn’t be seen as something radical. But this isn’t a problem that artists alone can solve. First and foremost, I believe artists have a responsibility to be honest in their work. Of course, we can’t hold artists responsible for other people’s feelings or thoughts. But what we choose to put out into the world still has an impact on many people, and that’s something we should always keep in mind. If you’ve managed to truly reach people, that’s already incredibly valuable.

If CONNECT could leave behind something greater than music, what would you hope people carry with them?

First of all, I hope CONNECT truly succeeds and grows beyond even my wildest dreams for it. I’d like people to come away from CONNECT with the understanding that great and exciting things happen when we’re willing to try something new, when we’re not afraid to step outside our usual circles of people, cultures, or genres. That one person’s idea can grow into an entire platform for many others.