What So Not is an electronic music project by Australian record producer Emoh Instead (stage name of Christopher John Emerson). What So Not has toured the world, playing in various festivals, including

Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (commonly called the Coachella Festival or simply Coachella) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert. ...

Pukkelpop Pukkelpop is an annual music festival that takes place near the city of Hasselt, Belgium, in mid- to late August. It is held within a large enclosure of fields and woodland—adjacent to a dual carriageway called ''Kempische Steenweg''—in the ...

, Ultra Music Festival and

Lollapalooza Lollapalooza (Lolla) is an annual American four-day music festival held in Grant Park in Chicago. It originally started as a touring event in 1991 but several years later made Chicago the permanent location for the annual music festival. Musi ...

. What So Not is best known for his hits such as Innerbloom (What So Not Remix) (by RÜFÜS DU SOL),"Gemini" (featuring

George Maple Jess Higgs (born 25 May 1989), known professionally as George Maple, is an Australian born, LA based recording artist, songwriter and record producer. In 2017, Maple released her own debut album, ''Lover'' which debuted at #2 on the Australia ...

), "Jaguar", "High You Are" and "Tell Me" (with RL Grime). He has featured on charts such as the

Australian Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

Triple J Hottest 100 The Triple J Hottest 100 is an annual music listener poll hosted by the publicly-funded, national Australian youth radio station, Triple J. Members of the public are invited to vote for their favourite Australian and alternative music of the ...

, and USA iTunes Dance Album chart. He released his debut album titled ''

Not All the Beautiful Things ''Not All the Beautiful Things'' is the debut studio album by Australian musical project What So Not, which is the performing name of DJ and producer, Chris Emerson. It was released on 9 March 2018 through Counter Records and Sweat It Out. What ...

'' on 9 March 2018.

History

2010–2017: Career beginnings

What So Not started as a project between record producer Emoh Instead and Flume. On 13 November 2011, What So Not released their debut EP, ''7 Dollar Bill''. During this time, they had released several remixes of artists such as Peking Duk, Tom Piper, and Major Lazer,. In early 2013, they embarked on the Massive Universe Tour, in several venues across Australia. On 28 May 2013, they released their second EP, ''The Quack'', featuring a collaboration with Action Bronson on label Owsla. The duo released the song, "Jaguar" on 6 December 2013. On 24 June 2014, What So Not and RL Grime released their single, "Tell Me", with Chris Martins from

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

describing the track as "of both melodic might and percussive ferocity". In February 2015, Flume announced his departure from What So Not, citing that he and Emoh Instead had been moving in different creative directions, and stated that the upcoming ''Gemini EP'' would be What So Not's last release as a duo. "Gemini" featuring

, the first track from the EP, debuted on 9 May 2015. The track was named on

later that year and peaked at number 52 on the

. ''Gemini'' was released as a free download on 18 December 2015, which featured collaborations with artists Dillon Francis, Tunji Ige and KLP (musician). The EP was downloaded over 800,000 times, charted globally on iTunes Electronic EP chart and was named to various year-end "best of" lists. In November 2015, What So Not, Baauer and George Maple co-produced a track for Australian rapper Tkay Maidza, titled "Ghost". The song was premiered on Triple J. On 9 September 2016, What So Not released his first EP as a solo artist, ''Divide & Conquer'', which included previously released track "Lone". In October 2016, What So Not, George Maple and

Djemba Djemba Andrew Swanson (born August 4, 1987), better known by his stage name, Djemba Djemba, is an American multi-platinum record producer of Pop, EDM and bass music, from Fairfield, IA. Notable works include "Elastic Heart" and " Gangsta". He has prod ...

co-produced a track on Australian rapper Tkay Maidza's debut album, titled "Afterglow". On 3 November 2016, RL Grime released the single "Waiting" in collaboration with What So Not and Skrillex which was in production since 2013. The track's release was teased through a promotional video which parodied chat-line advertisements and featured footage of 1980-era-influenced vixens with a phone number flashing across the screen, where by calling the number listeners can hear the song in full. A collaboration between What So Not and New York artist LPX, "Better", was released on 8 September 2017; and was debuted on Australian Radio Station Triple J on 7 September 2017. "I had a few productions I’d been working on in this sonic field but struggled to find a vocalist with the right attitude and tone to fit. Lizzy and I clicked instantly on this trajectory & began jamming on the tune," stated What So Not about the track's production. He released "Be Ok Again" which featured Australian musician Daniel Johns on 28 November 2017. The track was produced after Johns noticed What So Not working with Slumberjack as he walked by the studio, which prompted him to invite What So Not to work together at his Newscastle studio.

2018–2020: ''Not All the Beautiful Things''

On 31 January 2018, What So Not announced the arrival of his debut album titled ''

'' which was released on 9 March 2018. The album featured collaborations with several artists, including Skrillex, Slumberjack, San Holo, and

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

rock band

Toto Toto may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters Pets * Toto (Oz), Toto (''Oz''), a dog in the novel and film ''The Wonderful Wizard of Oz'' * Toto, in Japanese ''The Cat Returns#Plot, The Cat Returns'' Characters of agency * a ...

. Together with the announcement, he released lead album single "Stuck In Orbit" which was co-produced with Jono Ma from Australian

psychedelic Psychedelics are a subclass of hallucinogenic drugs whose primary effect is to trigger non-ordinary states of consciousness (known as psychedelic experiences or "trips").Pollan, Michael (2018). ''How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of ...

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

band Jagwar Ma. What So Not released a third album single titled "Beautiful", a collaboration with Swedish singer/songwriter Winona Oak, on 27 February 2018 and announced a national Australia tour for his "Beautiful Things' World Tour" where he visited cities Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane in June 2018. What So Not's first single of 2019, "We Can Be Friends" featuring American singer Herizen, was released on 22 January 2019. He previously met the singer at a songwriting workshop in Nicaragua, while citing American record producer and rapper J Dilla as the track's main inspiration. On 6 February 2020, What So Not announced he was "taking a break", stating "I want to pull myself out of the 'routine' of it all and make sure everything I do is 110%." followed by radio silence on his social media.

2021–present: ''Anomaly''

On 8 January 2021, What So Not returned from hiatus with a remix for

Run The Jewels Run the Jewels, also known by the initials RTJ, is an American hip hop super-duo composed of Brooklyn-based rapper and producer El-P and Atlanta-based rapper Killer Mike. They released their critically acclaimed self-titled debut studio album ...

featuring

Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...

and Zack de la Rocha stating "I was honored to get the nod to put this record out, not only with RTJ, but also my childhood heroes Zack and Pharrell." In April 2021 What So Not announced a "new era" and subsequently release of "The Change" featuring DMA's. ''NME'' said "The track channels the Manchester influences of DMA’S 2020 record ‘The Glow’, but flips the balance of rock and dance to the latter, aping an Underworld-style rave."

Discography

* ''

'' (2018) * ''Anomaly'' (2022)

Awards and nominations

AIR Awards

The Australian Independent Record Awards (commonly known informally as AIR Awards) is an annual awards night to recognise, promote and celebrate the success of Australia's Independent Music sector. , - , AIR Awards of 2019 , "Beautiful" (featuring Winona Oak) , Best Independent Dance, Electronica Or Club Single , , , -

Environmental Music Prize

The

Environmental Music Prize The Environmental Music Prize is a prize launched in partnership with Green Music Australia. It aims to celebrate and amplify powerful music videos that inspire action for climate and conservation. It was launched during the United Nations Cl ...

is a quest to find a theme song to inspire action on climate and conservation. It commenced in 2022. ! , - , 2022 , "Messin' Me Up" (featuring

Evan Giia Evan Giarrusso, better known as EVAN GIIA is a Brooklyn-based musician and vocalist. Her first notable song was "Heat of The Moment" with music duo MEMBA, which was selected as the singles of the week by BBC Radio 1 in 2016. In September 2022, GI ...

) , Environmental Music Prize , , , -

Queensland Music Awards

The Queensland Music Awards (previously known as Q Song Awards) are annual awards celebrating Queensland, Australia's brightest emerging artists and established legends. They commenced in 2006. (wins only) ! , - ! scope="row", 2022 , "Every Single Time" Example featuring What So Not & Lucy Lucy , Video of the Year , ,

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Australian electronic musicians 2010 establishments in Australia Musical groups established in 2010 Australian house musicians Australian DJs Owsla artists Counter Records artists Electronic dance music DJs