Iconic Songs, A New Perspective.
Iconic Songs, A New Perspective.
LUTILU on the Story, Vision, and Meaning Behind Her Cover Album
We often think we already “know” a song simply because we’ve heard it countless times.But what happens when the artist changes?When the sound changes?When the perspective changes?Perhaps even the most familiar songs still have sides of themselves we have never discovered.Through piano, orchestra, cinematic soundscapes, electronic elements, and improvisation, LUTILU takes some of the world’s most recognizable pop songs and brings them into her own musical world.This is not simply about covering a song.It is about imagining it again.REIMAGINED.As LUTILU begins one of her most ambitious projects to date, she talks about why she chose to create this album, what the idea of a “cover” means to her, and where she hopes this project will lead.
Q. Why did you decide to create a cover album at this point in your career?
LUTILU:
I’ve never really been the kind of musician who simply plays a song exactly as it was written.Of course, I have enormous respect for the original artists and compositions. But whenever I sit down at the piano and play a song I love, I naturally start thinking, “What if I played this part differently?” or “What would happen if strings came in here?” or “Maybe there could be another phrase after this melody.”Before I realize it, the song has started becoming something slightly different.Looking back, I think that is what I’ve been doing for years through the piano performances I share on social media.So this project didn’t really begin with the thought, “I want to make an album of famous cover songs.”It came more from a desire to take what I have always done instinctively—interpreting music through my own perspective—and turn that into a complete body of work.
Q. What does the title “REIMAGINED” mean to you?
LUTILU:
To “reimagine” something means to take something that already exists and imagine it again from a completely new perspective.
When I came across that word, I immediately thought, “That’s exactly what I’m trying to do.”
There are many beautiful ways to approach a cover. Sometimes an artist may choose to stay very close to the original, and I have a lot of respect for that.But that isn’t what I want to do with this album.
I’m interested in questions like:What if a pop song everyone knows began with only a piano and gradually grew into something cinematic and orchestral?What if you took a huge, highly produced song and stripped almost everything away until only the piano and strings remained?What if I combined my piano playing with electronic or EDM production?
I’m approaching every song with those kinds of questions.Ideally, I want someone to hear the beginning and think:“I know this song.”And then, a few moments later:“But I’ve never heard it like this before.”That feeling is really at the heart of REIMAGINED.
Q. Does the album have one specific genre?
LUTILU:
Not really—and that’s intentional.Piano, orchestra, strings, cinematic textures, electronic music, EDM, improvisation… all of those are important elements in my musical world.But I don’t want every track to contain all of them.Every song has its own personality.Some songs naturally want to become something large and cinematic. Others become more powerful when they are reduced to piano and strings. And there are songs where electronic production or a completely different groove can reveal a side of the composition that wasn’t obvious before.So instead of deciding on a genre first and forcing every song into it, I start by asking:
“What else could this song become?”The thing connecting the album isn’t necessarily a genre.It’s the way I see and interpret each song.
Q. Is the piano still at the center of the album?
LUTILU:
Absolutely.No matter how large the orchestra becomes or how electronic a track may be, the piano is probably the instrument that feels closest to my own voice.There are emotions I can express through the piano that I sometimes can’t explain in words.
And it isn’t only about which notes you play.It’s the timing. The space between notes. Holding something back for just a moment. Moving forward. Playing with strength, or playing so softly that the sound almost disappears.Those little details carry something very personal.So on this album, I don’t see the piano as simply one instrument among many.I see it as the element that allows a part of who I am to remain inside the music.
Q. You’ve talked about wanting to balance artistry with accessibility. Why is that important to you?
LUTILU:
That balance is something I’m thinking about a lot with this project.
If I only followed my own artistic impulses, I could probably make the music much more complex or experimental.
But I’m not trying to make music that people have to understand intellectually before they can enjoy it.
I want someone who happens to discover a clip on Instagram, or comes across one of the songs on Spotify, to simply feel:
“I like this.”“I want to hear that again.”I think that instinctive reaction is incredibly important.That’s why some of the key ideas behind this project are:Artistic but Accessible.Unique but Catchy.Sophisticated but Pop.I don’t think artistic identity and broad appeal have to work against each other.I want to see if I can create something where both can exist at the same time.
Q. Why did you choose globally recognizable songs?
LUTILU:
Songs that have been loved for many years already carry memories for people.
Someone might think, “I listened to this when I was in school,” or “This song reminds me of a particular person or moment in my life.”
Music is deeply connected to memory.So choosing familiar songs isn’t simply about choosing songs because they’re famous.
It means that the listener and I already share a common language before the music even begins.
I want to use that familiarity as the entrance, and then gradually invite the listener into my own musical world.
At first, someone might click because they think:“I love this song. I’ll listen.”And that’s completely fine.But eventually, I hope that changes into:“I want to hear this because it’s LUTILU’s version.”If that happens, I think this project will have achieved something very important.
Q. Are you collaborating with arrangers and producers on the album?
LUTILU:
Yes.I usually begin by sharing my piano parts, demos, structural ideas, sounds or instruments I’m imagining, and musical references.
Then we develop the track together from there.One thing that is very important to me is that I don’t want the relationship to simply be, “I give instructions, and someone executes them.”Sometimes an arranger or producer will suggest something I never would have thought of. Hearing that idea gives me another idea, which then inspires something else from them.Through that exchange, a track can end up somewhere I never imagined when I made the first demo.That is one of my favorite parts of collaboration.I don’t see the people I work with simply as technicians completing a task.I see them as creative partners helping me discover a new musical identity for each song.
Q. Is it difficult to balance respect for the original song with changing it so dramatically?
LUTILU:
I actually think wanting to discover a new possibility within a song can be another form of respect.
There is always something at the core of a great song—especially its melody—that makes it unmistakably itself.
I want to protect that.But I don’t think respecting a song means that the instrumentation, rhythm, production, or atmosphere all have to remain the same.Instead of copying the original to prove how great it is, I’m interested in showing:
“Look how beautiful this melody can still be, even when you place it inside a completely different landscape.”
To me, that can also be a way of honoring the original composition.
Q. What do you want people to feel when they listen to this album?
LUTILU:
More than anything, I want them to enjoy it.I would rather someone simply say,“I love this.”than feel like they need to analyze how sophisticated the arrangement is.If they want to listen again, that makes me happy.If they want to send it to someone else, even better.And if, after hearing one of these songs, they become curious and think, “Who is LUTILU? What else has she made?”—that would mean so much to me.I hope this album can become a place where people discover my music for the first time.
Q. Finally, what does “REIMAGINED” mean to you personally?
LUTILU:
I think it has started to mean something beyond music to me.
Sometimes the same thing can look completely different simply because you change the angle from which you see it.
Even something we believe we already know may still contain a kind of beauty we haven’t discovered yet.Maybe that applies not only to music, but to people and to life as well.With this album, I’m looking again at songs that millions of people already know—but through my own ears, my own instincts, and my own piano.Then, when the music is finished, I get to give it back to the listener.
And from there, each person can interpret and experience it in their own way.Taking familiar music somewhere unfamiliar.
That is what REIMAGINED means to me.
REIMAGINED
Iconic Songs, A New Perspective.
Reimagined through the World of LUTILU.