Musician Attis is Someone Who Lives to Experiment
In Art in Self, we speak to five creators whose art take the forefront of their self-expression. For New York-based musician, model, and influencer Attis, "art makes life worth living."
The New York-based musician, model, and influencer has always treated fashion and theatrics as a form of self-expression. And one scroll through their Instagram and TikTok accounts tell you enough about their love and appreciation for the limitless world of fantasy – most notably in Anime.
Often seen making content in their alternative style and with the help of their beautifully twisted hair and homemade wings (that have since gone viral on TikTok), Attis’ appearance and powerful aura stem from their previously restricted allowance of expressiveness growing up – where they would spend hours alone in their room drawing, writing, making music, and building small things, without ever sharing their works with anyone else.
“Right before moving to NYC, I started to explore my style and share my stuff more outwardly in local art spaces,” says the singer. “Last year, when I joined TikTok, is when I really decided to put myself out there. My evolution has been centred around opening up.”
Now with a large following of over 1.1 million people on the platform and holding the identity as one of TikTok’s it-creators, Attis still gets inspired by the beauty of others’ passions when creating content of their own.
What would you say is the biggest difference between the way people perceive you and the way you view yourself?
From what I hear, I come across as intimidating, confident, super level-headed – like I have it all figured out. Even before I started posting literal angel content, I was told I have “goddess energy.” It’s always so funny to me because I see myself so differently. I’m pretty introverted, I overthink a lot and I tend to feel pretty insignificant – not in a negative way, but in a neutral way. I also may or may not be a lot more chaotic than I let on.
Have you ever struggled with your sense of identity?
I’m constantly struggling with my sense of identity. To this day, I haven’t figured out everything about who I am, and I think that’s totally fine. Part of what I’m doing right now is exploring everything I never got to do growing up. I think I just had to accept that I’m constantly changing and that is who I am – someone that lives to experiment.
If you were to compare your current self to your past self, what would you say are the distinguishing qualities that differentiate you from the person you were before?
In the past, I was unsure of myself, gullible and really lost, but I haven’t changed in my opinion, and have just grown up. At some point, I had to accept that I knew exactly what I wanted but was too scared to go for it. Once I stopped being scared, I became laser-focused. Now I guess I’m just the person I always wanted to be. Capable, audacious, really rad, and just the right amount of unhinged.
What do you do to get into your creative headspace to make the content you do?
I actively try to stay out of my head when making content. I just scroll through my FYP (on TikTok), get sparked with inspiration, and try to decide as quickly as possible what I’ll do with a sound or look I’m interested in sharing. I pick up on trends pretty quickly so if I notice one, I’ll think of how I could do it my way.
I also get a lot of inspiration scrolling through my comments and mentions. People are always asking for what they want so there’re no shortage of ideas. Lastly, I have a five-take rule. I’ll do a max of five takes for a video, pick whichever feels right, post it, and never look back.
What would you consider to be the most beautiful thing about yourself?
I think my creativity is my most beautiful quality. I hold a deep belief that art is what makes life worth living and artists of all mediums are the most vibrant people to me. For me, music is my favourite thing to create and any time I make something new I’m in awe. It reminds me of why I’m here.
Do you think beauty equals self-worth?
No, I think it does not equal self-worth, but for many people, it can be difficult to separate the two. Beauty to me is rooted in energy – the energy of a place, person, creation, whatever. To me, beauty is passion.
Physical beauty is rewarded, the halo effect is very real and people are discriminated against based on their proximity to the beauty standard. So it’s very easy to have your self-worth affected by “beauty.” I think there are a million amazing qualities a person can hold all really valuable – creativity, compassion, intelligence, thirst for life, perseverance, ingenuity, etc. I hope more people can gain the security to base their self-worth on these.
