The music industry is a tough and winding road, but if you can tap into it, it can be a very rewarding career at the same time. So many artists bring joy to millions of people each day, especially within one of the world’s biggest genres - pop. Pop music dominates the charts and the streaming habits of millions of listeners, so there is always an audience waiting for the next big thing.
Some of the biggest artists in the world stream from Ireland. Including groups such as Boyzone and Westlife and Fontaines D.C., along with icons such as Bono, Sinead O’Connor and Hozier, all streaming from the Emerald Isle. And there is a new up-and-coming name in the industry.
Dublin-based singer and songwriter Lex Bucha has been embarking on his music career for the past few years and has experience in front of and behind the microphone, writing music for other pop artists. That is always a tough yet rewarding thing to do. Lex still has a long career ahead, and I had the opportunity to talk to Lex about his journey in the music world so far.
Exclusive interview with Lex Bucha
AudioPhix: You have spent time writing songs for other artists in your career before driving your own sound forward. What made you realise it was time to start telling your own stories through your music, and was it daunting to put yourself out there that way?
Bucha: Writing for other artists taught me so much about songwriting, storytelling, and understanding what makes a song connect with people. But at some point, I realised I was spending a lot of time helping other people tell their stories while keeping quite a lot of my own to myself.
Some songs I was writing were based on my own stories, and I felt they needed to come from me. I still very much love writing for other artists, though, and I am very excited for what is about to come out!
Self-realization
AudioPhix: Your music explores quite personal emotions that can be relatable to listeners. Is there a song you’ve written that helped you understand something about yourself that you hadn’t fully realised before?
Bucha: I think Faithless (Sacrifice) was a particularly important song for me in that respect. It came from a place of betrayal and disappointment, but through writing it, I started to understand that holding on to anger can sometimes keep you connected to the very things you’re trying to move on from.
Initially, I think I approached it almost as a revenge anthem, but the more I explored it, the more it became about taking back control and choosing yourself. There’s something quite empowering about turning a difficult experience into something creative rather than allowing it to define you.
More broadly, I think songwriting has become a bit of an accidental form of therapy for me. Sometimes I don’t fully understand what I’m feeling until I’ve written it down. It’s almost like having a conversation with yourself that you didn’t know you needed to have.
The contrast between lyrics and sound
AudioPhix: You combine vulnerable, sometimes quite melancholic lyrics with huge, cinematic pop production. How important is that use of upbeat and euphoric sounds to contrast with the emotions in your lyrics?
Bucha: I’ve always loved music that makes you feel two completely different things at once. You can be dancing to something while simultaneously having an emotional breakdown, and I think there’s something quite wonderful about that! Think Robyn "Dancing On My Own" or Sombr's "Homewrecker".
I love the idea of putting quite heavy, sometimes uncomfortable emotions into something that feels expansive, euphoric, and almost escapist. The production gives the listener somewhere to go with those emotions. It doesn’t necessarily take away the sadness, but it can transform how you experience it.
I’m drawn to that cinematic quality in music, where a song can feel like the soundtrack to a moment in your life. I want the choruses to feel huge, but I also want the lyrics to have something underneath them. I suppose there’s a little bit of a happy boy with a dark side in there!
The meaning of an independent artist
AudioPhix: What’s one thing about being an independent artist that you wish more people understood?
Bucha: That releasing a song is probably about 10% of the job!
People see the finished product, the music video, the artwork, the Spotify release, but an enormous amount is happening behind the scenes. You’re the artist, but you’re also the marketing department, the project manager, the publicist, the accountant, and occasionally the person trying to work out why an Instagram advert isn’t delivering!
There’s also a misconception that being independent means doing everything alone. It doesn’t. I’ve been incredibly fortunate to collaborate with talented producers, songwriters, creatives, and people who genuinely believe in what I’m building. Those relationships are invaluable.
I think the biggest challenge is that you have to keep believing in something long before there’s any guarantee that other people will. You’re investing time, money, and an awful lot of emotional energy into something that might take years to grow. But you also have a level of creative freedom that’s incredibly rewarding. You get to build something on your own terms, and that’s worth a lot.
What comes next?
AudioPhix: With each release, you’re developing your own identity as an artist. Is there a sound, subject, or creative direction you’ve been itching to explore but haven’t had the chance to yet? What is next for you?
Bucha: I’m really enjoying exploring the different sides of my sound at the moment. My recent Dark Mode EP was quite an important chapter because it allowed me to lean into some of the darker, more vulnerable parts of my songwriting. While also delved into more electronic and RNB influences. But I don’t want to become an artist who sits in one particular lane.
I’m fascinated by the contrast between stripped-back, almost intimate songwriting and really expansive, dramatic production. I love the darker electronic elements of artists like HURTS, the emotional style of Lana Del Rey, and the more rock-influenced energy of Evanescence. I’d love to keep pushing those influences together and see where they take me.
What’s next is really about evolution. I’m continuing to write, collaborate, and experiment with new sounds while building towards more opportunities to bring the music to a live audience. I’d also love to get out and play more shows, particularly in Ireland and the UK.
Ultimately, I want people to be able to recognise a Lex Bucha song, but I also want them to be surprised by it. I’m still figuring things out, and I think that’s quite an exciting place to be as an artist.
The latest music video from Lex Bucha, Faithless (Sacrifice), is available to watch now.
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