O Brat, Where Art Thou?

Daniil’s growing popularity reaches its peak

Breaking through with the record-breaking single “Ef þeir vilja Beef” in 2023, Daniil has been a favourite heartthrob amongst the burgeoning Gen Z. Now fully cemented in his position as one of Iceland’s most popular music acts, Daniil released his latest LP Brat on April 4.

It’s a hopeful early-summer eve in Iceland when Daniil — Daníel Moroshkin — picks up the phone. He’s been out enjoying the ever-growing sunlight, going skateboarding for the first time in a while.

“I tried skating, and I sucked,” the 23 year old exclaims. “I used to be [good], but I don’t really dare doing it anymore. I can’t be bothered breaking myself,” he admits. “It’s a scary sport. You need to find the [literal] balance to be comfortable on the board. I feel like if I try something, I’m just going to fall and hurt myself.”

While Daniil is not on the way to becoming his generation’s Tony Hawk, he is one of Iceland’s biggest pop stars — and despite the current frustrations with his skateboarding ability, the sport was one of Daniil’s introductions to music.

“Skateboarding carries a big rap scene with it, so I listened to a lot of rap music myself when I was younger,” he says. “[Rapping] sounded exciting to try for myself. That’s what sold it. Fuck yeah,” he agrees with himself, a habit he’s apt to do, in addition to ending his replies with a, “Yes sir.”

“I was ready to try it out. And if it’s cool, that’s awesome. If not, that’s still awesome too,” he smiles.

Tough nut with a tender core

Daniil, in spite of the tough-guy image conveyed through a lot of his music, seems like a likeable guy. During our conversation, he appeared laid-back in regards to his music and direction. Perhaps because he can be: he’s climbed the hip-hop ladder in no time, collaborating with the upper echelon of Icelandic pop musicians on numerous occasions, and has the receipts for his growing popularity.

Daniil’s music isn’t complex, and maybe it lacks a certain depth to make it interesting for snobby ears. But what it lacks, Daniil makes up for it with swagger, catchy hooks, and by appealing to people’s thirst for glitzy lifestyles.

But interestingly, Daniil doesn’t exclusively cater to men’s obsession with macho rap personas.  He’s also got a softer side, reminiscent of pop stars such as Justin Bieber or similar. Noticeable on his 2023 600, Daniil started off strong with hard beats and equally boastful rhymes, only to slow down the tempo for the rest of the album with heart-on-his-sleeve love songs.

His most recent album, Brat, follows a similar formula — which Daniil has found to work for him and his audience. A few rap tracks, mixed in with pop songs and love-adjacent lyrics, Daniil continues to explore this formula on Brat — in addition to including a high ratio of featured artists, with names such as Birnir, GDRN, Herra Hnetusmjör, and Aron Can landing in the liner notes.

Jokingly serious

It’s a brave move to title an album the same name as Charli XCX’s landmark record, which gave rise and fall to an endless barrage of memes capitalising on “Brat summer” just a year ago. The namesake is not lost on Daniil, who seems slightly embarrassed when confronted with the question.

“Basically…” he starts, “It’s funny. I was going to name the album Brat around two years ago, before Charli made hers,” he says, as if the two are old acquaintances.

“I promise,” he emphasises. “It’s the same name but not the same meaning because ”brat” means ”brother” in Russian,” he explains, revealing the meaning of the Cyrillic lettering on the album cover, tattooed on the singer’s chest.
“I take the music seriously, but I feel best in my element when I’m making music and it arrives to me naturally.”

“I always meant to change it into something else, but I had a hard time finding another title. As soon as you’ve placed a name on something, it’s difficult. So I thought ‘Fuck it.’ It’s not the same vibe anyways. That’s where the name comes from.” Born in Iceland to a Russian mother, Brat’s title can be viewed as an homage to his motherland — although he wouldn’t tell you that.

“I just thought it was cool,” he continues nonchalantly. “I have it tattooed on my chest, and my friend too. We used to say it instead of saying bro or something. Just like, ‘Yo brat’. That was our slang. It was just cool. And I thought, ‘Fuck, it’d be cool to name the album Brat’. Basically,” he ends.

Experimenting with music in his early teens on his friend’s Garageband, Daniil was quick to realise the integrity of the situation. “We made music for the hell of it,” he smiles. “But we weren’t really joking,” he says, stone-faced. “I have fun when I make music, and I don’t take myself too seriously. I take the music seriously, but I feel best in my element when I’m making music, and it comes to me naturally,” he admits.

Not one to place too much meaning into his music — he claims thinking deeply about his work distracts him from producing material — Daniil doesn’t spend too many words when talking about the album process (“I showed up to the studio and recorded. It’s just that… I made some songs”), allowing the music to speak for itself.

“There isn’t really a concept behind it. It’s a big pick and mix,” he continues. “There aren’t exclusively rap songs on this album. There’s a good balance between pop, rap, and slow songs. I make sure that’s in. But there’s never a concept. Just vibes. Good music,” he states.

Listen to Brat on available streaming platforms and see Daniil in the flesh at his release concert at Gamla Bíó on June 27. Tickets range from 4.990 ISK, available at tix.is