Before “Undone” sent shivers across global playlists, Lil Wolf was dancing under the stars at AfrikaBurn, letting Afro house rhythms burn through his soul. The Juno-winning producer, known for his genre-blurring blend of ambient pop, indie electronica, and Afro-inspired groove, has lived many lives—composer, director, designer, retreat builder—but it’s through the Lil Wolf project that he’s found his rawest voice yet. Fueled by curiosity and late-night jam sessions across continents, he returns now with a new offering that captures what it means to unravel, to risk, to feel. We caught up with the global nomad somewhere between Bali and Berlin to talk about chaos, creation, and what it means to be undone.
You came back from Burning Man Afrika and made this track — what was still buzzing in your system?
While I was at Afrika Burn, I spent so many nights dancing my face off to all this delicious Afro house music. I’ve always been a big fan of the genre, but it was on a whole other level at Afrika Burn. I wanted to create something that captured the energy of my experience. Rhythmic, primal, and melodic, it made you just want to move your body.
What does the title “Undone” mean to you personally?
Just fully letting go, getting lost in the moment.
If the opposite of undone is being buttoned up, proper, guarded, … then undone would be the letting down of walls, open, vulnerable, raw, real, and present. The deconstruction of years of societal conditioning. Which can sometimes also be messy, but there’s a beauty in that chaos.
What was the very last thing you added before you said, “Okay, this is finished”?
Some primal barking-type noises on the chorus. (laughs) … I was trying to tap into the tribal energy of sorts.
What’s one sonic experiment or plugin you’ve recently fallen in love with and can’t stop using?
I’m such a big fan of Vocal Synth 2; I know it’s not a new plugin. And vocoders have been around for a very long time… But I’m absolutely guilty of using it to death. My friends who are more used to hearing me sing with just an acoustic guitar always tell me that they hate it because they can’t hear my voice behind all the effects, but I don’t know; I just really love how it sounds.
Many producers build from the beat up. You seem to build from the feeling out. How do emotions guide your production process? Do you start with texture, lyric, or rhythm?
I wish I could say I start with a story. And I often try to start from that place. But the reality is, I start from so many different places. But you hit the nail on the head when you said, Start with a feeling. It’s normally a feeling I’m trying to capture in song. Which can feel so elusive sometimes. Normally, I start with chords and melodies/lyrics. Because that’s at the root of the feeling. It’s often me on a guitar or piano, very stripped down. And then when I have some sort of outline of something that resonates, I’ll then open up the computer. … I force myself to write in this way often because I want to write songs, not music. And there’s nothing wrong with making music. There’s so much great music out there, and I have a lot of fun just making music. But the artists I look up to all write songs. Rüfüs Du Sol, RY X… they all write songs.
Many producers these days write music. And please, I’m not saying anything is wrong with that. I wish I could write music as well as they. I’m just saying, they often create a beat, bring in some vocal samples, and some rhythm of some sort. And it’s more about creating a groove. But it has no verses or chorus. Just a couple of vocal melodies. That’s very prevalent in EDM music. … and one thing that’s been important to me is that when I create … I want the songs to be really solid, regardless of what genre I build them up in. I want to make sure there’s something to say, and that if I wanted to, I could sit down with a guitar and sing them, and they would be just as impactful.
You’ve lived a thousand lives—recording artist, commercial director, art director, business builder, retreat volunteer. How do those identities echo through your current music?
Curiosity is the common thread. Before all that, I was a composer in Los Angeles, writing music and managing recording studios for shows like Dexter, Silent Hill…. Life has been such a wild, beautiful adventure. I’ve asked myself the same question so many times in the past. What’s the common thread in any of this? And I’ve come to understand that in all of it, I just really love to create. I’m a creative in a very full, encompassing way. I’ve created businesses, I’ve created brands, I’ve created music, I’ve created videos and short films, and I’ve created and designed homes and vacation villas. Interior design.
I’ve created photography. … At the heart of all of it is a pure joy and curiosity to create things. What changes is the medium. Like an artist going from watercolors to acrylic paints. I just have such a fascination with learning new things and taking ideas in my mind and bringing them into reality. Which, when I talk to most creative people, I’ve learned is actually pretty common: they have a hard time staying in one lane. It’s more our society that tells us we need to be one thing, stay in one genre, and be specialized. While I understand the wisdom of that, I also feel life is too short not to do all the things that excite your heart.
You’re moving across continents—Bali, Vietnam, Berlin. How do local cultures, rhythms, and human stories find their way into your sonic palette?
Oh, this is something that excites me. I love traveling. The life of a nomad pirate (laughs), and I really love traveling alone because it puts you out there in such a real way. You meet so many interesting people along the way. Their stories. The food. The culture. When I go to a new country, I really try to make friends and get into the culture and the experiences. And often organically through that, I’ll meet other creative people and find myself in something that either inspires me to create, or my favorite, I’ll meet other artists.
My absolute favorite thing is collaborating with other artists. Creating some music together. And so my biggest desire right now. It is to travel the world, find, meet, and collaborate with all sorts of wickedly talented musicians and artists, make music together, and share that with the world. I was just recently in South Africa, and I had the pleasure of meeting Onset Music Group, Thanda Choir, Mamiii … oh holy hellllllllll!!! They are insane, the level of talent. It was such a dream come true to work with a 40-piece choir, or singers of that talent level.
Often, I’ll just approach the artist and ask them if they would be open to me renting a few days in the recording studio and making some music together. No plan, no intentions. Just pure curiosity, and see what sort of magic wants to come out of it.
Because of my years in Los Angeles, the recording studio is a place I feel very comfortable in and at home. Any room where I get to create and write is my happy place. Sometimes this all happens in my Airbnb or hotel with my lil portable recording setup, and other times we rent some studio time.
Though I will say, I’m completely enamored right now, just working on my laptop out in the world. On planes, park benches, and coffee shops, you never used to be able to do that before. You were always tied to the studio. Now you can create anywhere. And it’s amazing, because the world that you are out there engaging with infuses itself into your art.
What kind of message would you pin to the top of your socials if it could only be one sentence?
Oh, so much to say … Only one thing?! (laughs) Is this to myself or my message to the world?
To myself, as a constant reminder:
Love … in everything, choose love. What would love do?.
I know it’s cheesy, but it’s my compass. I don’t always succeed, but I try. I try not to make any decisions based on fear.
To the world:
In the famous words of Ram Dass, we are all here to walk each other home.
You’ve said you want to be “the Anthony Bourdain of music,” spotlighting underground artists as you travel. What draws you to that mission?
I have spent the last 3-plus years traveling. A different country every month, sometimes. I’ve met so many incredible artists, and it’s often kind of broken my heart. They struggle. Supporting themselves, earning a living. I’ve had situations where some artists couldn’t even afford the Uber ride to the recording studio. It’s getting harder and harder out there to support yourself with music. And working with these artists, I would often ask myself, how do I help in that? How do I help them get some exposure, or get out there, and earn some sort of a living with their talents? And so it was born from that.
I would just jam with them or record them and send it back to them for their own personal use. And personally, I’ve always enjoyed being behind the scenes and producing and such; I’ve never really sought much of a spotlight. But I thought to myself, if I can build a platform and get enough attention on it, where I share these adventures and collaborations with the world, and take that attention and shine it on other artists. Then maybe I can help in that way. So that’s what I’m starting to do. I have no idea if it’ll work. But we’re going to see what happens, and we’re gonna have a lot of fun along the way.