ROVA has been building a name for himself since 2019, but really blew up around two years ago. In 2024, he toured his home country, and nowadays, he can count the Europe and UK to his tour portfolio as well. On his first tour, in 2025, he supported Sub Focus, Kanine, Mozey, and more. A year later, in 2026, he did it all over again but this time on his own terms. “For this tour, I got to design how the shows would look like for my visuals, lighting, and production, which was a cool first”, ROVA says.
And that’s not his only “first” this year, because his Undisputed EP just came out on UKF. On this EP, ROVA experiments with other genres such as trap, and we can definitely hear these influences coming through. The EP is rough around the edges, and he chose a visual boxing theme to tie it all together, giving us a full experience.
We had a chat about the EP, how he fell in love with bass music, and what more we can expect from him.
Your Undisputed EP just dropped, congratulations! Can you tell us more about this project?
Yes, thanks. There are six tracks on it. All the tracks are energetic and rough, which ties into the whole boxing theme of the EP. It’s my first EP, so I wanted to make sure the music and concept matched and fit all together. I was also experimenting with, and blending other genres into these tracks and into drum & bass. Some of the tracks have trap inspiration throughout and in the second drops. So I’d say, look out for that in the second drops, there’s heaps of genre bending going on. I’m excited for people to hear it and experience it in their room, their car, or hear it live.
How was it to work on the EP?
It was my first time writing and producing a whole project instead of just one track, and it’s very different. I had the whole boxing aesthetic around it and that helped me visualise what the tracks would sound like. It was a cool experience. I chose boxing because it’s quite an energetic sport, and also rough around the edges. It matches most of the tracks in the EP.
Before the EP came out, you had ‘Octane’, ‘See U Work’ and ‘Low Down’ as singles. Why did you decide to put these ones out first?
See U Work was the first one that came out, and that one is definitely the most energetic, rawest, and roughest track on the EP. So I thought I’d start off with that. The second one was Low Down with A Little Sound. I think that one speaks for itself, she’s such a sick vocalist and artist, so I really wanted to get that out before the full EP. Octane is really energetic as well. It set the tone for what’s to come in the EP.
How was it to work with A Little Sound?
It was amazing, and it went so easy. I sent her a WhatsApp message saying I had an instrumental and I thought it would sound sick with her vocals. She was up for it and I think she recorded everything and got back to me in three days. We went back and forth for a little bit and then out of nowhere, she said, let’s release it. It went very smoothly, all of it.
Let’s go back to where it all started for you… How and when did you fall in love with bass music?
My dad would play deadmau5 when I was a kid, and I discovered Skrillex when I was 14. I listened to him every day, and watched all of his YouTube videos. But for drum & bass specifically, I think my friend showed me a couple of tunes in his car. It must’ve been a roller, and I remember the bass hitting so hard and thinking, wow, I haven’t heard anything like that before. After that, I fell in love with it and started producing it.
Who are your biggest inspirations right now?
The whole time I’ve been making music, I’ve always been inspired by Skrillex. He’s my biggest inspiration. At the moment, I also really like Sub Focus and Chase & Status.
And what are your favourite memories so far?
My favourite memory would be opening up for Sub Focus at Ally Pally. With me not being from the UK, I didn’t realise how significant that venue was. It was crazy to see how many people could fit into it, really cool. Playing Warehouse Project for the first time is another favourite memory of mine. I went back to back with Circadian, closing the Concourse, and it was such a sick venue. Another recent highlight, not gig-related, but amazing nonetheless, is that two people recently got my logo tattooed on them. That was always one of my goals.
Earlier this year you toured the UK, EU, and you also did a tour around your home country, New Zealand in April. How was it touring so much?
It was amazing. I started touring properly, maybe two years ago, but the most recent one has definitely been a big one. Especially the New Zealand tour, it’s always cool to play in your home country. For this tour, I got to design how the shows would look like for my visuals, lighting, production, and everything. That was a cool first. Playing internationally, especially on the other side of the world, in the UK and Europe, it always goes hard. The energy and vibes are really good there, and I’m really keen to get back out for the summer and show off the EP.
How is it different, playing a show in your home country versus on the other side of the world?
In the UK and Europe, it’s different. The crowds are more open, and people have a lot of space to move and dance around. In New Zealand, it’s more crammed, more comparable to a concert. And to me personally, it’s also definitely different. On the other side of the world, you’re a long way from home. Being from a small country, it’s really cool to be in a big country playing all these shows. But at the same time, it’s still a show at the end of the day and as long as everyone has fun, it’s a good show.
Is there anything else you’re working on at the moment?
I’ll be making a lot of music where I can experiment with genres, trying to make some other stuff, and turn drum & bass into something new and refreshing. I want to bring something people haven’t heard a thousand times already. It’s a hard thing to try and do something new when it hasn’t been made yet, but I’m in the process of trying to do that now. For now, I’m really excited to get the EP out, and to have everyone experience it. Not just the music, but the theme and visual aspects of it as well. It all ties together and I feel like I’m giving people a full listening experience.
