DPR IAN Charts the Curious Comforts of Relatability

DPR IAN’s Dear Insanity is a 7-track EP that explains a persona named Mr. Insanity, which is the other side of the singer/songwriter during his manic highs. His previous releases—Moodswings in This Order—and —Moodswings In To Order—found him exploring MITO, a character he named after his experiences with mental health struggles. MITO is also part of the dreamlike universe he created called “The Other Side.” In his teenage years, he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder and has described in the past that MITO is this anti-hero that has every mental illness in the world.

The DPR acronym in IAN’s name stands for Dream Perfect Regime; it’s also the name of the creative collective he co-founded in 2014 (along with DPR LIVE and consists of a few other members such as DPR CREAM, DPR ARTIC, and many more). His role in the DPR collective is serving as the visual director but, for the first few years, he started out behind the camera—filming and editing music videos. A true introvert, DPR IAN admits he’d rather be behind the camera instead of standing in the spotlight. “A lot of the times when I direct, especially if it’s my own work, I forget I’m in front of the camera,” he laughs. It’s not that he doesn’t like being in front of the camera, but more so that he likes making things and directing his vision. “I love being a director and I love bringing out [different] sides of artists,” he adds.

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All of us have struggled with our own mental health concerns, and DPR IAN is no stranger to that. While it’s admirable for an artist to share their ups and downs, one cannot deny that there are times when mental health is glorified. DPR IAN is fully aware of this and remains cautious about how it’s being transmitted across his music. “[I’m not trying] to fix your problems, not to solve them, but to give relatability,” the 33-year-old says. “Because at the end of the day, it’s hard to see an artist really show what they’re going through. I’ve said this before, too, but if I had a certain disorder, I think the next thing I want to do is to find out ‘Who else has this?’ Even then, the lines get blurred when an artist’s mental health is intertwined with the work they put out.”

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cats was the first musical DPR IAN watched as a kid. Cats, along with other musicals like Phantom of the Opera are referenced throughout his body of work. For the Dear Insanity EP, he has released three official music videos which are “Peanut Butter & Tears,” “So I Danced” and “Don’t Go Insane.” Each video touches on his favorite film references from his childhood. The Mask and The Wizard of Oz serve as inspirations in “So I Danced” while Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride is seen in “Don’t Go Insane.” DPR IAN’s reasoning behind all these references is mastering the idea of things he loved as a kid and embracing it as an adult.

“I’ve also made Peter Pan references from the movie Hook but the idea is you tend to forget a lot of things in your youth and you start to rediscover as you’re older,” he says, which connects back to his favorite film references. As adults, we clutter our minds with things that stress us out, but DPR IAN’s work is a reminder that our childhood interests stay with us. His mind is filled with so many ideas, especially as he’s conversing with others. To add, he’s a keen observer and looks around because he’s inspired by the state he’s in. “I take everything in and I never let a moment pass,” he adds, as he’s the type to take a pause and absorb everything around him.

The simple joys in life define DPR IAN, “That’s why I love traveling. Traveling allows me to be free-spirited. I like going to places that really feel that if I lose myself here, there’s no turning back.” If he’s put in a familiar setting or a routine, it can become a hurdle to his creativity. “Routine is sometimes the most dangerous thing to an artist. If you’re constantly pushed trying to create something new but you’re following the same thing every day, there’s nothing new going up [in your mind]. People translate their art through their experiences,” he adds.

DPR IAN grew up in a Catholic family and went to Catholic school, hence his real name is Christian Yu. Even in all of his performances, he’s always seen wearing a rosary or a cross necklace. Religion is a topic DPR IAN doesn’t discuss much but understands there’s a higher power—or in other words, something, somewhere, out there is guiding him. “I had to go through so much to almost want to resort to the idea there’s something out there that’s guiding me,” he says. This interconnects with his persona MITO, because it’s biblical. “I had to understand why MITO is biblical and I’m not. Like why is my other identity so in tune with that [religion],” DPR IAN adds.

MITO is a fallen angel and the angel is being banished in reverse. This is why his album and EP artwork releases are in the order of black, red and white; black is darkness, red is fear/love and white is going back into the light. On the other hand, DPR IAN also learned to not be personal with a lot of things. “The cross has always been a symbol for me to fight against something that’s dark that always comes to me. Funny enough I was drawn to it and that’s kind of it,” he notes about wearing a cross and rosary.

This year, DPR IAN had many blessings. He headlined Coachella’s Gobi Stage both weekends and the After the Apocalypse festival in Hong Kong. He also made appearances at Head in Clouds NY + LA and Lollapalooza. If you asked him what keeps him going, it’s the little things—like when people tell him that his music has saved them. “For me, I do it for people like that. I think it’s a good enough reason to be doing what I do. Even if it’s just through these quirky dark mystical characters [that I make], I see so many people fit into that skin,” he says about his artistic approach. “[I’m showing] the idea that imperfect is perfect.”

Based in Tucson, Arizona, Cielo Perez grew up as a musician herself. It gives her perspective on sharing her thoughts about music, and she has lived in three countries. Some of her all-time favorite artists include The Cranberries, Harry Styles and Celine Dion. Above all, she holds a bachelor’s degree in Pharmaceutical Sciences.

DPR IAN Charts the Curious Comforts of Relatability

We sat down with the Australia-born, South Korea-based multi-hyphenate to discuss his new EP Dear Insanity.