Interviewing Ricardo Rangels, following also some questions sent to our email.

 Hello, today we are interviewing Ricardo Rangels, following also some questions sent to our email.

Hello, Rangels, how are you?

I'm very well; this has been an insane and difficult year for me. But I'm happy.

When you say "difficult," is it related to your music?

Not necessarily. In fact, it had to do with many personal matters, which I'd prefer to keep private.

Alright, we understand. But now, let’s get to what matters. Tell us a bit about the song "The Sun."

The song "The Sun" is just a teenage song that reveals the excitement of traveling to enjoy the summer in a sunny city and going to the beach.

That's all?

Yes, I have nothing else to add.

Tell us about the dispute over the song’s authorship.

It’s something insane. My YouTube channel never had more than 100 followers; I was just posting my old songs, and suddenly a bunch of people started insulting me, talking about "tms." I didn't even know what it was, so after a while, I decided to look it up. And it turned out that back in 2007, someone from my country posted the song on the Internet over 40 times on various platforms, claiming it was by an unknown artist, and the rest is history.

How did you feel about these insults?

Surprised and a little sad. I never imagined I’d be attacked for my own song. I’ve been posting my work online since 2011, and I never had any problems like this. I never had haters; my work has always been ignored. So this was something new for me to deal with.

And emotionally?

I was shaken for a while, especially because there were repercussions—the song was taken down, and I suffered losses. But later, the distributor reimbursed me, and I decided not to work with them anymore because they were so disrespectful, not even letting me present any defense.

Why do you think you were attacked so much?

It’s very logical. Several people registered or claimed to be the authors of the song, but I was the only one actually targeted. I’m so focused on that even today, they try in every way to censor my name. It's impossible to even discuss the possibility of my authorship. The reason is that I’m the only non-white person who dared to question them.

What proof do you have that you're the true author of the song?

Since I didn’t know the authorship would be contested someday, I didn’t worry about registering it at the time—I only did so when I re-released it. However, the song is expressed in various verses of my poems in the book The Lost Poems: Apex & Core, in lyrics of other songs, and in my very old paintings. The Sun has always been a recurring theme. I also performed it live in bars, at university, and even in a shopping mall years before the first version appeared on the Internet. There were several witnesses, and there may be recordings out there.

Additionally, the version I have to this day is the only different and higher-quality one, featuring a guitar riff style, a drum intro inspired by a distant cousin who’s a drummer and always tried to teach me, and a baritone vocal timbre found in many of my songs as one of my most distinctive traits. We also have the studio and the band that accompanied me, who could resurface at any moment, though I only remember part of their names. And finally, there’s something else I’m keeping to use in court if necessary.

Did you listen to the band FEX? What did you think?

At first, I thought it was just another setup by the group that has been trying for years to claim the song. This group has already invented several fake bands to try to take it, so that’s what I initially thought. But after watching videos of them playing, I was happy.

What do you mean, you were happy with the group that everyone thinks, or even might be, the authors of the song?

Yes, it’s true. It may seem contradictory, but I was happy to see that they appear to be a real band, not just a group of scammers using artificial intelligence. I even liked the acoustic version they did.

Did you like their version?

Yes, they’re charming old men; I liked them.

But you still claim to be the true author even so? That seems very contradictory.

It’s contradictory, indeed, but let me explain. I liked their version because I saw it as a good cover, so I showed it to my girlfriend. She said the voice was different from the original version, and I even defended them by asking her, “Are you sure about that?” Maybe their voices changed with age, just like mine has over time. But she didn’t really believe they were the original authors.

Actually, I was trying to convince myself that maybe it wasn’t my work. Maybe my memory had failed, and I genuinely wanted her to say it was them singing the original version of The Sun. And there's a detail: she also doesn’t believe that I’m the author, haha.

Why would you want to believe you're not the author? I don’t understand.

Because my life would be simpler. This song brought me problems. For example, it’s exhausting trying to prove that something is yours when no one believes you. I’m also an older man—almost 50, though I look quite young—and receiving so many attacks and criticisms is very tiring. Basically, I’m fighting against a group of 61,000 people, and not just that; I’m facing the media, radio stations, magazines, the German nation, white pride, Europe, English-speaking people, and even some from my own country. It’s literally one against half the world or one against the entire world.

Why don’t you just give up?

But I already have. As I said, I have nearly 200 songs, countless poems, and I’m sure I’ll make more over time. So, this song isn’t that important; it would just be a part of my story. I gave up trying to prove that I’m the author. Just don’t expect me to say I’m not.

When you say you’ve given up, does that mean you’re not going to fight them legally?

At first, I thought about suing everyone—individuals, distributors, platforms, the community—but then I thought it over. I’m a calm and peaceful person; I’ve never responded to the insults I’ve received to this day. Besides, peace of mind is more important than money. I don’t need the money; I have enough to live and enjoy. However, it will also depend on them. If they sue me, I’ll be forced to enter the fight and present my evidence. Then the people who caused all this confusion, like Gabriel, Lydia, and Darius, will have to appear as witnesses, and they’ll be implicated in the process since they are the true culprits and will have to explain a lot.

Do you really believe Lydia and Darius don’t exist?

Based on the investigation data I have, I don’t believe they exist. If they never existed and it’s just a hoax, the entire story becomes untrue. I already got something right when I stated that the song never appeared on the Internet before 2007, so there were never those 40 years of searching, and this was even reported this week in some German publications. If the investigation got that right, it may be correct about Lydia and Darius as well.

What if the band FEX sues you?

Their evidence is very weak. Simply put, some young people sent an email asking, “Did you make this song?” Now imagine you’re a retired old man with nothing to lose, and you receive attention from a large group of young people. I believe any elderly person would say, “Yes, it’s me,” and from there, they start giving a bunch of interviews. And when a large, devoted group of people wants to believe something, it becomes true for a while. But although they have a similar tone to our version, it’s not them. Many things don’t add up in this story.

What do you mean?

The band lacks coherence. The voice isn’t the same, the accent is terrible, and the lyrics are very different—a poorer version. I even did a test comparing the voices and the magic of the song, trying to convince myself it was them, but it sounded strange; it doesn’t have the same vibe. Besides, it’s a band of supposedly three songs that existed briefly. It doesn’t match my poetic journey of many years, playing only for the love of music. Because if you truly love music, you do it regardless of success. Even if fewer than 100 people hear your music, you keep going. Those who give up loved success, not making music. Anyway, they’re charming old men, and if The Sun will make their lives better, I’ll be happy.

Will you truly be happy? Or is there a catch?

Yes, I’ll be happy. I’d even go to one of their shows if I had the chance, not to argue but to enjoy and listen to The Sun.

But don’t you expect to be recognized one day as the true author?

I’m sure that in the future, there will be people who will investigate the whole story without the bias of the song's “cult.” These people will do a serious investigation, compare data, read my poems, and in the end, the truth will come out. Maybe it will take many years—perhaps even a real 40 years—but one day, the Sun will shine.

Thank you, everyone!

Read more about THE SUN

https://www.ricardorangels.com/2024/11/ricardo-rangels-and-like-wind-final.html

https://www.ricardorangels.com/2024/09/deciphering-sun-meaning-of-verses.html

https://www.ricardorangels.com/2024/09/the-sun-30-years-of-music-and-memories.html