Rhye

ALT Hi everyone, After much consideration and reflection, I've decided to put Dog Mask on an indefinite hiatus.

ALT I've made this decision due to three main reasons: 1. I've grown a lot since I started this project back in 2018, and I feel like I've outgrown this project a bit. I used Dog Mask as a way to therapeutically work through some internal issues, especially regarding how I felt pressured to mask myself in daily life. Now though, after doing some self-work outside of my music, I have changed a lot and dealt with my issues (including some I didn't even know I had until recently). Dog Mask just doesn't feel like who I am as an artist or person anymore.

ALT 2. Performing as Dog Mask in live shows has been electric and transcendent, but it has also been equally exhausting & demanding (physically & mentally), especially as only one person on stage doing everything! I couldn't have known that without giving it a shot, and I'm grateful to have performed my music, but it definitely feels a little unsustainable in the long-term. 3. The music for Dog Mask I've been working on lately doesn't seem to be developing into release-worthy tracks. Coupled with the increasing realization this year that this project should probably go on hiatus, the result is that my energy and motivation for making music for this project has slowly diminished over time. There's nuggets of gold there for me to keep for myself, but not enough to polish into released tracks. It also wouldn't make sense to promote them if I were to announce my hiatus right after releasing them.

ALT I've had a ton of fun making & performing music for this project, and I'm incredibly proud of what I've accomplished. Dog Mask has given me self-confidence, developed my music skills, & helped me meet some amazing people. I just also feel it's better to embrace new ideas and move forward, rather than continue expending energy on something I've outgrown, something that doesn't seem to be developing or evolving. I'm going to continue making music, but it will likely be under a different name, which I may or may not announce here if I release anything. It will also give me a chance to explore other genres, although there will always be a dark culture influence on my music to some extent. I'm still keeping my released music for Dog Mask up on Bandcamp and major streaming platforms, and I'll still use & check this account to maintain contacts as needed, so don't worry! Thank you all so much for your support over the years. I'm truly grateful, and I wish you all the best. With love, Dog Mask