Life doesn’t move in straight lines. It twists, doubles back, and reshapes itself in ways we don’t expect. Few embody this as fully as allapopp—a Berlin-based artist whose work fuses digital media, performance, and sound, all while caring for and exploring the resilience of Tatar heritage. Once a political science student and professional basketball player, Alla’s path took turns that might not have seemed obvious at first but ultimately led to a creative practice that is entirely unique. Now, through technology and performance, Alla is shaping a space where AI, identity, and cultural heritage intersect in exciting and ever-evolving ways.
THE SUM OF MANY LIVES
allapopp’s journey is anything but conventional. Growing up in Tatarstan, a republic within russia, Alla grew up in a space where tradition and modernity coexisted uneasily. Childhood was marked by deep intercultural influences and connection to Tatar culture—a culture that, like many, has been forced to fight for its place in an increasingly homogenized russian narrative. Tatar culture and history were always present, shaping the foundation of an evolving identity, even if the significance was not fully realized at the time.
For Alla, instead of heading straight into a professional artistic path, other experiences came first. In Alla’s family nobody was an artist or a cultural worker, political science seemed like a firmer choice. Similarly, basketball, played at the professional level, instilled discipline, resilience, and a way of thinking that would later become useful in unexpected ways.
“I’ve always said that I’ve lived many lives. I’ve been creating since I was young and wanted to be a fashion designer. I was always really tall and so got to dance and model and do sports, where I played Basketball professionally, but was always doing things like photography, which was my side hustle..”
“My second life took me to Germany where I did Politics, but became part of the arts and performance scene there.”
The move into the creative arts felt like a natural progression, with the experience and skills gained along the way aligning to create a clearer sense of direction. The shift into performing wasn’t a sudden change, but rather the next logical step in a path that had been unfolding steadily.
Digital tools opened up new possibilities, not just as mediums, but as collaborators. Technology became a space for exploration—an approach to create, challenge, deconstruct, and rebuild. Today, allapopp’s work sits at the intersection of performance, digital media, and post-Soviet identity, using technology to revisit the past and influence the future, while also questioning the role of technology itself through artistic strategies.
CREATIVITY: A DISCIPLINE OF TRANSFORMATION
Creativity is often painted as something spontaneous, but for Alla, it’s a process—one that blends structure, curiosity, and a willingness to experiment. Past life experience feeds into the present work.
“My influences were and are really all over the place. I grew up with this interesting time in the 90s in russia, this kind of underground art/music scene was happening. And then you had American culture that was becoming like a global export as well, like Disney movies. But then I have this connection with Tatar culture!”
One of the most compelling aspects of Alla’s work is the interplay between technology, queerness and cultural heritage. In experimenting with AI, Alla uses it as a means of reconstruction and reinterpretation. By taking fragments of Tatar musical traditions and feeding them through digital processes, new sonic possibilities emerge—ones that honor the past while making space for the future.
Performance plays a crucial role in Alla’s work. Immersive experiences and thematic explorations question the lines between human and machine, reality and digital fabrication. Alla’s practice is about tension—the push and pull between history and futurism, between control and chaos. Retrospectively, Alla’s process arrives at the next question: How can AI, with its encoded biases and injustices, be re-appropriated and re-used?
ON AI: BETWEEN CAUTION AND POSSIBILITY
AI is a hot topic in creative spaces, often framed as either a thrilling revolution or an existential threat. Alla takes a more nuanced view, approaching it with both curiosity and caution. Neither a utopian evangelist nor a dystopian pessimist, allapopp holds a critical, measured perspective—acknowledging both potential and flaws.
Much of today’s AI-generated content is rooted in western biases, often leaving non-western traditions out of the equation. Who decides what gets included in datasets? Whose histories are represented, and whose are invisibilized? These are considerations that shape how Alla engages with AI, always looking for ways to shift the balance and bring underrepresented cultures into the fold.
“Something that was missing in the world when I was looking at new technologies was the inclusion of non-western traditions. The project we are working on together, the Virtual Tatar Choir model, is a really great example actually, because it brings to the surface questions around not only what data is being used to build models, but even before that, what is important to model in the first place.”
“The researcher Sarah Wachter says “96% of the world does not live in the United States, but a majority of our digital tools and platforms are based on US customs, political culture, and laws..” Most AI development is happening in the west, so naturally you have western influences. That’s why I’m excited to build this Tatar model, to bring my culture and context into a future that doesn’t naturally include it.”
AI should be a means of amplification, not erasure. There is a vision for AI that highlights underrepresented cultures, that gives voice to those historically ignored. The importance of agency is paramount—artists should be directly involved in shaping how AI is used in creative spaces, rather than being passive recipients of its consequences.
Yet, AI’s capacity for creative disruption is undeniable. It serves as a collaborator, not a replacement—an entity that challenges instinct, pushes new directions, and forces reexamination of creative choices. The goal is to embrace unpredictability rather than resist it. So what does a future with AI look like then?
“I always think that AI and development is more of a sociopolitical thing than anything else. AI is not intelligent like humans, but its impact will be global. You cannot change the entire system but you can learn to pick the elements of the system that you can appropriate and sort of make your own.”
BUILDING NEW WORLDS
Looking ahead, allapopp’s creative world continues to expand. The upcoming project, AŞ, created in collaboration with Dinara Rasuleva as a music project TATAR KYZ:LAR, is an exploration of Tatar identity through poetry and digital soundscapes—an album that not only reflects cultural heritage and resistance but reimagines it through the lens of modern technology. An interactive web-based experience is also in development, allowing audiences to engage with the music, themes and narratives of the project in a participatory way.
Live performances will continue to be a key focus. In an era where digital content is often consumed in isolation, there’s something uniquely powerful about crafting experiences that demand presence—where the interaction between audience, performer, and technology unfolds in real time.
Beyond personal projects, there is also a commitment to advocating for ethical AI practices in creative spaces. Open-source models, small data approaches and frameworks that empower artists rather than exploit them remain at the core of Alla’s vision. The future of tech and AI should not belong to corporations but should serve as a means of artistic expression and cultural preservation.
“It feels powerless at times, when big corporations make all the decisions. So for that sake, I’m also grateful to work with you guys because you provide technology that allows me to sort of put my five cents into the conversation. I have control over how I want to be involved, what goes into the training of models, and the overall final product.”
allapopp embodies the beauty of contradiction—rooted yet fluid, analytical yet instinctive, traditional yet experimental. The work is a testament to the power of reinvention, of pushing past boundaries to create something truly one’s own. In a world where technology can serve as a force of division, Alla finds ways to make it connective, breathing life into lost histories and imagined futures. This art is not just a reflection of where the journey has been, but an invitation into where it, and we, might go next.
—o—
allapopp has a lot of stuff happening right now. As mentioned, AŞ, the latest album and web experience, are currently out. Neutone will also be releasing a Virtual Tatar Choir model, used collaboratively for the project, capturing the musicality and sonics of the Tatar heritage. You can follow along with everything below:
words by w0rmw00d.
Photo credit to allapopp, Valentin Oellers, Carolina Ovando and Teresa Schönherr