Alec Orachi: Music as a Brush, the World as a Canvas
“We’re not just one color, we’re many.”
Alec Orachi’s world is like stepping into a Haruki Murakami novel—vivid, layered, and drenched in meaning. Much like the protagonist of Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage, Alec sees life, his city, and his music through the prism of colors.
Better known as Jackie—Sakdipat Charoensinthaweekul—the 88rising Radio Rookies Class of 2022 artist has been on a mission to reclaim the hues lost in urban monotony. Yellow, a symbol of light and resilience, became his calling card, worn proudly as a hard hat during performances. His goal is as bold as it is poetic: to transform the cold, gray landscape of construction sites into spaces brimming with imagination and possibility. For Jackie, art and humanity are inseparable—being a good person means not only creating but also contributing to the world around you.
From his early days as Charo on SoundCloud to the boundless energy of Alec Orachi on stage, Jackie’s journey is one of evolution—musically, emotionally, and spiritually. His growth shines through in his music, his way of life, and his deep reflection on the human experience.
In late August 2024, on the upper floor of CD COSMOS—a haven for music lovers nestled in the city’s heart, we caught up with Jackie ahead of his tour to China and Taiwan. Clad in a white t-shirt splashed with vibrant florals, he exuded a sense of renewal—a perfect metaphor for his journey as the year turned.
But the conversation wasn’t just about music. It was about embracing failure, experimentation, and finding beauty in imperfection. It was about Jackie and Alec Orachi—a duality that proves artistry isn’t about centering oneself but about opening up to the world, sharing its colors, and adding new ones to the mix.
What was life like studying at Suankularb and later architecture in Australia?
“At Suankularb, I was somewhere in the middle—not a nerd, not a troublemaker. I read manga and wanted to play football but didn’t dare join because I wasn’t part of the football crowd. There was this slight sense of insecurity. My group of friends mostly stayed in the classroom reading manga and playing games, and I stuck with them. But deep down, I wanted to use my energy for more. I dabbled in music here and there, but I never had the courage to fully commit.
“In Australia, it got even tougher. At first, I attended a language institute, which was fine because everyone there struggled with English—no one was better than anyone else. But once I moved to a regular school and faced native speakers, I felt left behind. I felt like this small, ugly Asian kid and started questioning myself a lot.”
How did you get through that phase?
“Inside, I felt left out, but in reality, it wasn’t as bad as I thought. I still joined in, went out, and tried new things. I became braver about putting myself out there. My friends at the time weren’t the nerdy type either. I think it was more about cultural differences—like food or the way of life. As for school, it was much more open. If you had something to say in class, you were encouraged to speak your mind.”
What did you learn from studying architecture and living abroad?
“I gained so much from studying architecture—it’s essentially the foundation for how I make music today. I didn’t finish my degree, though. I studied until my second year, but when COVID hit, I didn’t go back, which was a bit of a letdown for me.
“There was this one final project I worked hard on, but the professor commented, ‘When you’re designing or creating something, every detail needs a reason. Why is the staircase, door, or window in that specific place?’ My answer at the time was, ‘Because I feel like it should be there.’ It was just intuition. And they told me that wasn’t enough. There had to be a reason—how the wind flows when someone walks through, how the sunlight hits the space, how reflections work with the glass. I didn’t get it then, so I ended up stepping away.
“Later, I began to understand what the professor meant and, in turn, started understanding myself better too. When I started taking music more seriously, I applied that same principle to managing the structure of my band. I learned to back up every decision with a reason. Having that reasoning behind what we do makes the outcome so much stronger than just winging it without a clear foundation.”
Did studying design influence your approach to making music?
“It definitely influenced how I reason through decisions. Some things are based on instinct, but they need to work alongside logic. For example, I might feel like a certain sound fits the emotion I’m trying to convey, but I still have to question whether it aligns with the overall concept of the song. It’s not just about liking the sound—it has to fit. If it doesn’t, even if I like it, I’ll change it.”
Did studying design influence your approach to making music?
“It’s definitely about reasoning and decision-making. Some things are based on feeling, but I also need to balance that with logic. For instance, I might feel that a particular sound matches a certain emotion, but I still have to ask myself if that sound fits with the overall concept of the song. It’s not just about liking it—if it doesn’t match the concept, I’ll change the sound.”
Why did you choose the name Alec Orachi?
“Initially, I used the name ‘Charo,’ derived from my last name ‘Charoensinthaweekul,’ which is quite long in English. I shortened it to ‘Charo’ and started sharing my music on SoundCloud.
“But when I wanted to release music more seriously on platforms like Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube, I searched to see if the name ‘Charo’ was already taken, and it was. So I had to come up with something else.
“I wanted something with the ‘CH’ sound as my signature. After brainstorming with my friends, we came up with ‘Orachi.’ But I also wanted a first name, since at that time, I was inspired by Bruno Mars—his name sounds like an ordinary person’s name. I wanted something like that too. That’s how ‘Alec Orachi’ came about. When I say it out loud, it just feels right. It flows and sounds like me.”
Can you tell us about your latest song, "ขอSing ขอTry"?
“My music creation process is never set in stone. It comes with the feeling of the moment, and then it slowly takes shape. This song started with a story my friend told me about a glorified prostitute, a woman he once talked to. He said, ‘You just glorify prostitute,’ and in the end, she was a sugar baby. When he said that, I was holding my guitar (humming the tune), ‘A prostitute, doo doo doo.’ After I got that feeling, I recorded it and started working on the beat. As I was putting the music together, my mouth started singing ‘ขอร้องขอลอง’ (singing and trying). It just came out naturally, like the words were meant to be. A lot of other words came out, some I cut out, some I changed, but ‘ขอร้องขอลอง’ came out so effortlessly—it felt like a message from above telling me I had to say it.”
If the message from above tells you to "ขอร้องขอลอง," what would you like to try?
"I can't pinpoint exactly what I want to try, but I do try a lot of things. My life goes hand in hand with music. Every show, I challenge myself. This show, I’ll move more. This show, I’ll dance more. This show, I’ll entertain more. This show, I’ll interact more with my friends.
"I try to follow the rehearsals, but let’s say we’ve set up a really fun set. If on that day, I don’t feel the vibe, I won’t fake my feelings. I’ll just push as much as I can.
"We have a system and structure that serve as the foundation, but I’m someone who can’t play the same show twice. Every time, I need to feel like I'm not just playing music by myself. That means we need to have a system or some songs that are fixed, but with parts where we can improvise or go free. So, in rehearsals, I make sure our foundation is solid. If I make a mistake or freestyle on stage, it won’t seem chaotic or a mess because we’ve rehearsed the foundation well. It’s about being precise and free at the same time.”
Could we say that 'ม่วน' (Muan, meaning fun in the Northern Thai dialect) is the definition of Alec Orachi?
"I don't really know the word 'ม่วน' well enough to say if it's truly 'ม่วน' or not, but I’d say it's 'messy,' 'precise,' and 'genuine.'"
Alec Orachi’s music touches on many aspects of life’s challenges. As a creator, how do you view yourself?
“I can be introverted at times, and extroverted at others. I try to balance myself to stay bright. The darker side of me includes issues like love, dreams, and social problems. I need a way to release these feelings, and for me, that’s through music. When I made music in the past, I’d just speak out whatever I felt, without writing anything down. For example, with my album FREE 2 GO, I’d just speak and record—it was almost like a free-flow. But now, I tend to write things down first, or record bit by bit, using my thoughts to shape the music. Once the track is finished, the dark feelings I had seem to disappear."
Which helps you release your emotions better: freestyling or writing things down beforehand?
“They work in different ways. If it’s about releasing emotions, freestyling hits the spot. But it’s just about releasing feelings. If I want to solve a problem, it’s a whole different thing, and I need to think it through.
“If I have a concept or something I want to say, I need to frame it a little. It’s not just music I’m listening to alone; it’s something others might want to hear too. I try to make it something in between, still personal but relatable. If it’s just about releasing, it fills me up, but I don’t know if it fills others.
“As I’ve grown, I’ve started to realize that sometimes I don’t need to release everything in my music. I can share with friends, people I trust, or my family. That’s better. It also helps those around me understand where I am and how I’m feeling.”
Did growing up in a family full of artists like Zambug (Sam Buck) or Genius (LEPYUTIN) make you want to become a musician too?
“It played a part. My dad loved listening to Western music. Since I was a kid, he encouraged me to learn piano, but none of us really stuck with it. When my older brother was into Arctic Monkeys, he started playing guitar, so I picked up the bass, and my younger brother started drumming. It was a journey we all went on together. I think if it were just one person, we wouldn’t have come this far. We saw each other and helped inspire one another.”
Is there a chance the three siblings will form a band together?
“It’s getting close. Right now, it’s still the individual journeys of each of us, but I want the timing to be right.”
What genre is Alec Orachi's music? Is it still like "น้ำอัญชัญ" (butterfly pea juice)?
“At that time, I didn’t even know what styles existed. So, I said that my style feels like butterfly pea juice.
“Later on, after reflecting and going through more experiences, I started to understand why I said it felt like butterfly pea juice. Maybe because I’m like the color blue—calm and chill—but I also have anger, which is red. Combining them, it becomes me. Back then, I wasn’t ready to express myself the way I can now, so I kept it all inside, which turned into purple. Now, I get it—I don’t just have one color. I have many colors.”
What color do you see yourself as today?
“Today, I see myself as a purple, yellow, and butterfly pea-lemon (looking at his shirt). But I also have another yellow. Yellow is the color of responsibility. If I were blue, I’d be chill, but once I start doing things for others, I’m not in the blue mode anymore. I have become yellow. There's energy.”
Why do you see yellow as representing responsibility?
"It comes from a time when I started learning more about myself, trying to find reasons behind what I do. Why do I wear these flip-flops? Why do I wear these socks? Why these long pants? Why this shirt? Why do I need to wear a hat?
"As I began to delve deeper into the reasons behind the things I use in daily life, I reset everything. When I was driving around the city, I felt it was so grey. It was really grey. The color I noticed the most was the yellow of the arrows and the yellow along the road. It didn’t seem to make sense, but I could clearly see it with my own eyes at that time.
"The next yellow was the yellow of traffic lights, and then I started noticing the workers' helmets more."
It seems like yellow is also related to life security, isn't it?
"I've given myself that meaning too, feeling like I'm blue, but it also ties back to my childhood. I played with my siblings and we watched Kamen Rider. My older brother would be red, because red was the strongest. I would be blue, since blue was the second-best, and my younger brother would be green.
"As I started noticing traffic lights, red, yellow, green, I realized red and green were like my siblings. At that time, I was wearing a yellow hat, and when I saw the traffic lights, it felt like the signal of three hero siblings.
"It’s like, if I were to define myself, I’m blue, but when I wear a yellow hat, I feel like I have the drive to do things for others. Yellow might be more encompassing."
I’m curious why you chose to present yourself with the yellow hat as a symbol of who you are?
"I started noticing yellow hats. I found one at a shop, put it on, and it just felt right. It was like I was building a certain foundation through art. It’s not just about the yellow hat; it’s just that right now, I’m at the stage of wearing the yellow hat because I’m still on this journey. There are also many other professions I’ve started paying more attention to and want to give more value to, like waste collectors or security guards. I’ve been noticing them more and am finding ways to present them through my work. I try to blend art with reality, with the materials of real life."
Why do you want to present people from various professions through your work?
"I want to change the country for the better, but I know I don't have the money or means to make the change overnight. The only thing I have and can do is art—using my feelings and sending them out.
“Take the yellow hat I wear, for example. In the past, I never viewed construction workers the way I do now. I never saw their value. When driving by construction sites, I only saw them as the cause of traffic. But now, I see them more clearly and feel the need to convey that feeling through my art. Wearing the yellow hat allows me to communicate something different. Even though the music or art may not explicitly talk about them, I send that feeling through the yellow hat I wear. This may make listeners or those who see it feel differently and appreciate these workers more."
What if it’s not the yellow hat? What other materials would you use to convey the stories?
"I started studying waste because I feel that if we can manage waste, we can change a lot. But I want to learn more about it; I’m still in the process of cultivating that idea.
"People who work in waste collection are also very interesting. When we step out of the house, we immediately think of construction workers. The ground we walk on, the buildings we live in, the roads we use—all of these come from the work of construction workers. Whether it's the yellow hat or any other hat, it all comes from them. Once everything is built, the next issue is maintenance, which is where the waste collectors come in. And then there’s security... (pauses thoughtfully) Maybe I’ll talk about security guards instead."
Do you think Alec Orachi's music can change society?
"I hope so. I'm trying to do what I can."
If you weren't an artist, what would you want to do?
"I feel like I would want to do two jobs: being a security guard or a bus ticket collector. I think it would be great to meet a lot of people, talk to them, be outdoors, and practice balancing. The only downside is the dust, which is really bad. It might be because I have the privilege that makes me feel this way, but I genuinely feel this way."
It seems like Jackie particularly enjoys observing people. What is your perspective on humanity?
"Right now, I feel like it's about living for the community, for society. And lately, I've started to wonder where humans actually came from.
"I'm not sure if I'm wrong, but I did some quick research and found that all animals have the same origin from a single cell, slowly evolving. In the end, us, ants, dogs, we're all the same kind of creature. But humans are like the smartest animals, with brains, creating all kinds of things. When we're animals that create so much, it's a kind of responsibility. We have to have consciousness and do something for the greater good.
"Maybe we should start doing things for each other, even if it's something small. I think humanity is about living for the people around us, for the collective."
What do you think you have to sacrifice to be an artist?
"I guess it's sacrificing part of the artist to become a full-time artist. In the end, the result is good, unexpectedly. It made me grow. You could call it a sacrifice, but it's also an investment.
"Being an artist, for me, means being able to give 100% of yourself, releasing all your emotions through the work. If being an artist means releasing everything you have 100%, all of it coming from me, I think the sacrifice for me to be able to do this long-term is reducing some of my artist identity, working behind the scenes, talking to people, not necessarily being 100% myself.
"For example, in the song 'ขอ Sing ขอ Try,' initially, there wasn't the drum sound—zhik zhik zhik—that gives the 2000s hip-hop vibe. I didn’t see that, but Win, the producer, saw it and added it. I think if there wasn’t the drum sound, people might not feel the same way."
If you could leave a message to yourself 5 years from now, what would you say?
"Take it slow, be patient, listen to those around you, and don’t slip up."
