Lucas Sim ’20 released his song “Cliff’s Edge” featuring Riha in September of 2018, and it has since appeared on multiple media and musical platforms, including Spotify and YouTube, where it generated more than a million views. Sim created the basic demo, which he later sent to vocalist Riha. Together, they wrote the lyrics and recorded it before distributing the finished product.
Sim is relatively new to music production. He started out by watching YouTube videos on producing and practiced by recreating other artists’ songs before working on his own demos. Producing was always in the back of his mind, but the act of creating something seemed daunting. This remained the case until the winter of Sim’s sophomore year when something clicked.
Making music is a lot of trial and error, and inspiration often hits when one leasts expect it. Sim rarely sits down with the intent of “making something” because it he feels that act is too full of pressure. Instead, he lets his thoughts flow naturally, aiming to make the music more organic. “In class, maybe I’ll have a random idea,” Sim said. “Sometimes, I’ll pull out my phone and record something real quick if I’m walking down the path, and then I’ll go back to my room and try to play with it.”
To get an idea of the kind of sound he’s trying to create, Sim starts on the piano. He polishes the music on his computer, with a program called Ableton Live. Using the program, he can draw in different notes, build chords, and add drums. In conjoinment with the computer program, Sim also uses an electric and acoustic guitar. From there, he plays around with different patterns, arranging them so they complement the other sounds.
“Cliff’s Edge” has a darker theme to it that trademarks some of Sim’s songs. “Whatever mood I’m in, I’ll listen to music with the same kind of feeling,” Sim said. He makes music as a way to destress and escape from the present. “It’s nice to put on headphones and turn the volume all the way up, absolutely blasting it and forgetting about everything else,” he said. “That’s kind of like the stuff I’m trying to make.”
Sim hopes his music can help people through challenging times because that’s the kind of influence music has on him. He hopes to relate to his audiences, so his music typically leans to the melancholy. To give this effect, he weaves acoustics into the electronic elements.
Sim hopes to continue producing. At the moment, he’s working on five different songs, which he’s trying to get featured on Trap Nation, a music channel network. Sim hopes to continue collaborating with other artists on his pieces and has taken to reaching out to them. The artists he’s in contact with are people that Sim listened to and was inspired by.
