LEWUS talks about his transformation from a music festival-goer to a celebrated DJ playing iconic venues. With influences from live shows and a determination to make crowds dance, he shares insights into his creative process and anticipates an album designed to electrify the dance floor
LEWUS © 2023
Today We Have The Pleasure To Have LEWUS Here On Goathead!
GH: What inspired you to start writing and making music?
LEWUS: I remember going to my very first music festival in 2015 with no interest at all in making music. However, after watching a few sets, I was imagining how exciting it would be to be on stage performing for so many people. It wasn’t only the music that captivated me, it was the whole culture, the entire scene that really sparked my desire to possibly try and create music. I was surprised how friendly everyone was. Anyone I talked to and mentioned that it was my first festival would spend the time to talk to me and make me feel welcome. I was drawn to the community of thousands of people coming together to enjoy music and have a good time together. Despite how that show made me feel, I didn’t act on producing music until 2018. I was home for the summer between my junior and senior year in college and had attended several concerts during that time. I was once again inspired to start producing music and decided that before I go back to college, I would buy a music production software and a set of turntables. I ended up spending most of my senior year in college teaching myself how to produce music and DJ, finally acting on a motivation that I felt for years.
GH: Can you tell us more about your experien
ce performing live at gigs and what was the most memorable experience you had?
LEWUS: Right when I graduated college I got a job working for a DJ company. We would DJ weddings, birthday parties, corporate events and pretty much any sort of event that requires a DJ. I played a few weddings and some other events but the club scene is what I really had my eye on. Eventually I got an offer to play at one of Hollywood’s most iconic and historic landmarks, AVALON. AVALON has hosted artists such as Tiesto, Marcus Schulz, Paul Oakenfold and Skrillex. I had a prime slot, I played from 12:30-1:15am. Honestly, I barely remember my first show. I was nervous, excited, scared and feeling almost every emotion I could possibly feel. I do remember people coming up to me and asking to take photos with me and dancing during my whole set. I’ve been lucky enough to play at AVALON a couple of times, but the first one stands out as my favorite show I have played to date. It was a feeling and a night I will never forget.
GH: How does your process of songwriting and production go?
LEWUS: I will usually start with something super simple. A bassline, a synth or a drum line I really like. I listen to a ton of music and sometimes I hear an aspect of a song I connect with or that I think just sounds nice, and I try to create my own version of that aspect and make it unique to me. When I first started producing music, I didn’t feel like I really had my own sound yet. I am a few years in now and I feel like I am just now discovering who I am as a producer and I try to create a similar tone in all my tracks. I want people to hear one of my songs and say, ‘That’s a Lewus song.” I only start with about a 15 to 30 second loop and I’ll try to build that up until I feel like I have a solid idea for a track. It’s almost the same way I used to write papers in college; I start with the body, then I finish with the intro and outros. A lot of the time the drops come first when I produce. I will make a drop I think sounds funky, then create the build up for it, and I just work backwards from there. I don’t think there is any right or wrong way to make music. I think whichever way is the easiest and quickest for you is the way you should do it. Getting stuck is the enemy when it comes to music production, you just want to flow. When you finally release a track, nobody cares how you build the track or in what order you produce it. The final product is what everyone hears.
GH: What motivates you to create music and bring awareness to different situations through your songs?
LEWUS: Most of the time I’m just looking to create fun party music. I find that I am most motivated and inspired to create something new after I attend a live show or watch a live DJ set on YouTube. Not only do I get to hear a ton of brand new tracks, but most importantly I get to see how the crowd reacts. I read what people like and don’t like, I listen to what’s playing when the dance floor gets packed and what is playing when it empties out. It’s the most underrated part about being a DJ. Going out used to be a lot different for me! Now I feel like I am on the job, studying if you will. I am reading the room more than anything. My motivation comes from just wanting to make great music. Music that will make people dance. I’ve been in the club or at a festival when a really great track comes on and the crowd roars. That’s my motivation. That inspires me. I’ve been there, I’ve felt that feeling and I push really hard to try and create that environment for others. I want everyone’s experience to be special and that all starts with putting together fun tracks.
GH: Could you share some insights into your next projects?
LEWUS: I have a bunch of tracks planned to be released before the end of the year still. A few more singles, then I plan to drop an album in October. It will be an electronic/dance album that I have been putting together for about just under a year now. I am very proud of this record, I feel like it is a collection of some of the best tracks that I have made to date. It’s definitely made for the clubs. It’s a bunch of songs that I am excited to play in future sets and that I hope will make people dance. I feel like a lot of music lovers are going to connect with these tracks and really catch a vibe with people who love electronic music.
Don’t Forget To Follow LEWUS On Instagram And Listen To His Music On All Streaming Platforms!
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