Lyn Lapid Interview - 21st Century EP, Songs, Producer Man

In the past two years, pop singer/songwriter Lyn Lapid has emerged as a talented young artist to watch. She has signed a label deal with Mercury Records/Republic Records, and she has recently released her impressive new EP, to love in the 21^st century. In addition, she has quickly built large followings on TikTok (almost 5 million followers) and YouTube (1.3 million subscribers).

Lapid, who is just 20 years old, has created a fresh, appealing style and sound, that features her expressive lead vocals, multi-layered harmonies, and modern pop arrangements. She writes or co-writes most of her songs, and she plays piano and other instruments.

Lapid comes from a unique background. She grew up in Maryland, and her parents came from the Philippines. She became a classically-trained pianist at a young age, and when was a teenager, she started writing and recording songs. In addition, Lapid has become skilled at creating distinctive and colorful videos that she posts on YouTube and TikTok.

She had a breakthrough two years ago, when she wrote her song, “Producer Man,” and the clever video she created went viral. Lapid then released her EP, The Outsider, which contained such key songs as “In My Mind,” “Pager,” “Comatose” and “I Guess That Was Goodbye.”

Lapid’s new EP, to love in the 21^st century, is an 10-song collection that weaves together a story, following her over the course of a relationship while falling in and out of love for the first time. She describes her new record: “My EP follows one story about a girl who meets a boy, who she talks to for 147 days, falling in love with the idea of being with him, only until he shatters her overly romanticized perception of love and relationships. I love when projects are cohesive and revolve around a story, and I knew I wanted this next project to revolve around a true story. I watched the events that I describe in the tracks of the EP happen in real time to someone very close to me, and I feel like writing about this one story allowed me to epitomize what it’s like to be young and to experience romantic love in this day and age.”

The new EP contains such highlights as the singles “ok with it” and “poster boy,” and she sings a duet with hit Canadian artist Ruth B on the song, “do you really?” Another highlight is her single, “the A\alternative,” which was written by singer/songwriter Ashe and Casey Smith.

Here’s the video of Lyn Lapid’s single, “ok with it.”

Currently, Lapid has just completed her latest U.S. concert tour, which ended with shows in San Francisco and Los Angeles. She’s looking to tour more in the coming months, with perhaps shows in Asia and Europe.

Lyn Lapid InterviewWe are pleased to do this new Q&A interview with Lyn Lapid. She tells how she got started with her hit “Producer Man,” and she discusses her songwriting for her EPs The Outsider and to love in the 21^st century.

DK: I read that you grew up in Maryland and your parents came from the Philippines. How did you get started with music and writing songs?

Lyn Lapid: My parents got me involved with music at a very young age, when they put me in piano lessons for 10 years. So that’s how I started getting into music, and then along my school years I picked up some other instruments like ukulele and violin. And it wasn’t until a few years ago when I picked up songwriting. That’s been my journey.

DK: What was your first big break in the music business?

Lapid: I’d have to say when I posted my unreleased demo of “Producer Man” on my TikTok profile. That was one of my first original songs that I put on my social media. And overnight, it gained a lot of attention and blew up like crazy. So that was the catalyst that allowed me to get connected with a bunch of people in the music industry.

DK: Was “Producer Man” based on your own experience of being signed with a producer and it didn’t work out?

Lapid: Yeah it’s based on an experience I had with a producer. I never actually signed to him, but “Producer Man” was the story of me meeting this producer, and imagining what would happen if I signed with him and worked with him. So yeah, it was based on an unpleasant experience I had with a producer in the industry.

DK: Last year, you released your EP, The Outsider. Can you talk about that EP and your favorite songs on it?

Here’s the video of Lyn Lapid’s single, “the alternative.”

Lapid: The Outsider was my first EP that I released, and at the time I was experimenting with a bunch of different sounds, because I didn’t have my sound quite figured out yet. I’d say my favorite song on that EP would be “My Little Island” or “Comatose.”

DK: You’ve just released your new EP, to love in the 21^st century. Can you talk about this project?

Lapid: For my EP, to love in the 21^st century, I used my knowledge of experiments with different sounds and sonics, and I used that to now tell a story in the current EP. So how I grew from The Outsider, was that I took what I learned after putting out my first EP, and I used that to create a more cohesive story behind it.

DK: Two of my favorite songs on your new EP are “the alternative” and “ok with it.” How did you write those songs?

Lapid: I believe “ok with it” was the second song that was confirmed to be on the project. The song is about a relationship ending and fading away, and how things like that happen, and sometimes I just have to be okay with it. That’s what that song is about.

“the alternative” was a song written by Casey Smith and Ashe. They pitched it to me a couple months ago, and at the time I wasn’t going to take any pitched songs for this EP, because I wanted everything to be written by myself. But when I heard it, I felt that it fit the project perfectly along with the message, so I was able to take it and re-record my vocals for it. And I’m so glad that I did, because it’s such a great addition to the project and it’s one of my favorites on the EP.

DK: Besides those two songs, what are your favorite songs on your new EP?

Lapid: I would have to say, “like you want me to.” I love interpolating melodies from classical pieces of music, and I did that with the chorus of “like you want me to.” I interpolated a melody from Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto #2 in C Minor for the chorus. I remember being in love with that song. When I finished it the day we wrote it, it’s the only song on the EP that takes the perspective of the other person in the relationship, not myself. So I found that to be really special.

Here’s the video of Lyn Lapid’s breakthrough song, “Producer Man.”

DK: Over the past two years, you’ve become very popular on TikTok and YouTube. How have you able to build such large followings?

Lapid: Yeah, it’s amazing how quickly I’ve been able to build a fanbase. I just started posting cover songs, and posting my little songs that I’ve written for fun on YouTube and TikTok. I guess people really connected with that, especially with my first demo, “Producer Man.” And over the years, I’ve tried to be authentic with my songwriting and with all the content that I post. I’ve been able to garner a fanbase that connects with that, which I’m really grateful for.

DK: You’re currently in the middle of a U.S. concert tour. Can you talk about your live shows and your tour?

Lapid: It’s going really well. We’re on our next-to-last show of this run, which I’m excited for. I’m currently in San Francisco about to load in for that show. Honestly it’s been pretty hectic, but this is my favorite part of what I do, so I’ve been having a really good time.

DK: Have you toured yet overseas, in Asia or Europe?

Lapid: Yes I’d love to tour Asia one day. I’d love to go to the Phillipines and perform there because I’m Filipino. I did one show in Singapore a couple months ago and that was a lot of fun. But I would love to do an Asia run and a Europe run. I’m hoping to do that very soon.

Here’s the link to Lyn Lapid’s site: https://www.lynlapidmusic.com/