Emei x LEXIM
I’ve been following Emei on Instagram for a little while, but I never featured her on my blog, until now :) She’s just released her debut single as Emei, with producer/artist LEXIM. It’s called “Distracted” and it’s an instant smash. I love the pop direction on this song as well as the production, and I love what influenced them while making this song. They created their own unique thing and it’s such an infectious record. Emei and LEXIM are doing a great work together and I can’t wait to hear more songs.
“Distracted” is now available everywhere.
Photo credit: Jade Sadler
Introduce yourselves - what's your story?
Hello! I'm Emily, a 21-year-old singer-songwriter from New Jersey. I started singing when I was around 9 years old. After receiving third place on Chinese Idol when I was 15, I started writing music to better express myself. My biggest inspirations growing up were Sara Bareilles, Norah Jones, and a lot of Musical Theater. After Lucas and I met, my music has definitely moved in more of an alt-pop and electro-pop direction. I tend to make music that makes me feel cooler than I am!
Lucas is a 20-year-old producer-songwriter also from New Jersey. Lucas always loved listening to music throughout his childhood but thought you needed to be amazing at an instrument to get into production. Sophomore year of high school, he started messing around with Ableton on his computer, and since then he hasn’t gone a single day without producing. Lexim has gained over 35 million streams on his music and released an official remix with Alison Wonderland. Since then, he's transitioned into more pop-focused production.
What made you want to collaborate and release music together?
We actually met online through a mutual friend. I’d always known of Lucas and his work but we’d never been more than just acquaintances on Instagram. Then one day this past March, Lucas responded to a story I posted of me singing just saying something like "oh this is sick", and I immediately asked to write together. We scheduled our first zoom session and ended up just hanging out and talking about our favorite songs for a few hours. Writing together comes super easily and we basically finish each other’s musical “sentences”. Since then, we’ve written a crazy amount of music together. We actually lived in LA together this summer as well, writing as much as we could.
"Distracted" is your debut single together - what's the inspiration behind this song?
I’ll go into the inspiration for lyrics in the next question but style-wise, this song was really inspired by Amy Winehouse's "Back to Black", Finneas’ "American Cliche", and Salem Ilese’s new EP as well. We actually made an entire playlist with more songs that inspired “Distracted”. You can check it out here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5d9iNkKl5LzhQN1ktgxOhB?si=83390c428b8547cc
Could you describe the songwriting/production process for this song?
So this song was one of the first tracks we wrote together. So, it was written entirely remote. It started with Lucas sending a recording of the beat idea and him humming “I’ve been so distracted”. When I heard the first recording, it immediately sparked the idea of the chorus and we wrote the rest of the song in one zoom session. The song is about meeting a stranger for the first time and immediately having a really good feeling about them. This song captures our excitement for the new stuff that we’re releasing and our new partnership.
What's your favorite thing about this song?
My favorite thing about the song is probably the production of the second verse. The second verse is like part two of daydreaming about a stranger where the world in which we start the song morphs into a vintage-inspired scene. I love how dramatic this verse is and how the music supports the movement.
What made you want to release "Distracted" as your debut single?
Since writing the song, it’s always been a favorite of Lucas and mine. Also, having our debut single be a song about having a good feeling about something just felt appropriate considering how excited we are for everyone to hear all of our upcoming work.
What can you tell us about the artwork?
In our studio this summer, there was a lot of pop-art inspired artwork on the walls. The song also referenced old movies and black and white love scenes. We knew immediately that we wanted our main color for the song to be maroon/red when we planned our shoot. And, when we sent our photos, taken by the talented Jade Sadler, to our graphic designer, Emily Hoang, she knew exactly what to do. Without us giving much direction, Emily took the pictures and turned them into what is now our album art.
What do you like the most about working together?
I love how we hype each other up when we write. Whenever someone has a good idea, we get extremely excited. Lucas loves puns and likes to keep the words of encouragement entertaining. A recurring pun he says is “wow do you need my license, because that was a BAR”. He’s got a never-ending arsenal of cringey dad-jokes. It’s amazing.
What are your thoughts on today's music industry? If you could change one thing, what would it be?
More Asian-American representation! I grew up never seeing an Asian-American pop star and so I always assumed I could only seriously pursue music in China. People really underestimate the importance of representation and Asian-Americans tend to be excluded in conversations around racial discrimination (until very very recently).
In your opinion, what would make the world a better place?
More hyping!!! More support all around! I think it’s a cruel world out there and making someone feel good about themselves and what they do makes a really big difference.
Connect with Emei:
Connect with LEXIM: