Pass the Beat Challenge – The Release of a Hit
After months of hard work and tight collaboration by a group of Epidemic Sound music creators, we can finally say hi to the anticipated outcome of our Pass the Beat Challenge: an epic hit by the name Some of Y'all.
After months of hard work and tight collaboration by a group of Epidemic Sound music creators, we can finally say hi to the anticipated outcome of our Pass the Beat Challenge: an epic hit by the name Some of Y'all. Want to get the lowdown of the process? Perhaps you're curious about the result? If so, read on!
Some of Y'all – the sound of 20 musicians coming together
The Pass the Beat Challenge gave each of the 20 music creators 24 hours to work on the track before passing it on for the next person to add layers. The collaborators were located across nine major locations, including Stockholm, Texas, LA, and Portland, and have all been living under similar locked-down circumstances amid the past few months. Hence, Some of Y'all was created in isolation and represents the amalgamated sound of 20 individual musicians from 5 different time zones.
The slick, alternative HipHop track features trumpet, guitar, electronics, and even a bottle of Vitamin C tablets as a shaker. With composer and Guldägget nominated artist Gavin Luke on piano, topped off with vocals from Jontha Links and King Sis – the track couldn't have turned out better. Due to the many collaborators; Some of Y'all moves between genres. It has elements of R&B music, Lofi HipHop music, Pop music, and Big band music – all mixed up in one epic piece.
Music inspired by the climate of 2020
To add yet another layer to the mix, the United States erupted with the perhaps most significant civil rights movement of our lifetimes amid the production, making the tone of the track shift in response, unintentionally. The lyrics have become even more applicable, and underline the relationship between the quarantine and the protests.
"Some of Y'all was written and directly inspired by the political and social climate of 2020. America and the rest of the world are changing rapidly in response to some crazy events (Coronavirus, Police Brutality). Some changes have been for the better, but some are also for the worse." Jontha Links
We are so proud of our music creators' amazing work, and we hope you'll love the track as much as we do. For the ultimate experience, check out the music video below while taking in the magic of 20 talented musicians simultaneously.
Background
During the pandemic, we at Epidemic Sound missioned ourselves to activate and engage our creator community through various challenges in a campaign called Come2gether.
As a part of this, we asked our music creators to collaborate on a track, to keep the creativity flowing during the lockdown, and to one by one 'pass the beat' around. How does that work? You might think. Well, these were the rules:
- We chose a music creator who would kick off the challenge by adding ONE element to the track and then challenge the next creator to do the same.
- Once challenged, that music creator did the same thing and then challenged yet another creator through Instagram to add a new layer to the track.
- Then, they would film their addition to the beat and post it to their Instagram story.
- Once the beat had been passed around to all creators involved and the track was next to spot on, one music creator would assemble the final mix.
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