Lucid Monday
Lucid Monday
Regarded by many as the unsung heroes of the music industry, producers are tirelessly keeping the gears turning, and are continuously striving toward innovation. Whether they are stepping forward with their own catalog of music, or lending their skills to some of today's biggest artists, producers undoubtedly deserve more shine.
Here are Lucid Monday's 23 producers that you should keep your eye on in 2023.
A talented songwriter and guitarist, Meridian (Elliot Cleverdon) is bound to have a stellar year in 2023. You can primarily hear his strings playing for quickly, quickly’s band, but he also collaborates with Jak Bannon. He is known to have a lowkey persona–his Instagram only has one post–but many other musicians dial his number to get his opinion and expertise.
He was heavily involved in Metro Boomin's Heroes & Villains short film, while this time last year, he worked with singer Alexis Mahler on her 2022 New Year’s EP, Covers To Keep You Warm. In an Instagram post, she had this to say about Meridian:
“Elliot is a real genius with a beautiful imagination and clear gut instincts. To watch and participate in his process up close was truly amazing. Our creative process for this was unlike the others in a million ways.”
A highly-versatile producer, Akachi Glo has worked on records for the likes of TOKYO’S REVENGE, Chief Keef, Lil Uzi Vert, Gucci Mane and many more. He has been nominated for two GRAMMY Awards this year for his contributions to Future's I Never Liked You and DJ Khaled's God Did, and is undoubtedly looking at a bright 2023, whether he officially becomes a GRAMMY-winning producer or not.
It’s been nearly two years since pastelbounce, but kas (Kasim Rizvi) is firing on all cylinders as of late. You can always see the clips of the Ontario producer wildin to his beats on socials, but his Soundcloud truly shines. His muffled bounce, complete with well-placed 808’s is unparalleled.
kas' latest credit was on Dende’s “Please U” with Erykah Officer. After steadily posting and cooking up all of 2022, he stated that he plans on “going 100 times harder in 2023”–kas season is upon us. We have no reason but to believe him and get hyped. Catch Lucid Monday dancing, bouncing, and claiming pastelbounce along with him.
99makaveli has been doing large numbers with her drill remixes on TikTok for a minute now, but we all have a reason to believe she’s prime for a breakout year. The Ontario native graduated from Music Publishers Canada’s 2022 Women In The Studio program, where she honed her skills and worked with other producers/songwriters.
She just turned 23, making it an undeniable sign that this would be the year she exceeds expectations. Other than flipping unexpected samples and killing it on all of her social platforms, 99makaveli has also been experimenting with vocals. Every day, she takes her artistry to the next level, and we can’t wait to see what happens next.
Brought up in Vienna and based in the UK, salute is pioneering a brand new wave of house music on their own terms, and just wrapped up an explosive 2022. Kicking off the year with an official remix for DJ Seinfeld’s “Someday,” salute went on to release their Ultra Pool EP, perform at Porter Robinson’s Second Sky festival in Oakland and land a massive Boiler Room set in Melbourne.
camoufly had a beyond impressive run in 2022, receiving massive attention from fellow artists and fans alike. Over the past 12 months he unveiled his third thematical EP Faith, was enlisted to remix the likes of Tsu Nami, Manila Killa and Jimi Somewhere, and collaborated with sober rob and Alexander Lewis. He just announced his inclusion in ASTRO, huge collaborative NFT project alongside TWERL, Daniel Allan, Reo Cragun, Tisoki, Pauline Herr, Mark Johns and more, while having a new EP and a lot of collaborations slated for release this year.
The collaborative project of Lucid Monday's very own Dilip and Otxhello, late year are pioneering their own distinct brand of instrumental music, juxtaposing distorted low-end and hard-hitting drums with ethereal orchestral sections and heavenly melodies, while transporting listeners into unique sonic worlds. Following late 2022 singles “push ¤»«” and "otterbot ±ï›," the latter of which also came alongside their debut music video, late year are gearing up to drop their third project in 2023.
DMV/LA producer and multi-instrumentalist Louie Lastic creates immersive soundscapes with each release. Adding to his list of production credits with Kehlani, GoldLink, and UMI, Lastic built even more momentum last year producing for many blossoming hip-hop/R&B gems including DESTIN CONRAD, Ambré, and Phabo. With silky tracks like Ambré’s “I’m Baby” with Jvck James and DESTIN CONRAD’s “UNPREDICTABLE” with Kiana Ledé under his belt, we’re excited to see what 2023 holds for Lastic.
As he has revealed multiple times, Medasin has been on an introspective musical journey over the past three years, rediscovering his passion for sound while experimenting with fresh creative ideas, new instruments and out of the box techniques. His third album, which will mark the followup to early 2020’s RIPPLS, will finally be unveiled sometime within 2023.
Atlanta’s own ELHAE has demonstrated his prowess as both a producer and a vocalist over the years. As showcased on his latest track “Know,” which premiered recently via A COLORS SHOW, his combo of heartfelt lyrics and steady production plays like the perfect soundtrack for a late-night drive beaming with nostalgia. After expressing frustrations with his label at the end of 2022, ELHAE reassured fans that more music reminiscent of his earlier projects is definitely on the way in the new year.
One of the most exciting young artists coming up via SoundCloud over the past years, olswel is pioneering his own sonic identity without conforming to any standards. Last year he dropped his immersive, 11-track album Brain Needle, as well as 8008, a limited edition USB Flash Drive with hundreds of rare sounds and bonuses. There's no reason ot believe he won't go twice as hard in 2023, as he has a lot of collaborations and projects in the works.
In a recent Instagram post, Soudiere said that “2022 was probably my least productive year,” but still ended up with “more streams than ever.” Motivation or not, we are betting on the producer to hit his marks because he certainly did not disappoint last year.
One of the esteemed Purple Posse members ended 2022 with a slap. His production with DJ Smokey and Max2K10 for RX PAPI and RXK NEPHEW’s “Who Am I” is yet another excellent excerpt to his promising catalog. Even if the wait happens to be long, we can always listen to one of the always excellent entries in the Issue series.
2022 undoubtedly marked a huge year for Tsu Nami, who shared her debut EP Ethereal via San Holo’s bitbird imprint, and extensively toured across the US, supporting the Dutch superstar at Red Rocks before joining boundary-pushing talent Moore Kismet on their UNIVERSE album tour. Tsu Nami wrapped up 2022 with playful gem “When I Fall” alongside RUNN, out via deadmau5’s iconic mau5trap label.
Menoh wrapped up 2022 with over 130 million global streams, landing on Lil Tecca’s singles “Fallen” and “Treesha” as a producer. The Chicago-bred producer had his first big break back in 2017 by producing Lil Skies’ iconic hit “Red Roses.” Menoh’s trajectory over the past couple of years has been nothing short of impressive, with 2023 arguably shaping up to being his most explosive year to date.
As a member of Take A Daytrip’s NØ IDLE imprint at UMPG, Sophie Gray is a sonic force to be reckoned with. Her high-octane production has been paired with a wide range of powerful voices throughout the realms of hip-hop, pop, and beyond including midwxst, Flo Milli, and contradash. Each of Sophie’s releases plays like a triumphant victory lap that you’ll want to keep on repeat.
Throughout 2021, electronic trap pioneer RL Grime took ISOxo under his wing, collaborating with him on “Stinger” and signing his debut EP Nightrealm to his Sable Valley imprint. In 2022, ISOxo took off in his own distinct way, landing his debut festival performance at HARD Summer and embarking on his first headline tour. The artist rounded off 2022 by going B2B with none other than Skrillex at OMFG! NYE, and is gearing up to drop his debut album, KIDSGONEMAD! this year.
Another understated persona in the social media era of producers, Ted Kamal has been building up his rapport. After an impressive year with his work with Pink Siifu (“Roscoe’!,” “lng hair dnt care”), we’re fully convinced the momentum is in his favor. Siifu has also announced another album Leather Blvd.–part of collab group B. Cool-Aid with producer Awhlee–so it’s fair to speculate that Kamal might also make an appearance.
Kamal has been busy doing a lot of DJ gigs, and we are optimistic that he has some heat in the works as well. Stay tuned.
Playing the piano since he was three years old and honing in on his production skills over the past years, Grant Lapointe is gearing up for an explosive 2023. Citing BROCKHAMPTON as one of his favorite acts, he ended 2022 by performing piano and synths on four tracks off the group’s final album TM, and just made the move to Los Angeles in order to further his career as a producer.
Hokage Simon took things to another level in 2022 for his Bay Area hometown. From his latest project NEON NOIR to collaborating with the likes of thuy, P-Lo, and LaRussell, Simon exudes elegance and soul with his talents on keys, production, and even behind the mic. His piano skills are spread throughout thuy and LaRussell’s live performances, as well as P-Lo’s latest album STUNNA. Be sure to get familiar with the rising sound smith as he continues to take over in the new year.
Flwr Chyld's Iridescent Luv EP was released back in 2019, and curates an assortment of irresistible and funky grooves. His vibrant palette of upbeat and soulful melodies expanded further with his debut album Luv N Chaos, which featured Kadhja Bonet, Sebastian Mikael, Planet Giza and more. His sounds culminate into experiences that are equal parts intricate, intimate, and addictive – perfect for any playlist.
The Working On Dying producer has been putting in the hours. ilykimchi has collaborated with Ski Mask the Slump God, Rico Nasty, Matt Ox, Lil Keed (RIP), and Ken Carson. As is, her resume is already stacked, but 2023 seems to be her year. Despite not having any press or interviews, her momentum carries her forward. Suffice to say, she lets the music do the talking.
She’s working on her vocals as she released “i can’t” and “obsessed” in the last weeks of last year. Maybe we can expect a full-scale project ilykimchi project this year? Only time will tell.
Operating under Wondagurl's Wonderchild imprint, COLDSUMMER had an impressive run throughout 2022. Currently one of the closest producers of Cactus Jack signee SoFaygo, COLDSUMMER landed his first major placement mid last year, co-producing “Fall” off B4PINK alongside Bakkwoods. He then went on to land on four songs off the rapper’s debut album Pink Heartz, as well as work alongside Lancey Foux.
Berg has been on a real hot streak. The Grammy-nominated producer regularly works with Masego, and recently lent his talents to producing to Kaycyy, AG Club, Njormza,and Matt Maeson. He also worked on the beat demos for Mathaius Young’s sound kit C5 The Return.
He’s been consistently growing as a producer and an artist throughout last year. Berg is a solidified virtuoso that can be plugged into any genre or role, and he will surely excel–Lucid Monday can’t wait to see what happens next for the promising producer.
Contributors: Andy Tran, Patrick Ong and Konstantinos Karakolis.