Jessie Lucas’s songwriting has grown up with them.

“The first song I ever wrote was in sixth grade,” they said. “I drew out my own staff paper on notebook paper and then I wrote random notes and played them on my keyboard and was like ‘OK that’s a song.’”

In this episode of Feedback Loop, hosts Alysa Spiro and Evelyn Griffin speak with senior Jessie Lucas about their origins as an artist, conquering their fears of writing and what comes next for their music discography.

The vocalist turned songwriter and producer has spent years working to personalize their sound and put lyrics to melodies. Their first single, “Where You’re At,” was written during the beginning of the COVID-19 quarantine when Lucas decided to take advantage of hours of free time home alone.

“If I’m getting all this alone time, I’m going to face my fear and write a song by myself,” they said. “So I did.”

During the past 18 months, Lucas has continued to write and produce their music, primarily with Garageband, a metronome and vocals. They released their demo album on Bandcamp. Since receiving new production equipment and programs, they plan to majorly revise the original demo for a more mainstream release.

“I’m going to try remastering it and adding a few more songs and actually putting it on streaming services this year, kind of as a graduation present for myself.”

The access to new resources has allowed Lucas to explore new and exciting musical opportunities.

“I can create any synthesized sound effect I want,” they said. “It makes my mind explode.”

Lucas defines their sound as close to synth-pop with some Broadway inspiration and influence from artists like Sara Bareilles.

“She’s my inspiration not only for music but for everything,” they said.

Their upcoming album will include a variety of songs spanning genres, including a piano instrumental piece and a punk rock love song.

Lucas’s lyrics tend to be personal.

“My music to me is definitely a coping mechanism,” they said. “It’s also how I understand the world around me and my own feelings.”

Lucas hopes that their songs can be empowering not only for them but for others. With themes such as heartbreak and identity, Lucas writes and sings to make an impact.

I’ll write a lot of stuff as letters to myself,” they said. “Or to other people that might be going through similar things.”

This episode is part one of a two-part interview.