May 18, 2018

Center Stage - Drew Gannon

Meet Drew Gannon - A music producer based out of Wichita, Kansas, and Radio Airplay's newest Center Stage artist. 

Drew’s summer sounding pop/dance tracks draw inspiration from artists like Avicii and Kygo to name a few. His debut single “Ride the Wave” was released in October 2017 and gained attention from prominent EDM/Dance blogs. Dancing Astronaut premiered “Ride the Wave” which led to support from other blogs including EDM Sauce, EDM Joy, and many others. In early 2018, Drew signed with Casual Jam Records/MrRevillz and re-released “Ride the Wave” on May 7th, 2018. 

Dive in a little deeper and get to know Drew in our latest artist featured Q&A 

Can you describe your sound in one ramble-on sentence?
I would describe my sound as pop/dance with a summer-uplifting feel to it. 

What's your earliest music-related memory growing up?
My earliest music-related memory growing up was my grandma teaching me how to play piano. I didn’t realize it at the time, but looking back now she was so talented and I’m so thankful she took the time to teach me

If you were to cover another band/artist's album, which would you pick and why?
Kygo – Cloud Nine. That album is truly a masterpiece, from the production to the vocals, every song is perfectly made.

Do you write/compose your own songs? Briefly describe your songwriting process
Yes, I produce everything instrumentally for my songs before finding vocalists. I usually have the track pretty much complete before searching for a vocalist that I think would be a good fit. Once I find the vocalist I discuss with them some ideas I had for the lyrics/feel of the song and we go back and forth from there. 

What was the highlight for you in 2017? Either personally or for your music career?
The highlight for me was Dancing Astronaut wanting to premiere “Ride the Wave”. They are a well-respected EDM/Dance blog and for them to take a chance on an unknown artist like me was really cool of them to do. 

What have you been working on recently? Can you give us a hint for whats to come in 2018?
I’ve been working on a ton of new music all winter. I will be releasing new music via Casual Jam Records/MrRevillz hopefully very soon! I have a song “Up On Love” that I believe is the next single that I’m really excited to release. 

What do you like more: Performing live or recording in the studio?
Recording in the studio is definitely my comfort zone, but the adrenaline and excitement of DJing live is unlike anything. It’s awesome getting to test out your new songs when DJing. 

What are some artists/bands that you're into at the moment? Or any particular song you find yourself listening to over and over?
I listen to all types of music from rap to dance music and even country music as well. Lately I’ve been listening to everything from Calvin Harris to Drake and Kenny Chesney’s new song as well. 

Any embarrassing on stage moments you'd like to share? C’mon, don’t be shy.
I was DJing at a club in Wichita once and lost all power in the DJ booth and everything just shut off. It was such an embarrassing moment having everyone looking like what happened!

What's one thing people should know about you?
I try and make music that is fun and filled with a lot of positivity that you can listen to with friends or family and have a good time. Faith is a big part of my life and I’m just trying to spread that. 

What do you enjoy doing outside of music? Does your hobby rejuvenate your creativity?
I love hanging out with my family and friends playing golf, or just talking and having fun. I’m very fortunate to have a great group of family and friends that are a lot of fun and also show me a lot of support. Hanging out with them definitely helps rejuvenate my creativity. “Ride the Wave” actually all came together right after a trip to Breckenridge, Colorado with my friends. 

What do you like the most about Radio Airplay?
I love Radio Airplay! It is an amazing platform where you can see which of your songs perform the best while also building a fanbase. The popscore is so accurate, I will often put my unreleased songs on Radio Airplay to test what people think of it.