[Luke Shrestha] is an award winning record producer and songwriter based in Los Angeles, California. Having worked on records that have amassed over 700 million streams, Luke has already put his stamp on the music industry. Currently, Luke is working with Tayler Holder, building not only the music but the live show, and Faime, Zaryah, and Lavi$h, who is co-signed by Drake, to name a few more. Luke works consistently with Charlie Walk (who signed Ariana Grande and the Weeknd), building the vision and sound. Also, Luke has been working on getting syncs for his artists to help build their fan bases. Recently, he had songs on Euphoria, The Man from Toronto, Beyond the Edge, All American, Legacies and ESPN.
Where are you based?
I’m based in LA but originally I’m from a small town outside of Fresno called Fowler.
How long have you been making music?
I’ve actually been making music since I was 3 years old. My mom and sister are both music teachers so growing up I would sit beside the piano while my mom taught lessons. For me it is easier to communicate through music than words so when I sit down at a computer or at a piano, that is when I feel most connected to myself and my emotions.
What genre would you consider your music to be?
The best overall genre to categorize my music into would be pop. My roots are definitely in hip hop so that influence always leaks in. Also I love darkness in music as well so tapping into certain minor keys or finding soundscapes that take the listener to another universe can be found throughout my music.
What inspired you to pursue a career in music?
Music isn’t just what I do, it’s who I am. Without music I don’t know what I would be doing or who I would be. You can totally tell how I am feeling on a given day by looking at the music I’ve been listening to. If i’m not making music i’m thinking about the snare in a certain song or a plugin I should look into. It’s safe to say I’m obsessed but I love every minute of it!
What are your biggest musical influences?
Hip hop has always been a huge influence for me. As a baby my brother would play Doggystyle by Snoop Dogg all the time or Tupac. I always felt a special connection with hip hop but I never really knew why until my brother told me that, then it started to make more sense. I also got into Guitar Hero when I was in Jr. High so I started getting into metal and punk pop. Bands like Lamb of God and Good Charlotte took up almost a full Mp3 player worth of storage during that time. I was lucky to work on Good Charlotte’s comeback album in 2016 when they started making music again so that was a very full circle moment for me.
Are you signed to a label or are you an independent artist?
Me and my production partner Simon Jay have a duo called “Chapters” and currently we are independent. Since we do so many different things from scoring movies to writing and producing pop songs with our artists, it’s a lot to keep up with. We are all about community and building up everyone around us so hopefully when the right company comes, our visions will align and we’ll be able to work in tandem to grow this community we’ve built.
What have been the biggest challenges in your music career?
That’s a tough one. There’s different challenges I face every day but one thing I always face and I know that I’ll continue to face for the rest of my career is finding time for personal growth. It’s so easy to get lost in the day-to-day grind of everything but I’ve found that when I leave time for myself and prioritize my mental health, I feel the happiest and I also end up being the most creative.
How many songs or albums have you released to date?
This one is hard to say hahaha the number is probably in the thousands somewhere by now. Sometimes we work on whole projects and act as the executive producers, other times we just engineer or arrange the live instruments for a song. Every one of those songs though are our babies. I’m proud of each and every song for one reason or another.
Can you tell us a few things about your latest release?
Definitely! One of the artists I’m really excited about right now is an artist named Lavi$h. Drake has been heavily involved on his project and the music is absolutely incredible. It’s almost a modern Motown feel and Lavi$h’s vocals are out of this world. He can go from a raspy Louis Armstrong tone to a lush intimate tone that is both comforting and immensely sad all in one song. We got a song on his project and more songs we’re working on currently with him so be on the lookout!!
Any plans for new music or upcoming projects we should know about?
Yes, definitely feel free to follow me @luke_chapters and @chaptersmusic to keep up to date with me and all the music we are working on. We’ve been posting a lot of videos showing some of the cool artists and projects we work on so feel free to connect with me there, I would love to hear from you!
