Creativity and music go hand-in-hand. No matter what the task I can’t imagine being creative without having a backing track to inspire and motivate me.
No more is this true than when I am editing images. And writing. There are times when I prefer the company of silence but a lot of the time – especially early in the morning and late in the evening – I find that music helps keep me focused.
So if you’re a fellow creative looking for some inspiration or just plain curious about what keeps me occupied on Spotify when I’m grinding through an editing marathon, here are a few of my favourite artists that accompany me while I work.
Chillhop Music
~ The essential late night or early morning motivator
Chillhop Music was introduced to me by a friend about three years ago and it has pretty much dominated my editing – and non-editing – playlist ever since. It is the perfect companion over my morning coffee.
Their YouTube channel is a terrific source of jazzy, laid-back beats and samples produced with some beautiful illustrations and animations. Check out their flagship seasonal releases four times a year. If I’m heading into an editing marathon, this is almost always where I start.
Khruangbin
~ When you need to slow everything down
I discovered Khruangbin a year ago and I have come to love everything they put out. Their sound is impossible to pigeonhole into a single genre but they float somewhere across funk, soul, and psychedelic rock.
The relaxed, often non-lyrical tracks make it a good choice when I need to focus on a single task – perfect when grinding through the business admin. Tracks merge, sense of time is lost and all those mundane tasks suddenly become less bothersome.
Pete Rock & CL Smooth
~ A hip-hop pick-me-up
I’m somewhat embarrassed to admit I only discovered Pete Rock a few months ago – as a result of this clip of a street skater in London going viral (and don’t worry, he was fine). I’ve been slightly obsessed ever since.
A masterful producer with beats and samples derived from R&B, funk and jazz, it’s up-tempo and energetic and just about perfect when I’m working through a series of images and experimenting with different edits.
Explosions in the Sky
~ If your life had a soundtrack, it would be this
EITS are one of my all-time favourite bands ever since I first heard them in 2003. I’ve seen them live numerous times and I’ve yet to find another band that can recreate their album sound as immaculately on stage as they do.
Emotive. Soaring. Anthemic. This is expertly composed and produced post-rock at its finest. Particularly great for editing landscape photos too and I’ve also started using clips as a soundtrack for my personal drone videos.
Do you have any music recommendations of your own? I’m always looking for inspiration so let me know in the comments!