It has been a little over two years since Drew Hersch (‘19) released music for the first time. In 2018 he launched his EP “it’s not me it’s u“ during his senior year at Webb. Later that year, he released the highly successful single “honey”, turning him into a mini celebrity.  

“honey” currently has over half a million streams on Spotify. As the song gained popularity, Drew had already begun writing new lyrics and chords in his Alamo dorm room for his largest project to date. After two years of recording, producing, and mixing, those songs can finally be heard on his newly released debut album Sad Boy Summer. 

“It pretty much all started at Webb, those were where the ideas came from,” said Drew. “I wrote ‘May’ there; I wrote ‘Cellophane’ there. It took me two years because I was just getting better at producing. There were a lot of songs that I tried to make, and I had drafts of, but I was like, ‘No, they’re not ready yet.’”  

The writing process for each song is different, giving each track their uniqueness. As a starting point, Drew focuses on finding interesting melodies to build around. 

“There will just be a melody that I’ll find that hooks me,” said Drew. “I remember one specifically, it was for ‘Cellophane’ I was just in the shower in Alamo singing this melody, and as soon as I got out of the shower and I was like, ‘I have to record this.’” 

Now a Sophomore at the University of Colorado, Boulder, Drew has taken the time to combine the melodies from his Webb days with the new production knowledge and skill he has acquired since his first releases to create Sad Boy Summer. His high school experiences influenced the themes of the album, as Drew has designed it around the expectations versus the reality of a summer break.  

“When you go into summer, you think of staying out with friends, going to parties, and going to the beach every day, but I wanted to do the perspective of summer nobody talks about,” said Drew. “The idea that your friends are hanging out without you, constantly checking snap maps, people having more fun than you. Social interactions come with a lot of social anxiety.”  

The things that Drew has learned throughout his experiences with his music can be applied to others in the Webb Community who are also looking to follow a passion.  

Looking ahead, Drew wants to continue working within the music industry to produce creative content, but he is aware that it is difficult to make it big as a solo artist.  

“Of course, being a solo artist is a dream, but realistically I would be just as happy being on a creative team for someone else, like I could create and direct music videos, or even design tour visuals,” said Drew. “I think I just want to have a position where I have some sort of creative control. I will always make my own stuff on the side, but I could totally see myself doing that as well.” 

Drew Hersch plans on continuing to release music, with a new single set to release in late 2020 or early 2021, which he describes as, “the best thing I’ve ever made.” We are set until then though, with ‘Sad Boy Summer’ now out everywhere.