Writing to the big picture with Amanda Sum

Canadian artist Amanda Sum has recently released her brand-new debut album “New Age Attitudes” and was quickly featured as one of Exclaim! Magazine’s picks of the week. Blending musical elements of Indie-Pop, Jazz, and Alternative Folk with incredibly thought-provoking lyrics, Amanda’s work has received critical acclaim from major media outlets including CBC, Exclaim! Magazine, and The Vancouver Sun. The groundbreaking music video for her recent single “Different From Before” took the North American music industry by storm, and was screened at the Asian American International Film Festival on top of being selected as a Vimeo Staff Pick. As a seasoned thespian, Amanda has captivated audiences at national festivals including the TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival and the Mainland Concert series hosted by Side Door Access and Rogers.

We talked about:

Former guest Bywater Call‘s nominations at the 2023 Maple Blues Awards – Congratulations!
Our upcoming songwriting challenge to write in a mode you don’t normally write in
Starting a song from a guitar or piano part instead of lyrics
How Amanda’s experience in theatre made her want to make an album with a unified theme
Writing rough demos of parts for Amanda’s band members
Overlapping musical phrases with lyrical phrases in interesting ways
Writing image-based lyrics

Download the lyrics to Undecided Minds to follow along.