For Simon Adrian, better known to fans as fast-rising German star Cymo, 2022 looks set to be a major breakout year. The Trier-born, Frankfurt-based producer and songwriter has been undeniably rising up the ranks over the past few years, with credits on 160 releases and 10 albums, seven of which made it into the Top 30 on the German charts, three of those hitting the ultimate #1 spot. His skills called into play for a whole host of A-list artists (Alle Farben, Aloe Blacc, Tropkillaz, CRO, HUGEL, Scooter, Sean Kingston, Brown & Gray), across multiple different genres (electronica, pop, R&B, country), Cymo has shown no limits to his prowess inside the studio.
In 2019 Cymo signed with Stefan Dabruck Management (Robin Schulz, Felix Jaehn, Alle Farben), quickly becoming one of their hottest new names. With multiple music releases in the pipeline from Spring of 2022 onward, and releasing them via the brand new biddz app, Cymo proves once again that he’s ahead of the curve both musically and logistically. Working with biddz, Cymo will blow the door wide open on what true fan engagement can look like in this brave new musical world, ushering in a new era for the music industry worldwide. We had the pleasure of speaking with Cymo about his new single, the biddz platform, and more!
Hi Cymo! Welcome to EDMHouseNetwork, how are you?
Hey guys! I’m doing great. The year has really started awesome: I’ve been working on a lot of new songs for a few months, which are all going to be released this year, and I went live with my first music NFT, selling out within 30 min. I’m even asked to do interviews about my music. I couldn’t feel better!:)
You may seem like a relative newcomer but you’ve actually had a really heavy hand in production for other artists, is that right? Who have you worked with and what tracks would we most recognise?
That’s correct. I produced a lot of HipHop and Urban Pop music when I started. By now I co-wrote and produced more than 180 released songs in various genres. I was involved in the production of 10 albums, of which 3 went #1 in German charts. I really enjoy all sides of music. It’s always a challenge to dive into a new genre, trying to understand its aesthetics. Lately, I worked with artists like HUGEL and Scooter and I’ve been writing songs with writers like Sandro Cavazza, Sophie Simmons, Robin Stjernberg, Gustav Nyström, Kristin Carpenter just to name a few.
What made you finally decide to strike out on your own and producer as yourself? What is an easy decision to make, or did you have some trepidation?
I started making beats when I was 14. It was never not my goal to do music on a full time basis, although it took me over 10 years to finally be able to start a professional musical career. At the time, I just produced a full album for the very first time and it entered the charts on #11, so I thought, ok maybe I’m on to something.
Is there a big difference in emotion and vulnerability, releasing a single under your own name compared to producing for someone else?
All of the songs that I co-wrote are also a part of myself, but It really depends on the artist I’m working with. In general, the songs that I release for my own artist project are much closer to my story and my mind of course.
Let’s talk about your new single ‘Jetlag’ – what was the inspiration and what kind of sound are you aiming for with your production?
When we sat down to write Jetlag, my co-writer and vocalist Tyler had just flown into Frankfurt from the USA. It didn’t take long for us to take that feeling and use it to write this song. Falling in love can feel a lot like having jetlag – you loose all sense of time, judgement and balance, making every moment more confusing and intense than normal.
You’ve chosen a very interesting but relatively untested platform to work with on the single, ‘biddz’. What made you decide to use the platform?
For me as an independent artist, it is often difficult to get the necessary attention for my releases. This also has to do with the placements in playlists on streaming services. My manager and I wanted to try something new. I also have an extreme affinity for new technologies and have been interested in cryptocurrencies, blockchain, NFTs and Metaverse for a long time. When we found out about biddz.io, we didn’t have to think twice and joined the great team of this platform.
Can you explain exactly how biddz works? Will fans here in Ireland be able to buy into your music?
Fans are able to buy biddz (song shares) for a song. Each single biddz is one ten-thousandth (or 0.01%) of the song’s master rights royalties generated on digital streaming platforms. Those who did buy biddz are then given an official digital biddzCard which makes the purchase official and can be shared across social media to help promote the upcoming single release and which can be transferred in any Solana wallet. When the song is released, fans will then start to receive regular royalty payments from the single, the same way anyone with master rights would. The more successful the single is, the more royalties fans receive. biddz owners can track the progress of the song via their online biddz dashboard, keeping an eye on the single’s movement across the DSPs, even jumping on socials to give the single an extra push if they feel it warrants it. Right now, biddz is only available for my German fans, but their team is already working on making it accessible for everybody in any country.
You launched ‘Jetlag’ on biddz last week. What was the reaction from your fans and how successful has your fundraising been?
I expected to hopefully sell out over the course of the next few days. However, my first biddz drop was sold out within 30 min after launch. So I would suggest, that it was quite successful.
What else is in the pipeline for Cymo?
This year will be the most exciting year so far: I’m currently preparing the next biddz drop and can’t wait to unveil this banger. Furthermore, I’m working on various collaborations with other singers, producers and DJs. Also I’m continuously writing and producing songs for other artists, so I’m pretty sure, that you’ll hear from me again soon. 🙂
Thanks Cymo, pleasure to have you with us. Do you have a message for your Irish fans?
The pleasure is mine. Thanks for having me guys. To everyone that is streaming my music and supports me, I owe you a beer.
