By Jordan Chin jordanchinmusic.com Other jordanchin SoundCloud YouTube YouTube jordanchinmusic Twitter jordanchinmusic Facebook.
Cover art by Circlejourney circlejourney Bandcamp circlejourney SoundCloud Circlejourney YouTube circlejourneyart Tumblr circlejourney Twitter circlejourney.net Other machinasolis SoundCloud.
Released 9/9/2019.
Duration: 2:33.

Listen on Bandcamp.

Read artist commentary.

Tracks that reference Growing Up:

From Beyond:

• Growing Up (Instrumental) by Jordan Chin

Lyrics:

And she said
Now you're safe and sound
The world is yours to make your own
Even if I'm not around

And he said
You're making leaps and bounds
Yeah kiddo, you're safe with me
Even though Mom's not around

But I'm just a boy
In this big old universe
But am I bold enough?
But am I growing up?

We're way out of here, ooh
With the crystal gems, but nothing's crystal clear
We're way out of here, ooh
With the crystal gems, but nothing's crystal clear

I've been to outer space
Taken life at my own pace
Tried to help the ones I love, but see
My emotions govern me

And my friends just want the best for me
I can't explain my destiny
But am I bold enough?
Will I ever be old enough?
Well I guess that's just growing up
Well I guess that's just knowing love

That's knowing love, ooh

Artist commentary:

Jordan Chin:

Q: Tell us a bit about yourself and your music.

I come from a musical family and have been drawn to musical instruments for as long as I can remember. After picking up piano, guitar, drums, and voice (at varying levels of success) I focused my creative energies on songwriting and composition. I've been working as a composer and sound designer for video games and film since then.

Q: Briefly describe the process of working on your track!

Usually I'll start either behind a piano or a guitar and hash out the basic chord progressions I want to use. Nothing complicated, just block chords that inspire me enough to write a melody. I like to move onto drums next to get a sense of how those chords are then "felt." Everything that follows that is a lovely process of trial and error with different instruments and harmonic lines.

Q: What's your favourite (official) Steven Universe song?

It's Over, Isn't It.

Q: What were your favourite moments in the show?

Every Lion episode and every Pearl revelation (especially A Single Pale Rose). I loved the slowly unfolding backstory, and the tragic history that the Crystal Gems tried to hide from Steven. Every time Lion had an episode, we learned more about that same backstory from Rose's perspective. Those were always the most powerful moments for me.

Q: Why did you decide to make a track about [coming of age]?

I think many people enjoy Steven Universe because they identify with the immense growth that his character goes through. He's just a kid, but he deals with some heavy topics regarding love, purpose, and sacrifice. I wanted the lyrical narrative of my track to capture this moment in time right before he "grew up" (and grew a neck), and some of the doubts that he wrestled with along the way. It's a process many of us deal with (or are dealing with), and in this way, Steven is almost a role model.

Q: What's your favorite thing about the track you made?

I think maybe the way it navigates through different musical styles. I've never had an easy time editing my choices in instrumentation, but I realized that part of what I love about the original soundtrack is its diversity. There are jazz, chiptune, showtune, and trip-hop influences scattered throughout, and I thought it would be a challenge to do them all (and in under 3 minutes). In this particular case, it felt good not to have to start with any preconceptions about what genre the track needed to be.