Today we’d like to introduce you to Shellsea Lomeli
Hi Shellsea, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I was on track for law school when I applied for a music internship in Los Angeles on a whim and to my surprise, I was accepted. I had never been much of a risk taker so making this career shift was one of the scariest, most uncertain things I had done but the desire to work with artists and create community around sound was something I couldn’t shake.
After my internship, I fell into a post-grad, unemployed rut and was unsure of where my skills and interests belonged in an industry that was so competitive, demanding, and felt impossible to break into. That’s when siick sounds was born. On a blog that no one read, I started writing about songs that I loved from artists like Jensen McRae and Omar Apollo. The writing expanded into playlist curation on TikTok that I admittedly kept hidden from my closest friends at first because being perceived online was something I wasn’t used to which is funny to say given how much I am on camera now. Along with this, I began writing for a music magazine called The Luna Collective, an experience that helped me gain a better understanding of the industry and how to succeed in it.
It has been over 2 years since I started siick sounds and I am so proud of how far this music curation outlet has come. This past year, we covered multiple festivals as press, interviewed a handful of inspiring rising artists, partnered with brands like Seat Geek and Loops, and threw our first ever event for San Diego creatives.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I think one of the biggest things I’ve struggled with is learning that good things take time. In the beginning of my journey, I was creating unrealistic goals for myself whether it had to do with follower count or festivals I wanted to get approved for. I would get so discouraged when I failed to reach these within the timelines I created. Grasping a better understand of how long things really take and that overnight success stories are extremely rare is what has helped me stay motivated and continue pushing forward.
As you know, we’re big fans of siick sounds. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
siick sounds is an online music curation outlet where we highlight artists and create community around sound. There is so much great music being made out there that hasn’t found their audience and siick sounds aims to help with that. Our taste tends to gravitate towards indie, alternative, bedroom pop, and rnb but are always open to other types of music as well.
We work directly with artists we resonate with and their teams to help promote upcoming releases. Most of our curation is organic but if we love the music, we offer paid promotion as an option for artists looking for a more dedicated spotlight on our page. We also partner with brands like Seat Geek, Loop Earplugs, and Youth To The People to share their brand with our audience.
Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc?
“Making Moves with TK” is a podcast that I turn to when I’m looking for motivation to keep pushing as an entrepreneur. Nardwuar’s Tedx talk “Do It Yourself!” as well as all of his interviews inspire me as an interviewer myself.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.siicksounds.co/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_siicksounds/
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@_siicksounds?lang=en
