Recently,  Schreiber junior Christian Li has been going viral for his inspiring original music.  His stylish music and lyrics are catching everyone’s attention. Across different platforms, people love both him and his music.

Li’s music journey started when he was just three years old and first started taking piano lessons.  As he grew up, he spent many hours practicing the piano until he was an expert. Christian also performed at famous venues like Carnegie Hall, showcasing his talent to the world at a young age. 

After fifth grade, Li moved to Hong Kong with his family, where he started a new chapter of his life and grew to love music even more. 

“In seventh grade, I decided to join the school Garageband Club and my passion for producing music sparked,” said junior Christian Li. 

The encouraging environment in Li’s school only helped to motivate him to become the best he could possibly be at the piano. As music became a bigger and bigger part of Li’s life, he fell more and more in love with it. 

“Personally, music allows me to step away from academics, sports, and my social life and opens up my independent and creative zones. I’m able to do something that I am passionate about and enjoy while also staying productive,” said Li.

It is clear how much music has impacted and enhanced Li’s life, and he still finds inspiration in it every day.

“Inspiration for my music can come in many forms. Sometimes I’m at swim practice and I think of a catchy tune in my head.  Sometimes I’m practicing piano and I accidentally play this cool chord that I could turn into a progression.  Sometimes I’m listening to my favorite artists and I’m inspired to create music that resembles their styles.  Inspiration for me is very spontaneous, which is another thing I love about music,” said Li.

Even famous artists like Li have their own favorite singers, and Li has many.  He enjoys listening to Travis Scott, Drake, Kanye West, XXXTentacion, Joji, JID, The Weekend, Bruno Mars, and Giveon.  Despite listening to many talented artists, he cannot pick his favorite song, because to him, there are simply just too many that he loves.

Li’s music also has widespread impacts on his home town.

“Seeing someone achieve success at such a young age, especially from Schreiber, is truly inspiring and motivates me to go after my own dreams.  I’ve listened to some of his music and ended up really enjoying it,” said senior Ella Kane.

Watching other famous and underground artists thrive and make an impact in the music scene through social media is what truly inspired Li to start sharing his music with the world.

 “Social media is the new way to go for aspiring musicians as short-form content is taking over. Nowadays all it takes is one 10-second video showcasing your music to change the trajectory of your career,” said Li.

 Li is hopeful that he can take his career to the next level over the next few years of his life, and if you ask anyone else who has heard his music, they believe he can.

Li’s music is hard to classify into one genre as he experiments in many different ones.  He is known for his track with rapper Lil Mabu that went viral which resembles his drill-rap and lyrical side.  Many people also follow his Spotify, @cxris, where he tends to sing more, and reveals more of his melodic and emotional side.  He also has music that he has not yet released, which  ranges from songs to the likeness of those from Kanye West’s album, The College Dropout, to Christmas music, and even songs in other languages.

“Christian’s music surprised me at how creative and inventive it was. I think that if more people around the world can see it, it will not only inspire more people to come out of their shells and post music, but will inspire more creativity not only in the form of music in people’s lives,” said junior Kirin Doshi.

Of course, following a passion such as making music requires a great amount of hard work. Li says some of his encouragement for making music is listening to his favorite artists, and people commenting on his social media.

Although some artists may try to steer clear of social media, Li uses it as a platform for feedback.

“I love negative comments, not only do they get me more views because more comments leads to more engagement, but I also use them as a way to motivate myself and improve,” said Li.

Li encourages criticism on social media and even puts polls on his Instagram stories where his followers can give him feedback on songs, so he knows what he is doing well and what he should improve on.

Another large factor that motivates Li to make music is the Schreiber community.  A large number of students already know about Li’s music and are always asking him about when his next song will be released.

At the moment, his music career is not his top priority due to his classes, but he says his dream job would be to be a successful musician, and he’s seriously considering pursuing music in college.

Li is going to continue to improve at his passion and spread his love for music around the world.  He is inspiring the people who watch his videos and having fun and learning while doing it.

 “Every day I am exploring different genres and experimenting with different soundscapes and I think that adds to why I love making music so much,” said Li.