Steve Lacy's Demo

Steve Lacy's Demo is a commercial release^[a] by American musician Steve Lacy. It was released on February 24, 2017, by Three Quarter (3Qtr) and AWAL.^[3] The project has been described by Lacy as a song series.^[4]

Steve Lacy's Demo
Recording by Steve Lacy
Released	February 24, 2017
Genre	Soul funk
Length	13:33
Label	Three Quarter AWAL
Producer	Steve Lacy
Steve Lacy chronology
Steve Lacy's Demo (2017) Apollo XXI (2019)
Singles from Steve Lacy's Demo
"Some" Released: November 1, 2016[1] "Dark Red" Released: February 20, 2017[2]

Background

Lacy created most of the song-series on his iPhone, producing the guitar and bass arrangements and singing his vocals right into its built-in microphone.^{[5][6][7][8][9][10]} He also programmed the drum patterns in Ableton.^[11][12]

In popular culture

In August 2021, the song, "Dark Red", went viral on TikTok, with videos featuring the song reaching over 110K views as of February 2022.^[13]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
Pitchfork	7.4/10[14]

Steve Lacy's Demo received positive reviews from music critics. Jonah Bromwich of Pitchfork said, "[Steve Lacy] sparkles with classic Southern California funk and soul... the music here is startlingly mature, full of dimension and depth, as if Lacy were accompanied by a full band rather than doing everything, right down to the mixing, by his lonesome."^[15] Kareem Sheikh of DJ Booth said, "Demo's six tracks are cohesive in both their smooth, sultry sound and their theme of young love... [Demo] is fun, youthful and intimate, and is sure to convert any [The] Internet lover into a budding Steve Lacy fanboy."^[16] Makeda Sandford of Saint Heron stated that, "[Steve Lacy's Demo] is an electrifying yet smooth thirteen minutes – a playful depiction of beachy funk, rock 'n roll-sprinkled soul."^[17]

Track listing

All songs written and produced by Lacy.^[10]

Steve Lacy's Demo track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Looks"	1:31
2.	"Ryd"	2:20
3.	"Dark Red"	2:53
4.	"Thangs"	1:50
5.	"Haterlovin"	1:56
6.	"Some"	3:00
Total length:		13:13

Note

• The track "Moron" was cut from the tracklist, but was self-released for free on April 1, 2017.^[18]

Certifications

Certifications for Steve Lacy's Demo

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ)[19]	Gold	7,500‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Notes

1. Steve Lacy has said that Steve Lacy's Demo is a song series, neither an album nor an EP.