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JIN, one of Japan’s most acclaimed music producers who’s rapidly rising the ranks of his local music scene, is launching an exciting music production competition, designed to challenge and inspire producers worldwide. It’s a promising opportunity for each entrant, with rewards just for participating. Whether you’re an up-and-coming beatmaker or a seasoned veteran, this contest offers an incredible chance to flex your creativity, gain exposure, and win exclusive prizes—including the opportunity to meet JIN in his private studio for a session.

 

If drums are your musical bread and butter, this is your chance to show the pros what you’re made of and gain a chance to impress a top-tier industry expert. Not to mention, you could be the one to bridge the gap between your local community and Japan’s thriving electronic music culture. So, do you have what it takes? Why not give it a go? You’ve got nothing to lose, and a lot to gain.

 

For some expert tips from professional producers like JIN, check out 5 Producers on How They got Their ‘Big Break’.

 

 

Contest details

 

The contest is runs from 7th February 2025 through to the 28th February and is open worldwide to participants aged 18 and over. As long as everyone fits the age bracket, entries from duos and groups are also warmly welcomed by JIN and the High Speed Boy crew. The only other entry requirement is that you need an active LabelRadar account to submit your entry at the competition entry page.

 

 

 

How to enter

 

Using a set of raw drum samples recorded by JIN, participants must create a top-tier 16-bar drum loop in a genre of their choosing. We recommend showcasing your skills as diversely as possible, making use of editing techniques (FX processing and automation, etc.), as well as getting as creative as you possibly can with your drums’ rhythmic composition.

 

It’s important to mention that all of the JIN-recorded drum samples are licensed by High Speed Boy Inc. only for use specifically in this competition and not in your own productions. However, all entrants will receive a free commission coupon for a single track release from avex trax DDP BIG UP! as a participation reward. That means you can distribute a track to over 40 stores in 184 countries for free, which is a big deal for up-and-comers looking to start their distribution journey.

 

Once you’ve finished your 16-bar drum loop and are ready to submit, you can sign up for a new LabelRadar account (or log in if you already have one) and submit your track via the platform. It’s a fairly straightforward process. Plus, signing up for LabelRadar will give you access to a continually expanding community of producers, artists, record labels and A&R scouts online. It’s a great place to submit your tracks, even outside of this competition.

 

 

The grand prize winner

 

There will be only one grand prize winner, selected from all the participants at the discretion of JIN and High Speed Boy Inc.. The grand prize winner will get a host of top-pedigree rewards for their efforts, including a six-piece bundle of premium Plugin Boutique FX and instrument plugins (see further down the page for a full breakdown), an exclusive private studio session with JIN in his Japan-based studio, and a featured interview on Computer Music Japan and BIG UP! Zine magazines.

 

The studio session with JIN could lead to an epic collaboration, and if you combine that with the Computer Music Japan and BIG UP Zine magazine articles, the winner will truly have the opportunity to get themself and their art in front of thousands of new eyes and ears. This could be a real career-changer. Not to mention the premium plugin prizes.

 

 

Exclusive plugin prize package

 

The Grand Winner will take home an impressive plugin bundle, featuring a wide array of industry-standard, top-shelf plugins from leading developers, such as iZotope, Cableguys, KORG and Synchro Arts. Let’s take a brief look at each of the individual prize items.

 

 

iZotope Creative FX Bundle

 

First up, we have iZotope's Creative FX Bundle, which includes a massive, industry-leading selection of different FX and processing suites for mixing and mastering all different types of production elements you might be faced with.

 

Each of the plugins within this bundle are not to be trifled with. They can serve as gamechangers even as individual items, let alone being accessed as an entire bundle in conjunction with everything else in this prize pool. For example, VocalSynth 2 is an immersive vocal experience that adapts and adapts and evolves with your unique style and opens up a world of vocal possibilities. Neoverb is also regarded as one of the industry’s most revered reverbs. Lasly, Stutter Edit 2 lets you create the famous “stutter” editing effect with one button to slice and dice your samples, tracks, and mixes. The possibilites are endless! 

 

 

CableGuys ShaperBox 3

 

Cableguys have contributed a succulent addition to the competition prize pool with ShaperBox 3. This plugin is essentially a modulated effects powerhouse you can rely on in a vast multitude of situations you might encounter when mixing. One beautiful thing about it is the customisation and how you can modulate an effect over a specific measure of time (two-bars, four-bars, etc.) using the new and improved drawable LFOs, upgraded in version three.

With a total of ten multiband effects modules and an internal processing chain, you can add EQ, distortion, timestretching, stereo-imaging, reverb and more – all housed within one interface. This nimble sound designing companion has the power to evolve a bland melody into a multi-dimensional, living, breathing and immersive sound source with intricate textures and life force.

 

 

KORG Collection 5

 

The KORG Collection 5 is a juicy, action-packed bundle filled with digital emulations of KORG’s most iconic and famous synthesizers. You can think of this prize as the pool’s overall instrument overhaul, equipping you with enough synths to keep you occupied for a long time.

 

With 16 virtual instruments in total, you’ll have no shortage of creative sound design options for your future productions. The KORG Collection 5 features synth models dating back to the 1960s, all the way through to 2004 with the TRITON Extreme. Anyone who knows anything about music technology and its history will reaffirm to you that KORG is a legendary developer with cemented titan status in the industry. These synthesizers are serious business and not to be toyed with. Actually… that’s exactly what they’re intended for!

 

 

Synchro Arts RePitch Elements

 

Synchro Arts have provided not one but three items into the competition prize pool–all centred around vocal editing and enhancement. The first of which is RePitch Elements – a neat set of easy-to-use tuning tools primarily suited toward vocal tracks. As it happens, the Elements version of RePitch is the Lite edition. However, it’s still packed with a variety of tools that users are sure to find helpful when needing to tune a sub-optimal vocal or enhance and modify a good vocal take.

 

With comprehensive scale and pitch detection, easy-to-use macro controls, ARA2 integration, and a visually pleasing and size-reactive GUI, RePitch is up there competing with other industry-leading pitch correction utilities. Not to mention, you get a dual activation with each membership–meaning you can activate your license on up to two devices simultaneously.

 

 

Synchro Arts VocAlign 6 Standard

 

The second Synchro Arts item in the prize pool is VocAlign 6 Standard – a huge time-saving tool, used for aligning multiple vocal tracks together in perfect synchronicity. Anyone who’s spent time working with vocalists knows that you’re usually tasked with numerous vocal layers at the same time, and getting them all to line up perfectly can be a tedious chore. With VocAlign, you can get the results you’re looking for in a matter of seconds.

 

Once more, the Standard version of VocAlign is still a fully capable professional tool with a suite of controls beyond simple alignment. The interface also allows you to adjust how tightly your vocal layers are aligned, as well as switch between several different Shift and Alignment Rule presets for further customisation. Like RePitch Elements, VocAlign can also be activated on up to two devices.

 

 

Synchro Arts Revoice Pro 5

 

Last, but certainly not least, we have Synchro Arts’ magnum opus of offerings in the JIN competition prize pool Revoice Pro 5. You can think of this plugin as a combination of the two previous entries, with vastly greater capabilities and advanced features. Essentially, you can use VocAlign and RePitch for small, non-intensive vocal editing tasks, but, when you need the full whammy, Revoice Pro 5 should become your go-to vocal editing tool.

 

This time, you’re getting a locked-and-loaded Pro version of the Revoice plugin, coming stocked with vocal advanced alignment and pitch correction tools, internal formant shifting, de-essing, vocal grouping and more. This tool is a vocal editing powerhouse that will save you a significant amount of time in the studio.

 

 

6 quick tips to make your drums hit hard

 

If you’ve decided you’re going to commit to entering the JIN DRUM Sound Design Challenge, you should rest assured knowing that we can help you on your way to the top. Below are some quick drum production tips to automatically put you ahead of the game.

 

 

1. Layer your sounds for depth

 

One surefire way to make your drums sound noticeably punchier than other contestants is to layer samples together. Remember, the objective is sound design–get creative! You can sculpt your own snare hit by layering a pre-existing snare one-shot with a slapping clap sound. This works a treat especially if your clap is filling in high-end Hz space where the snare might be lacking.

 

Loopcloud is a great tool for auditioning drum layers, letting you browse hits to trigger alongside your drums in your DAW project, so you can browse until you find the personality you're looking for.

 

 

2. Glue and shape with compression

 

Compression is a standard tool for all areas of production. However, it can be applied creatively to enhance your drum samples, whether setting it to work on individual samples or your whole kit together on a bus track. Specifically, if you have a deflated-sounding kick where the transients dissipate rather quickly (if it has a short-sustaining amplitude and slow release), you can apply a fast-acting compressor, like one featured in the Teletronix LA-2A Leveller Collection, to squeeze more life and punch out of it.

 

Additionally, you can use a fast-attacking compressor with an aggressive ratio to a bus track and glue your overall kit together, to sound more cohesive. Some compressors, like the API 2500 Bus Compressor or the SSL Native Bus Compressor are specially-suited for this specific task.

 

 

 

3. Warm things up with saturation

 

Saturation is another often overlooked tool in mixing that can be especially beneficial for adding some grit and texture to your drums. Whether applying a lone instance of your favourite saturation plugin to your kick, snare, or even hi-hat track or adding some gentle harmonics to your whole kit, this can enhance your drums, giving them a professional edge. FabFilter Saturn 2 or Soundtoys Decapitator are excellent choices for adding saturation to your drums.

 

 

4. Create Groove with Swing and Velocity

 

To add some natural character to your drum patterns, try diversifying the velocities of each hit and increasing the Swing. This will introduce some perceived randomness into your drums’ rhythmic pattern.

 

Listeners can subconsciously tell when drums sound too quantised. Experienced ears can distinguish straightaway between an amateur and professional drum production by the velocity and swing alone. It makes a huge impact in making your drums dynamic, sounding natural and human, compared to being robotic and static.

 

You can now download MIDI files from Loopcloud, and with thousands of drum patterns to give you inspiration or to use as a sarting point, there's no excuse for not getting your head nodding from early on in the process.

 

 

 

5. EQ for Clarity

 

One of the most basic, yet fundamental mixing techniques you can apply to your drums is EQing. With that being said, it’s integral to apply the right EQ curve, type and amount to blend the frequencies of your drum elements harmoniously. No matter what combination of drum samples you’re using, there will be an EQ sweet spot for each element.

 

For example, snares usually occupy the mid to low-high end of the frequency spectrum, whilst hi-hats take up the top end. Sometimes, the two elements might have an overlapping section and you can fine-tune them with an EQ plugin to get the two to blend perfectly. That way, the listener will naturally be able to distinguish between them better. An all-round EQ plugin, like FabFilter Pro-Q 4 will provide everything you need.

 

 

6. Get experimental

 

Our last tip is quite simple: we advocate for you to do what you do best, and be creative! Sometimes the best results occur when you go outside of your comfort zone and tread on previously unexplored terrain. So, why not slap on some whacky reverbs and/or delays onto certain drum elements? Perhaps even the whole track? After all, if it sounds bad, you can just remove it again. You have nothing to lose, but a lot to gain. You might discover your new signature mixing technique in the process, which will be sure to set you apart from the competition.

 

A well-rounded and expertly recognised reverb plugin for drums would be Abbey Roads Chambers, whilst a delay plugin of similar stature would be the Galaxy Echo by Universal Audio.

 

For some more stand-out, creative options for working with drums for your competition entry, why not check our Getting Hands-on with Loopcloud DRUM and PLAY and How to Get the MPC Workflow on Your Computer articles for some further reading? That way, you’ll surely gain a competitive advantage before jumping into the contest.

 

 

Don't miss your chance

 

This is an opportunity to test your skills, with immense potential to take your career to the next level if you succeed. Even if you don’t, the experience is valuable in itself and can kickstart your music distribution process with a global-leading DDP–BIG UP!. You also have the potential to connect with one of Japan’s most influential producers.

 

The competition runs from 7th to 28th February 2025, so start crafting your best drum loop now and submit your entry via LabelRadar before the deadline. Whether you’re looking to launch your career or sharpen your production techniques, this is your moment. Enter now and let your drums do the talking!