Montreal singer-songwriter Lubalin beat imposter syndrome with a persona and a big suit

Back in 2020, in the thick of the pandemic, a Montrealer who goes by the moniker Lubalin became a viral TikTok sensation. In his hilarious and catchy “Internet Drama” series, he took odd conversations over Facebook and Marketplace Ads and crafted them into highly produced pop bangers. Featuring broccoli casserole recipe slander, a 15,000-pound horse and attorney general threats, these Internet Drama videos led Lubalin (who was already signed to local label Cult Nation) to collaborate with Jimmy Fallon and Alison Brie while quietly becoming one of the producers for Charlotte Cardin’s 99 Nights, which won a Juno this year. 

Now, Lubalin has just released his debut album, haha, no worries, an album that takes the catchy pop of the 2000s, drum & bass, indie and a dash of alt-rock and seamlessly blends them all together. It was also all recorded in studio, a first for Lubalin, who was used to making his rare form of pop music on the computer. Much of this new process came from working with Cardin for months on 99 Nights. 

“It was cool seeing how she writes songs and what their priorities are in terms of a song’s core,” says Lubalin. “For me, I write, I record, I produce, I mix … I do the whole thing. So it becomes very easy to accidentally try to fix a songwriting problem with production or a production problem with the mix. And so after that, I was like, ‘Okay, let’s just step away from the computer altogether and make sure the song works on its own.’”

One of the songs that really conveys Lubalin’s distinctive style is the lead single from haha, no worries, “Pale Blue Dot,” a track that begins as a muted and dreamy R&B song à la Frank Ocean and then explodes into an alternative emo rock anthem about staring at the stars and feeling small. 

“I love that song,” Lubalin says with a Cheshire grin. “I started with the kind of guitar arpeggio on classical guitar — and I’m not a guitar player, I’m very much a producer who dabbles, but the drums were just asking to be included, and then the rest was very intuitive. It was a magical two days.”

The haha, no worries crafting process also saw Lubalin producing and mixing 12 songs from a hefty 50 demos. 

“You suffer a bit for it,” Lubalin says. “You work songs to death and in the end, you really have to start trusting people around you because after you’ve listened to a song 10,000 times, you can’t really hear whether it’s working anymore.”

Behind Lubalin is an oversized grey suit hanging off a closet door, the same suit he wore at his debut concert at Club Soda during M for Montreal last month. This giant suit has become somewhat of a trademark for Lubalin’s persona and style. 

“When I put on the suit, there is an effect to it,” he says with a chuckle. “I guess I wanted people to take me more seriously. But there is a persona that comes with it. I’m not sure it’s dialed in, but maybe that will be revealed to me more in time.” 

There’s more to the suit than that. This thing is marvelous. Everything is oversized; the pockets, the linings, the trail, the lapels… It kind of looks like a Victorian vampire’s cape from the side and for Lubalin, it’s an absolute must. 

“The fashion designer Remi van Bochove really blew it out of the water,” Lubalin says. “We went to him and said, ‘We need you to make the biggest suit you’ve ever made,’ and it’s not just a normal suit that is upscaled, but everything has been adjusted to make it a working and aesthetic suit. I love it.” 

And when he moves in it, as he did during the Club Soda show, you can’t help but smile — at the comedic factor yes, but also the fact that this guy is doing whatever the hell he wants and he doesn’t care what anyone thinks. This very notion even comes down to the moniker he chose for himself, named after the graphic designer Herb Lubalin. (FYI, his real name is a secret.)

You see, back before he was even a viral sensation, the pop producer and singer was feeling a bit discouraged. He had imposter syndrome and was not sure if his music and production skills were up to snuff. He also hadn’t released anything. But first, he needed a name. 

He stumbled upon a book about Herb Lubalin’s work, and suddenly everything clicked.

“So he does a logo for some really big company. And they were like, ‘Oh, we’re not sure, can we make this change?’ And he was like, ‘No. Take it or leave it. If you don’t like this, go somewhere else.’ And I was like, ‘Wow.’ I needed that,” he says. “I was like, you know what? Fuck it. I’m gonna start doing shit. I’m Lubalin now, and this is who Lubalin is and what he wants, and he doesn’t care what people think, and he just posts shit. It really unblocked something for me and I’ve taken that same energy into everything I do.” ■

For more on Lubalin, please visit his Instagram.

This article was originally published in the Dec. 2024 issue of Cult MTL.

---

For more Montreal music coverage, please visit the Music section.