Friendship, music and navigating life.
These are rather universal pillars for many stories. Stories that were a pillar of early 2000s media, where musical aspirations ran high alongside the popularity of bands and the music scene. A time when fans clamored for every single teen magazine on the market just to hear what their favorite act was up to—naturally, before the advent of modern internet and social media culture.
Bedroom walls would be coated with glossy prints, CDs haphazardly organized on dressers next to the CD player, and calendars filled with dates circled in bright ink for when the next show was.
This was the norm for music fans in the 2000s. Both similar to, and distinctly different from, our present reality.
There is no question that we have great musical acts today that draw that same kind of excitement, existing on the same playlists as some of the 2000s music royalty.
But there is something about more recent musical acts that hasn’t quite resonated the same.
That is, until a project developed seemingly out of nowhere earlier this year.
Their name?
Sicknote.
And they are already setting themselves up to become your next musical obsession.
Created by the animation house known as 09STUDIO, largely known for their work taking moments from various pop culture releases and recreating those scenes with the likes of the “Bratz” character library back in 2022, the studio quietly started creating some fun and unique content.
And it worked.
Their content found its way across social media platforms and engaged audiences. But while these new shorts were being released, this new venture in independent animation was working on something no one could have foreseen.
With the studio seemingly still in its early days and having a very small online footprint, no one looking from this side of the phone screen could have ever guessed what would come first—or last—for 09STUDIO.
That led to a new project coming seemingly out of nowhere, with the modest announcement of its existence on January 19. A short reel was posted online with the simple title: “our theme song ‘Back To U’ drops Feb 13th <3.”
With the smart, strategic hashtagging of new music, new artist, reels, Y2K and explore—and even some very bold, right-out-of-the-gate comparison titles including “Victorious,” “My Scene” and even “Vampire Diaries”—this new project under the handle sicknotetheband was already making some bold statements.
And moves.
But it worked.
“Back To U” had an infectious element to it. The visuals were fun, upbeat and completely screamed Y2K.
With all of those factors, it was enough to get—and retain—people’s attention, creating a desire to learn and see more. That even included myself, who was already on standby to see and hear just what this project was doing. I wanted to understand why it felt so different and fresh, yet also somehow nostalgic for the 2000s pop that still occupies my own playlists.
Like me, people followed.
We didn’t know what the music would be like, what these characters we saw on our screens were really like, or what this project was truly planning to become.
But that investment existed.
So when the first song, “Back To U,” dropped, fans were not only delighted by a great track that no one could stop listening to, but also by the news that Sicknote was promising followers the chance to get to know the band before the animated series arrived later in the year.
And there was the promise of even more music ahead.
As the months progressed, more details about the project came out. More teases. The reveal of the actual voices behind the characters. Growing discoveries around who our band was on the animated side.
And, naturally, even more music.
Said music only seemed to get stronger with each single released, from the theme “Back To U,” to “First/Last,” “4getu” and the most recent release, a cover of “Saturday” by their own Julip, who voices Lexi.
Each single release not only grew the excitement for the arrival of the next chapter of Sicknote, but also helped grow their following online and the number of plays across music streaming platforms like Spotify.
It was steady growth for a project that started at zero.
No big names backing it. No massive marketing push.
Just a small company with an ambitious project they wanted to see do well.
It’s the kind of story that feels less and less commonplace today compared to the 2000s, where so many of Sicknote’s stylistic choices come from. It makes the entire production feel like a hybrid of the past meeting the present.
It presents the question: what if the things that feel so distinctly 2000s could live inside today’s overly digital world?
What if you could make something that feels less stuck in today, but leverage today’s tools to help it reach people?
There is a lot of cleverness behind how Sicknote has approached its rollout, as well as some smooth strategy that is well worth applauding.
Today, when we think of stories, projects or even actual musical talent, we almost automatically think about the online space everyone occupies. There are countless stories, fictional and otherwise, of people using online platforms to launch themselves. It has almost become commonplace to think of people who want to shine taking that route.
Is it wrong?
No. Absolutely not.
It’s not only smart, but the present path that allows people to raise their voices high.
Even someone like me.
But Sicknote, even with Instagram, TikTok and other platforms playing a part in its rise, honestly feels different.
Under the Y2K look and the music we can’t stop looping, there is a highly universal and relatable heart to this project.
Something that is perhaps best outlined in the summary provided alongside the announcement of their animated series:
sicknote follows four bandmates balancing day jobs with their passion for music: free-spirit animation director River, resilient interior designer Delancey, sharp software engineer Lexi, and restless record store associate West.
navigating career ambitions, adulthood, and dating, they support each other through self-discovery and heartbreak to become the world’s biggest band.
This isn’t a story driven only by fame and stardom.
It’s about the lives of four young adults navigating adulthood. The highs and lows of work, everyday life, relationships and trying to make a dream come true with the people they are closest to.
It’s earnest, relatable and recognizable.
And that only adds to all the charm this yet-to-be-released-in-full project has been building throughout the year to get to this point.
Is the premise the most groundbreaking one yet?
No.
But the best stories aren’t always the ones with the most dynamic summaries. Sometimes the best stories open with a seemingly simple objective and become something far bigger than anyone could have dreamed.
What makes a story great comes down to many things: the story itself, the passion behind it, the characters and, perhaps most importantly, the heart.
Everyone was already ready to cheer on River, Lexi, Delancey and West before their character bios were even released.
Now, we’re ready to see them juggle a stressful workday thanks to their bosses while trying not to mess up the last rehearsal before a big gig.
Because, musician or not, we’ve all been there.
And now we get to see these characters and their world come alive alongside the songs we already know so well.
As a new chapter for Sicknote begins today, we can’t wait to follow River, Lexi, Delancey and West from the first note to wherever their music takes them next.