Stepping into Christian Sharp’s recording studio, fluorescent neon lights illuminate the vocal booth. A sophisticated sound console lies in the engineering room, and his go-to producer sits in front of the audio station, meticulously revising beats. The kicks in Sharp’s Hollywood Hills studio are indicative of a traveled artist — an atmosphere perfect for the making of an R&B track.

The 20-year-old junior songwriting minor may not be there yet, but with two studio albums out and an upgrade of his latest “Sights Of The Time” releasing on Oct. 24, the Atlanta native aims to be well on his way.

For Sharp, a behavioral economics and psychology major, who described music as his “therapeutic release,” it has been integral to life since he was young. He grew up in a gospel family and had an uncle who was a music engineer and an aunt who was a singer; he was exposed to many of the R&B, hip-hop and soul sounds that would serve as a foundation of his work.

He caught the creative bug — using the world of music as a means of escape — when he started singing at just five years old. From that point onward, it would become his primary creative outlet in life: producing GarageBand samples, writing music for family hikes and crafting album ideas in his head.

“Early on, I always was writing, making poetry, releases of just written feelings for what I felt. From that, it turned into poetry,” Sharp said. “These poetry pieces turned into songs.”

As he transitioned into publishing full-length albums in his adult life, he never lost sight of the emotional intimacy that initially drew him to music. Weaving together tales of confession, retrospectives and raw analysis of the world around him over serene beats, Sharp aims to take listeners into his world through his songs.

“I put a lot of vulnerability into this art. And one of the greatest kind of pieces of advice that kind of came from the class for my songwriting that I got early on was: ‘The more authentic and unique and in depth to your story you are, [the more] you’d be surprised how relatable that is to the other people,”’ Sharp said.

He credits his professors at the Thornton School of Music, Haleigh Bowers and David Poe, for their help in expanding the depth of his songwriting prowess. Even though he didn’t see the necessity of pursuing the songwriting minor at one point, he said deciding to do so changed his perspective as an artist.

“Both of them at USC really, really gave me critiques [that brought] truth to my music,” Sharp said.

Sharp said “Sights Of The Time,” his latest album released on Aug. 1, represents a development in his songwriting compared to his first project, “Sharp Shock,” which was released on Oct. 11, 2024.

“The best way to put it is, ‘Sharp Shock’s’ walking on the street. ‘Sights Of The Time’ is looking over the balcony at everything across and around and observing that and interpreting that and relating how that feels,” Sharp said.

“Sights Of The Time,” which will see a deluxe release on Oct. 24, is separated into three parts: one which focuses on feelings of isolation in a challenging landscape from his life; another which focuses on the complication of love related to political turmoil and hatred; and the final stretch, which ends the album on an emotional high point — highlighting the importance of confidence in your self-worth.

Jordyn Diew, a junior majoring in popular music, collaborated with Sharp on the R&B and soul track “Neptune,” a song that explores feelings of isolation following an experience that they both share — having divorced parents.

Diew said the song was the product of a lengthy, candid conversation between the two. She said she appreciated Sharp’s focus on intent and message.

“I could tell it was really important to him that I liked what I was singing in the song, too, and that I wasn’t singing anything that I personally didn’t feel comfortable with or didn’t even really relate to at all,” said Diew.

Yasmeena Sharif, a junior majoring in jazz studies and a friend of Sharp since their freshman year, collaborated with the “Sights Of The Time” artist on the opening track on the album “If The Sun Sets…”

“Christian was just so open and so willing to work with me, and just [created] a really safe environment for creativity,” Sharif said. “That’s definitely something that I want to take with me into future experiences and collaborations with people.”

Blending genres is a focus for him, Sharp said. While “Sights Of The Time” is mainly R&B and soul, he explores a variety of different sounds on the album, from hip-hop to pop to alt-rock.

He cited Beyoncé’s 2025 Grammy Awards speech as a message he resonated with — that the concept of genres only exists to keep artists in boxes.

On Sharp’s “Sights Of The Time Deluxe: THE AFTERSHOCK” project, he said he continues the narrative of “Sights Of The Time” and attempts to innovate on his lyrics and sound. He pinned the energy as being “spooky” and said he wanted to explore more rock-inspired sounds.

“This will be my most aggressive project, because it’s a lot of recycled emotion released, but also, because of that aggressiveness, it’s also so triumphant — the victory of overcoming it all,” Sharp said.

The album is far from the end for Sharp. Describing himself as “his own worst critic,” he said he hopes to explore new styles and continue to polish his sound.

“I can see myself doing music for the rest of my life,” said Sharp. “Music is [my] top passion. I’m 100% [sure] — this is a part of me.”