SAWAYAMA

What better time to have a collection of new music that manages to simultaneously deliver an old-skool vibe while taking us a thrilling dance-pop journey that feels fresh and modern. That record would be "Sawayama" the debut album from Rina Sawayama, the twenty-nine year old Japanese-born, British-raised artist.

While studying in college to pursue a practical career, Sawayama decided to move in to music. In between classes, she performed with a hip-hop outfit called Lazy Lion before graduating with a degree in political science. In 2013, she self-released her first song, "Sleeping in Waking". That was followed by few more singles before independently releasing a mini-album, "Rina" in 2017. This would help deliver Sawayama some buzz, leading to a small tour in the US and a opening slot for Charli XCX on her tour through Britain last year.

At the beginning of the year, Sawayama was signed to Dirty Hit Records and began releasing the singles, "STFU!" a ranting, heavy-metal influenced track (and my favorite song from the record), "Comme des Garçons (Like the Boys)" a slinky dance tune which takes on the narrow ideas of masculinity and another favorite, "XS" that examines a world in crisis due to capitalism and global climate change.

It is very easy to see how Sawayama's music certainly found inspiration from Lady Gaga along with many other dance-pop acts from the early 2000's. But the singer, who co-wrote the entire album, brings her own sense of musical style and razor-sharp wit to her songs, making this already one of the most exciting pop albums of the year.

I have become a huge fan so please listen to a little sample of the music of Rina Sawayama: