3 months after her debut single “Basic Ukelele Song”, Long Island’s Kaede. returns with a brand new song that she sees as her ‘true’ debut. One that’s able to showcase her “dual identity as both Japanese-American; bringing the East to meet the West”, a message that she believes had to be improved on from her previous release.

Blending the sounds of the koto – a traditional Japanese instrument with contemporary western beats and bass, “Lofi Love” is a quietly sombre affair that’s inspired by the failings of a doomed relationship that was seemingly perfect. It’s lyrically bare but that only works to the song’s benefit, as the repetition of the lines:

“I don’t wanna fall in love, I don’t think I’m cut out for this sort of thing/There ain’t nothing wrong with you, but there ain’t nothing wrong with me”

Then paired with the largely instrumental structure, it conveys Kaede.’s imagery of “a sudden break-up renders you speechless” perfectly.

“I’m not sure if it’s because of the love for the koto I’ve had since childhood because of my Japanese heritage, but I just feel like it’s got this beautifully intimate sound. I think it’s the only instrument that could do justice in showing the fragility I was feeling.” Kaede. tells me.

The production of “Lofi Love” and its message go hand-in-hand. It’s a crossroads of Kaede.’s Western (the use of a heavy sub-bass) and Eastern (the vulnerability she feels with the koto) identities, one where she feels the music she created is connected to the mixture of identities that she hopes to achieve…which I believe she has more than been able to do.

“It’s music that represents the blend between Japan and the West that lives within me,” she declares.