Random J Pop | Pop commentary foolishness

Rina Sawayama. A Japanese girl based in London with a wholly 90s aesthetic, singing R&B leaning Pop songs. It was a package that I'd not witnessed before, but it was never strange to me. I'm a fan of Hikaru Utada, who grew up in New York, sang R&B and then branched out into every fucking type of music under the sun except Country. And also Crystal Kay, born to a black father and a Korean mother, raised in Yokohama and singing R&B. Then there's me. A black guy living in London who likes listening to J-Pop. So there was nothing about Rina that was difficult to grasp or accept. Although Rina not being something that's easy for people to 'get' may be part of why she is not as big a name as she should be. Even with an EP that couldn't be any easier to get into.

Part of what I feel has always held Rina back from mainstream success is that it's so easy to get caught up in her aesthetic and the space that she occupies as a result of these different…