Fuji Rock Festival, one of Japan¡¯s biggest summer music events, always manages to assemble an eclectic mix of current and rising stars, nostalgia acts, perennial fixtures and a couple of artists chosen seemingly at random from the ¡°Where are they now?¡± file.
It¡¯s pretty much guaranteed that every year the crowd at Naeba Ski Resort in Niigata Prefecture will come away swooning over at least one newcomer playing their first high-profile Japan show. There are plenty of early contenders for this year¡¯s informal rookie of the year award, but the most surefire bet for 2025 is Mei Semones, a Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter who plays what she describes as ¡°jazz-influenced indie J-pop.¡±
Raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan, by a Japanese mother and American father, the 24-year-old speaks fluent Japanese (¡°fluent enough,¡± she clarifies) and sings in both of her native languages. Jazz and indie rock are just two of the touchstones for her music: On debut album ¡°Animaru,¡± released in May, she combines them with the gentle caresses of bossa nova, the knotty structures of math rock and a dash of early-1990s grunge.
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