Korean artist-producer Su Lee has released her debut album ‘Messy Sexy’. The album marks a step forward for the Seoul-native as she explores new sonic territory and moves from her self-produced roots into more collaboration. Fans can stream ‘Messy Sexy’ here: orcd.co/messysexy
The release of ‘Messy Sexy’ follows her previous singles “Super Happy / Jump” and titular track “Messy Sexy”. Su Lee explains about the album, “‘Messy Sexy’ is an embodiment of the chaos of life. It’s a collection of songs that capture joy, loneliness, anger, confusion, triumph, and all sorts of unexplainable emotions we feel as humans.”
The album tracks two years of growth, including her first ever tours, and marks Su’s first collaborations with outside producers and creatives, including Colombian born Ariza, pop dance mainstay Sweater Beats, and Nashville indie artist Miki Fiki. Despite the sonic evolution, Su remains undeniably herself, incorporating common themes of mental health and emotions with her characteristic quirkiness.
On working with her collaborators, Su Lee shares, “Sweater Beats was the first person I ever wrote a song with in person. I spent a year doing everything myself in my bedroom in Korea and when I came to LA I was nervous to let people into my little musical world, but Sweater Beats immediately made me feel comfortable. We connected about music, but also our love for anime and doggos (Sweater Beats’ dogs Zoe and Dilly are my best friends).”
“Those first songs we wrote together became the backbone of my album – ‘Messy Sexy’, ‘Sonder’, and ‘All The Time’ – and encouraged me to expand my circle further to include all the lovely people that ultimately contributed to my project.”
On the inspiration behind lead track”Mayfly”, Su shares, “I’ve never had many lasting relationships in my life because our family was always moving around and I had to switch schools all the time. Despite living this nomadic life for so long, I never got used to saying goodbyes – it always still breaks my heart to leave behind people I’ve bonded with. I wrote this song hoping I won’t have to do it with the people I love right now.”
Su Lee began her music journey in a humble 10’ x 10’ box room in Seoul where she wrote and produced all her own content, before international recognition propelled her to Los Angeles. Her box room was where she ate, slept, and created, and it’s from there that her debut album was born.
Su Lee first crashed onto the scene with her song and video for “I’ll Just Dance”. The video, subtitled “What My Mental Breakdown Sounds Like”, shot to 30,000 upvotes on Reddit and 750,000 views on YouTube in the first month, resonating with an audience who had been stuck inside for several months during the Covid-19 pandemic. Both the song and video were 100% created by Su and showcase her quirky and honest style.
The buzz from “I’ll Just Dance” quickly translated to a flurry of industry interest with labels and companies drawn to Su’s raw expression, a counterpoint to the traditional hyper-polished pop star. This commitment to authenticity has continued to steadily attract fans, and in addition to releasing music she hosts her “Overthinkers Society” podcast and live streams on Twitch.
In August 2021 Su released her self-produced ‘Box Room Dreams’ EP which traces a year of isolation and creation from her tiny room. “Having had my career as a musician launch almost simultaneously with the pandemic, this EP is kind of like my quarantine journal as a baby musician,” Su shares about the record. “It’s mostly a jumble of my heightened sense of loneliness, uncertainty, and anxiety. But I also wanted to add a hint of some magical daydreams and high hopes for the times ahead.” Certainly those high hopes aren’t unfounded with The Guardian saying “If we could boil Gen Z internet, with all its anxieties and goofiness and creativity and openness, down into a person, the result would be Su Lee.”
Su Lee has an exponentially growing listener base in Asia, with her top streaming markets being 🇮🇳 India #1, 🇲🇾 Malaysia #3, 🇮🇩 Indonesia #4, 🇹🇼 Taiwan #8, 🇵🇭 Philippines #9, 🇹🇭 Thailand #12, 🇻🇳 Vietnam #15, and 🇸🇬 Singapore #18. Su has drawn international praise from Billboard, NYLON, Elle, and Teen Vogue, and is poised to break out well past the walls of her room.
‘Messy Sexy’ Tracklisting:
- All The Time
- Messy Sexy
- Super Happy (ft. Ariza)
- Mayfly (ft. Miki Fiki)
- Cuckoo
- Knock Knock
- Jump (ft. Ariza)
- Cherry
- Brains Out
- You Were Never Really Nice To Me
- Sonder
