This summer, Swedish dream-pop innovator Mimi Bay dropped a lo-fi infused six-track EP called far from home – a release that features the Gothenburg-based singer-songwriter’s signature jazz-infused sonics and one which has catapulted her to the forefront of the genre.
For the 20-year-old Bay, writing and recording music has always served as a coping mechanism; an escape from the trials and tribulations of everyday life, and one which she has immersed herself in from a very young age.
Like many creatives, the global pandemic provided her with the chance to hone her focus, and finish off musical projects that otherwise may not have seen the light of day.
Bay started sharing her music online throughout her mid-teens, but confesses that she never expected her following to explode in the way that it has. Her YouTube channel, Hi I’m Mimi, which currently has a quarter of a million subscribers and counting, resonated quickly with young audiences, while her music has now racked up over 20 million total streams on Spotify. It was these same loyal fans who helped her choose which songs to include on her 2019 vinyl pressed triple-single daydreams.
“I've always been writing music, and I initially started doing YouTube out of boredom – I guess I just wanted to have a creative outlet,” she recalls. “And so I just kind of merged those two worlds. I never expected it to be something people would connect with, or that they would bring into their lives.”
Bay reveals to Headliner that her favourite songs are those that make her feel melancholic (as she lets out a resounding sigh):
“I really like things that make me feel emotional, but not necessarily in a sad way,” she says. “Stuff that just brings me into my feels; I just kind of sit there and float away.”
While Bay cites artists such as Frank Ocean, The Beatles and Nick Drake as some of her most inspiring, along with (Sandy) Alex G’s Trick album, she admits that she often has a hard time finding new music due to being entirely absorbed in her own creative process.
Bay’s sound is one that’s full of dreamy, mellow vibes and catchy hooks, and one that she’s developed significantly since her early SoundCloud days.