Yaeji

With a bilingual fusion of hip-hop, house, and pop that proved immediately magnetic, Korean-American producer, songwriter, and DJ Yaeji captured both fervent listeners and broad critical praise upon the arrival of her opening pair of EPs in 2017. She soon established herself as a regular presence across global music festivals and club circuits, and after teaming with Charli XCX and Robyn she attained greater pop refinement on the 2020 mixtape What We Drew. Further partnerships with DiAN and OHHYUK arrived in 2021. The following year brought her reflective yet forward-looking first album, With a Hammer.

Kathy Yaeji Lee entered the world in Flushing, Queens, New York, and spent her early childhood in Atlanta before her family relocated back to Korea at the end of third grade to deepen her connection to their heritage. She enrolled in American schools there while also pursuing Korean-language study, which strengthened her command of both tongues. At Carnegie Mellon University she concentrated on graphic design alongside East Asian studies, yet the campus radio station proved most decisive by introducing her to underground electronic sounds. Upon completing her degree she settled in New York City and immersed herself in its dance-music community. Appearances on recordings by Mall Grab and Viers preceded her own debut single, “New York 93,” which surfaced on the self-titled 2017 EP issued by Godmode. Over pulsing low-end she shifted between a dreamy whisper and unhurried rapping, moving between English and Korean while addressing identity, anxiety, and prevailing beauty norms. The more inward-facing EP2 followed swiftly, spotlighting “Drink I’m Sippin’ On” together with a version of Drake’s “Passionfruit.”

Both releases drew enthusiastic responses, positioning Yaeji among the most distinctive and engaging voices operating at the intersection of club music and left-field pop. In 2018 she issued the contemplative standalone track “One More” and reworked Charli XCX’s “Focus.” She then appeared on XCX’s 2019 single “February 2017,” which also featured Clairo, and supplied a remix of Robyn’s “Beach2k20.” After signing with XL she delivered the intricate, high-energy mixtape What We Drew in 2020, containing the singles “Waking Up Down” and the title song, and she further broadened her reach with a remix of Dua Lipa’s “Don’t Start Now.” In 2021 she collaborated with DiAN on “PAC-TIVE” and with OHHYUK on “Year to Year” and “29.” With a Hammer, her debut full-length that juxtaposed introspection and intensity, emerged in 2023 and included contributions from Loraine James and Nourished by Time. November brought the buoyant, samba-tinged single “Easy Breezy.”