Mei Semones describes her music as jazz-influenced indie J-pop, sung in Japanese and English. Bayonet Records describes her guitar lines as swinging from jazz to bossa nova to math rock to grungier hooks.
Background
Semones is 25 and from Ann Arbor, Michigan. She grew up speaking Japanese with her mother and learned jazz guitar by transcribing John Coltrane and Charlie Parker solos, Berklee reported. She graduated from Berklee College of Music in 2022, moved to New York, and taught at a Japanese preschool while building her music. She is based in Brooklyn, and her touring band is made up of Berklee alumni.
The records
She self-released the EPs Tsukino and Sukikirai in 2022, followed by Kabutomushi in 2024. Paste named her one of its Best of What’s Next artists in 2024, and she was on the cover of NME in March 2025.
Her debut album, Animaru, came out May 2, 2025, on Bayonet, led by the single “Dumb Feeling.” Her most recent release is the three-song Kurage EP, out April 10, 2026, with guests Liana Flores and John Roseboro. Her father, Don Semones, plays euphonium on the title track.
Why now
She spent 2026 moving between indie and jazz stages, with a tour of Australia and New Zealand in June and a spot on the Newport Jazz Festival bill, July 31 to Aug. 2. Her official site is now taking pre-saves for a new single, “Howl,” dated Sept. 30.
Official links
- Website
- TikTok
- YouTube
- Spotify
- Apple Music
- Bandcamp
- SoundCloud
- Discord
- Tidal
- Label (Bayonet Records)
Sources
- Berklee: Mei Semones profile
- Bayonet Records: Mei Semones
- Stereogum: Mei Semones announces Kurage EP
- Stereogum: Mei Semones and her dad team up on Kurage
- Handsome Tours: Mei Semones
- What’s Up Newp: Newport Jazz Festival 2026 lineup
- Mei Semones official site
