Rina Sawayama releasing debut LP, touring; listen to "Comme Des Garcons"
London-via-Japan pop artist Rina Sawayama signed to Dirty Hit late in 2019, and now she’s announced her debut album, SAWAYAMA, due out April 17. “The album ultimately is about family and identity,” she says. “It’s about understanding yourself in the context of two opposing cultures (for me British and Japanese), what ‘belonging’ means when home is an evolving concept, figuring out where you sit comfortably within and awkwardly outside of stereotypes, and ultimately trying to be ok with just being you, warts and all.”
Following first single “STFU!,” today Rina shares another taste of SAWAYAMA with the new track “Comme Des Garcons (Like The Boys),” which you can listen to below. It channels a little of the spirit of 90s pop divas like Aaliyah, Mariah, and Britney with a modern twist. “When I was writing this song I wanted on one hand to lyrically explore the idea of people having to adopt negative male tropes to appear confident, whilst on the other sonically paying homage to the early 2000s dance tracks that made me feel confident,” Rina says. “The idea that the socially acceptable version of confidence is in acting ‘like the boys’, otherwise as a woman you get called a bitch – but in the club, we reclaim the word ‘bitch’ as a sign of ultimate confidence (‘yes bitch’, ‘work bitch’). I wanted to sit these two together and make a club fashion banger that makes you feeling like THAT bitch whoever you are.”
Rina going on a headlining North American tour supporting her new album, starting on April 24 in Los Angeles. She’ll hit San Francisco, Portland, Seattle, Chicago, Toronto, NYC, Philadelphia, and more, then head to the UK for more shows in mid-May. The NYC date happens at Webster Hall on May 7; tickets go on general sale Friday 1/24 at 10 AM, with various presales starting Tuesday 1/21 at 10 AM.
See all of Rina’s upcoming dates below.
Rina Sawayama – SAWAYAMA Tracklisting
1. Dynasty
2. XS
3. STFU!
4. Comme des Garçons (Like The Boys)
5. Akasaka Sad
6. Paradisin’
7. Love Me 4 Me
8. Bad Friend
9. Fuck This World (Interlude)
10. Who’s Gonna Save U Now?
11. Tokyo Love Hotel
12. Chosen Family
13. Snakeskin
Rina Sawayama: 2020 Tour
4/24 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Regent Theater
4/25 – San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
4/27 – Portland, OR @ Holocene
4/28 – Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile
5/1 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line Music Cafe
5/2 – Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge
5/3 – Toronto, ON @ The Mod Club Theatre
5/6 – Washington, DC @ Union Stage
5/7 – New York City, NY @ Webster Hall
5/8 – Cambridge, MA @ The Sinclair
5/9 – Philadelphia, PA @ The Foundry at the Fillmore
5/14 – Glasgow, UK @ King Tuts
5/15 – Manchester, UK @ Gorilla
5/16 – Birmingham, UK @ O2 Intitute3
5/21 – London, UK @ Electric Brixton
