UMI

Born in Seattle into an Afro‑Japanese family, UMI, whose real name is Tierra Umi Wilson, developed an early taste for songwriting and was noticed as a teenager through covers and original tracks published online. After moving to Los Angeles to attend university, she soon turned to a full‑time music career, working in an R&B and neo‑soul vein with pop inflections, often described as bedroom pop for its intimate, pared‑down aesthetic. Her first self‑released projects led to the EP Love Affair in 2017, followed by Interlude in 2018 and Love Language in 2019, where UMI further introduced her bicultural background by mixing English and Japanese in her lyrics. With Introspection (2020) and Introspection Reimagined (2021), UMI continued to explore personal themes—identity, spirituality, romantic relationships and mental well‑being—over slow, melodic and often acoustic productions. Her debut album, Forest in the City, released in 2022, consolidates this approach by blending alternative R&B, contemporary soul and touches of folk, while reaffirming UMI’s close ties to her online communities and the American independent scene through occasional collaborations and club tours.