New York Seoul Singer Shares Her "Wisdom"

Seoul-born, New York-based musician and multimedia artist JiHAE will release her new album 'Illusion of You' on June 5 (Septem).

JiHAE, which means "wisdom" in Korean, highlights her worldly influences on 'Illusion of You', produced by Dave Stewart and Jean-Luc Sinclair, with additional production by Stuart Matthewman. Loud riffs and a personal ennui infuse "Leaving NYC," a sharp contrast to the sweet, dreamy "Tonight"-- a style more akin to Mazzy Star. At times, JiHAE is quiet and poetic ("Lullaby for the Lonely People"); at others, the music lashes out ("Sixteen Guns," an ode to Darrius Kennedy, who was shot 12 times in Times Square in 2012) and goes theatrically dark ("Brave Ones," inspired by the PTSD experience by JiHAE's father during his time in Vietnam). She also explores a slinky groove on the provocative "It Just Feels," a paean to orgasms, originally written as a poem by Stewart and co-writer Leonard Cohen.

With her powerful voice, poetic lyrics and intricate sound arrangements, JiHAE explores various illusions that influence the growing divide between cultures, religions, class, and race in the world. Dave Stewart, who likened JiHAE to "Bowie whispering secrets to the Velvet Underground," not only served as a muse and collaborator on the album-titled single, but he also provided vocals and guitar for several tracks. Indie-rock band Nightmare and the Cat are also featured on the song "Sea Bound."

Listen to the LP's title track here.

'Illusion of You' marks another turning point in JiHAE's varied musical history that began at the age of sixteen. During her burgeoning artistic life, she has written and produced a multimedia rock opera with Academy Award-winning playwright John Patrick Shanley, performed at the London Olympics, Cannes and the United Nations, and become heavily involved with a variety of nonprofits and charities including work with Hillary Clinton's 2012 Hours Against Hate global initiative, the Willie Mae Rock Camp and Simon Says Sing 4 Peace (a public platform for artists to speak out against war). As a musician, she's released three albums (and one EP), lauded by the likes of Pitchfork, MTV, IFC and Vogue, and she's been a collaborator, musically and visually, with creatives as varied as Michel Gondry, Christopher Doyle, Peter Beard and Marco Brambilla.

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