Resting in Umi's Debut “Forest in the City”
You know that feeling of deja vu… but not really? Like you feel like you’ve seen or experienced a moment before but the current experience is definitely unique. When you are visiting a new place or restaurant and enjoying the experience but then that familiar feeling hits you and you stop and try to remember if you have been here before. No this is not a plug for the matrix or black cats crossing your path. But this is the feeling that I got when listening to the debut album from UMI.
The 23-year-old artist's newest release Forest in the City is self-described as a project four years in the making. Hailing from Seattle, Washington with an African American father and Japanese mother who both played instruments, Tierra Umi Wilson was influenced early on to appreciate music. Following the release of several original songs that gained very positive critical reviews, Umi left USC to pursue music full-time.
Her string of EP releases (Introspection, Balance, and Love Language) each have their own tone and feel, yet they all end up sounding very similar. Leaving you with the notion that this artist may be one dimensional. Granted each of these EPs can be enjoyed and appreciated on their own, it really came down to Umi somewhat mimicking other more established artists that have influenced her.
Fortunately, Forest in the City is an astounding leap forward where Umi is truly beginning to find her voice. Now, you can safely attribute the previous EPs similarity to her really just experimenting and refining her own sound. The 15-track album care-freely bounces from a range of topics revealing her views on the fluidity of sexuality, her own heritage, self-love and care, and navigating relationships at various stages. I was impressed by the familiarity that can be found in her songs. Not as before where it was mimicky, but really drawing on a deep soulfulness to convey feelings and emotions. This leads to every track having its own relatability for the listener.
While this is definitely an album you can listen to straight through, there are a few songs that keep playing in my head. Starting off with the oh-so-relatable “Sorry”, the first single and visual from the album. “Sorry” is an apology letter to oneself, for not being confident in the things that you want in life and making excuses for not going after them. “Whatever You Like” is an uptempo track that feels perfect for the summer, a song equally capable of being played loud in the car on hot days, or filling a dance floor at the local club. In “Moonlight Room” Umi brings her listeners into that all too familiar moment of deciding if you should end a relationship. She sings “But sometimes it hurts, And I don’t fight first, I don’t want anything that ever mattered to be caught up in your shadow baby, Tears on my shirt, cause I loved you at your worst.”
On the cover art, Umi muses on as human societies have developed and become less connected to nature, and what impact that had on our psyche and development. I love the rhetorical question of “As I see my square room sitting on my square bed, a few hours ago I was sitting at my square desk, looking at a square screen, did this square my thinking? Then for some reason, this circled my thinking and I spiraled for a little bit, tumbled around like leaves caught in the wind, and settled on a peaceful thought nestled under a tree.” This project is a gentle yet very clear reminder to find rest and peace in the midst of our daily routines. It reflects Umi’s own deep roots and just like a tree in a forest, I will enjoy watching her grow and mature for many seasons to come. Catch Umi on tour now.