Producer Profile: Yaeji

Yaeji is the stage name of Korean American singer, rapper, producer, and DJ, Kathy Yaeji Lee. Although she was born in Flushing, New York, when she was 9 years old her family moved back to South Korea out of fear Yaeji was becoming too Americanized. It wasn’t until she returned to America for college that she began to explore music as a career.

At Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh, Yaeji became involved with her school radio and soon after began to make music of her own. She downloaded some production software and began to teach herself the ropes. In 2015 she moved back to New York City to work as a graphic designer while pursuing music in her off time. She began to play her music at small DIY parties with her musical friends and as more an more people became involved, the parties moved to a proper venue in Williamsburg, Kinfolk.

With time her musical style continues to grow and change and as Yaeji has become more familiar with the ropes of production, she has been able to diverge from the music she was making as a DJ. Now, she is making the music she feels. Yaeji brings a unique vision to her music that incorporates all of who she is and we’re excited to see her grow.

Check out this video from FACTMagazine where Yaeji races against the clock to create a track in just 10 minutes: