Mei Semones is a singer, guitarist, and songwriter based in New York whose debut full-length Animaru (released in May 2025) fuses elements of indie rock, bossa nova jazz and Japanese pop. With technical sophistication and accessible charm, Mei and her ensemble pair complex and ambitious jazz arrangements with inviting, melodic pop songwriting.
Semones studied jazz guitar performance at Berklee College of Music in Boston, introducing her to the wide range of music that influences her style today, as well as meeting the fellow young musicians who would become her bandmates. Her band, consisting of Noah Leong (viola), Claudius Agrippa (violin), Noam Tanzer (bass), and Ransom McCafferty (drums) are all Berklee College graduates, and the group that appears on Animaru is the same tight-knit unit that Semones leads on stage, faithfully reproducing the album’s complex textures live, as the group jumps seamlessly from thumping rock grooves to nimble samba rhythms.
Even more unique is Semones’ bilingual songwriting, interweaving English and Japanese fluidly within her songs. Choruses switch languages as the lyrics on Animaru celebrate non-romantic love in all its forms, from family, to music, to self-confidence. The album art features a surreal cartoonish angel-winged rodent drawn by Mei’s mother Seiko Semones, a cute and bizarre animal which perfectly encapsulates the album’s charming, whimsical, and unconventional spirit.
We caught up with Mei Semones to find out more about her music:
We can use terms like jazz-influenced indie J-pop, but how do you describe your sound and what do you hope to achieve with your music?
To keep it short I usually say jazz-influenced indie, but there are elements of different influences like jazz, bossa, samba, indie rock, math rock, grunge rock!
I hope to make music that is fun for me & my band to play that brings us joy, that also brings joy & comfort to people who listen to it :)
Did you have any specific artists or albums that you kept in mind while making Animaru, or is it just a sprawl of different influences?
I think it’s a variety of different influences — I wasn't really thinking about any artists/albums specifically, more so just trying to make music I like playing.
Do you find there are benefits to writing in two languages?
It gives me more words/sounds to choose from which I think is cool! I think it might also broaden my audience in some way — having two different languages means a wider range of people can understand the lyrics in different parts of the songs.
Your music has a delightful sense of joy throughout, is there a reason you’re so drawn to light sounds and themes in your songwriting?
I wrote Animaru when I was transitioning to doing music full time, and I think that change brought me a lot of joy & confidence. So I think that contributed to the happy feelings and themes in the album! And in general playing guitar and making music makes me happy, so I think that's why the songs often feel happy.
Can you tell us about the collaborations on your new EP Kurage?
Kurage is an EP of 3 songs with 3 different collaborators — 2 of my favorite artists Liana Flores & John Roseboro, and my dad Don Semones. I wrote Koneko (the song with Liana) about my first time in London during which I stayed with Liana, and the lyrics are centered around imagery of our time together. Tooth Fairy is about a day I was meeting John Roseboro in Greenpoint, and we ran into each other on the train platform right after his tooth had fallen out. Kurage is a song I wrote reminiscing on going to the aquarium in Japan when I was younger, and thinking about what it would feel like to be a little sea creature.
How do you and your bandmates arrange the songs, and how has your bond as a unit developed through touring?
I bring them the song itself (the guitar & vocals) and we arrange it together as a group — we usually do strings first then rhythm section. They mostly write their own parts, and I think it makes the music really special because each person contributes their own unique creativity. I think the band has gotten tighter over time with more touring — I feel like we have great chemistry and know each other pretty well musically because of how long we’ve been playing together.
As far as we’re aware, you all come from a formal jazz background, but you’re touring like an indie rock band. Do you find these live shows different to venues you may have played in a jazz setting previously?
I actually haven’t done much jazz touring — I’ve played some jazz gigs but most of my touring experience is with my band for my own music. We’ve played more straight ahead jazz clubs like Blue Note and jazz festivals, but we also play lots of rock clubs and theaters. The seated jazz shows feel pretty different from standing rock clubs, but I like both.
You’ve been travelling all over the world with your live show, where have been some of your favourite places to play?
I really like touring in Asia. Our Japan tour this past winter was really fun, and I also really enjoyed being in Taipei & Seoul. I also love being in Europe & UK! Everywhere we’ve been is so beautiful in its own way, and I’ve gotten to meet lots of nice people & try so much good food. I am really grateful to be able to travel so much to play music!
What’s the biggest thing you’ve learned throughout the first few years of making and touring your music?
I think the biggest thing I’ve learned is that it’s most important to stay focused on the music and try to be a better musician every day.
Who would play at Mei Semones’ dream festival?