Ever since breaking free from mainstream music with his sophomore album, Hope, Shamir Bailey has been releasing a series of lo-fi projects from artists he's labeled, "Accidental Pop Stars." A curated mix of close friends and previous collaborators, these rising musicians have all echoed Shamir's own independent values, from RESA to GRASSHOPPER and, now, TEDDY.
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After being introduced to TEDDY as the "female version" of him during their sophomore year of high school, the two started a band, called Anorexia. Their seven-track project together, Bedroom Songs, saw an early interest in the same fuzzy, washed out sounds they revel in today. Though it was largely a side project, Shamir says Anorexia was his first band ever and allowed him to really cut his teeth recording music.
"Being in a band with TEDDY helped me become the artist I am now," Shamir says. "[TEDDY] used to put on beats and force me to freestyle before we started band rehearsal, and that omnivorous approach to things shows in her own music."
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TEDDY's three-song effort, titled UTOPIA, outlines her genre-blurring bedroom pop, as she'll rap in one moment and hum gently above a muddy guitar melody in the next. It's as intimate as Shamir's own Hope, and rounds out his four-part anti-pop project with a strong, cohesive grand finale.
"I started this fake label as an experiment to show others that quality songwriting is more important than clean recordings," Shamir says. "I love lo-fi music because it takes real talent to make music with a DIY approach."
Listen to TEDDY's UTOPIA, below.
