New York native and interdisciplinary artist Araya shares the newest glimpse into his neon, hyperpop-meets-RnB world with “MAKIMA,” produced with his longtime collaborator Frankie Scoca (New Jeans, Druv, Dreamer Isioma). The track comes with a video shot on location in Thailand that ushers you into the serendipitous, gorgeous world of Araya’s multi-dimensional artistry. Watch/listen to “MAKIMA” HERE.
“MAKIMA” is for fans of early, pre-Elon Grimes, as it builds up into a spacious, echoing chamber of sound that transcends the current landscape; the production glitches underneath Araya’s bright, full vocals, dripping in the love for life that goes into his songwriting. “MAKIMA” (who is the antagonist in the anime Chainsaw Man) utilizes the Yamaha VOCALOID DAW/sample generator, pioneered by Japanese hologram artist Hatsune Miku, and encompasses the different forms of love that we encounter in this life.
Of “MAKIMA,” Araya says, “I originally wrote this song about a long distance crush on a boy that didn’t feel very mutual. However while shooting the music video for MAKIMA in Thailand, I had befriended a girl named Patty who worked at a local dispensary. Patty very naturally ended up costarring in the music-video and later revealed to us (completely unplanned) that she was a recently retired MAKIMA cosplayer, (MAKIMA is the antagonist in the anime Chainsaw Man). Patty & I became very close; the song would evolve to represent both the love that we have for each other as well as the memories we made. Although I’m all the way in New York, MAKIMA is a love that is mutual and pure; a love that remembers.”
Born and raised in Long Island, NY, Araya attended FIT and trained to be a graphic designer and photographer, while dreaming of pursuing a career in music. He has always grappled with purpose, identity, and spirituality through his music as he mixes vintage and futuristic sounds into a transfixing blend of R&B, soul, hip-hop, and electronic music. Araya uses music as a medium to comprehend and channel life experiences into reflective tales of self-acceptance and understanding. As a queer person coming into his truer self each day, and growing up with both Thai and Chilean cultural influence, the lens we get to peer through while experiencing this luxurious-with-jagged-edges album shows us the influence of loving matriarchs as powerful dragons, first true loves revealed to be dark and torturous voids, and the chosen community as a young creative in New York realized through his visuals.
Recalling artists like Tirzah, Erika de Casier, or Blood Orange, Araya has fans at NPR Music, Teen Vogue, Remezcla, SPIN, i-D China, and more. In February of 2022, Araya released his sophomore LP, Ethos, to significant acclaim just over a year after his breakout debut Atlas. Since the release of Ethos, Araya has been steadily collaborating with a myriad of producers & artists such as CLIP, Y2K, Yeek, Monte Booker, Junior Varsity, Cautious Clay & more while piecing together his most recent EP ARENA, as if it were a puzzle of his very own beating heart. This next chapter is the natural continuation of his heart’s journey expressed through his music.
“MAKIMA” by Araya is out now, buy/stream it here.
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