UMI Embraces Imperfection in 'people stories'

Summary

---

Podcast Summary: UMI Embraces Imperfection in 'People Stories'

Podcast: All Of It with Alison Stewart (WNYC)
Episode Date: August 26, 2025
Guest: UMI (Singer/Songwriter)
Theme: UMI discusses her new album 'People Stories,' exploring vulnerability, storytelling, and cultural sounds through personal and community-driven songwriting.

---

Episode Overview

This episode features singer-songwriter UMI on the release of her new album People Stories. Host Alison Stewart guides a conversation focused on UMI’s creative process, her embrace of imperfection, and her intentional incorporation of fan and community stories into her work. The episode includes song listens and discussions on language, production choices, emotional openness, and live performance.

---

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Emotional Release and Album Launch

• Surreal Release Moment (01:53–02:32)
  • UMI relates the release of her new album to "giving birth", describing the rush after years of preparation:

    “It’s just so cool that now the music is in other people’s hands. It doesn’t just live in my Dropbox anymore.” —UMI [01:59]

  • She highlights the impact of sharing music with listeners for the first time.

2. Connecting with People’s Stories

• Source of Inspiration (03:03–04:05)

  • The album is built around stories from fans, friends, and family, collected over two years through Discord messages and real-life encounters:

    “Why not take a break from talking about myself and talk about others? ... The whole concept is, as a writer, taking a break from yourself and being a storyteller.” —UMI [03:28]

• Song Spotlight: “Mango Sticky Rice” (04:05–06:26)

  • Originated from a fan encounter in Amsterdam that led to a real-life hangout and inspired the first song for the project.
  • UMI includes Japanese lyrics when English words fall short, describing the different cadences and expressiveness between the two languages:

    “Japanese is nice for patience and story building ... It’s like a different paintbrush.” —UMI [06:09–06:29]

3. Therapy, Healing, and Universality

• Collective Reflection (06:34–07:58)

  • UMI says she found herself within every story, creating a sense of universality and connection:

    “[Y]ou feel very specifically connected to a sound, but you realize that your connection is also universal ... it can make you feel less lonely, especially nowadays.” —UMI [07:22]

• Therapist Interludes

  • Interludes from her therapist are woven into the album to encourage vulnerability among listeners:

    “If UMI can share her therapy sessions with the world, then I can tell my friend that I'm not doing well … you can just be a little bit more open.” —UMI [08:02]

4. Evolution of the Album’s Sound

• Folk to Fusion (08:45–09:26)
  • Originally envisioned as a folk album, People Stories evolved to include R&B, pop, and neo-soul, shaped by the needs of the stories themselves:

    “I really was gonna do like a one sound kind of project, but it turned into this patchwork project … life is not one sound.” —UMI [09:26]

5. Creative Choices and Imperfection

• Recording at Home (13:43–14:48)

  • UMI favored recording at home for authenticity, capturing background noises for realism:

    “If I want to make a album about people, it has to reflect that imperfection.” —UMI [14:20]

  • The home setting allowed late-night inspiration and unpolished vocal takes to become part of the album’s texture.

• On Vocals and Technique (14:53–15:42)

  • Her vocal coach encourages singing as “a state of being,” prioritizing emotional authenticity over perfection.
  • UMI admits self-doubt sometimes gets in the way, particularly when anticipating challenging notes.

6. Songwriting and Production Process

• Nature and Organic Sounding (Pink Camo) (15:58–18:44)

  • “Pink Camo” is inspired by nature, created using programmed sounds to mimic organic instruments:

    “It’s like reinventing ... creating a new instrument through merging different instruments.” —UMI [18:37–18:44]

• Freestyling and Flow (18:58–19:22)

  • Most tracks were freestyled in-studio, with production and lyrics flowing together:

    “It just came through me.” —UMI [19:20]

• Telling Others’ Stories (“10am”) (19:26–19:40)

  • “10am” was inspired directly from a friend’s words, showcasing UMI’s documentary approach to songwriting.

7. Performance, Community, and Ritual

• Live Performance Connection (21:13–21:46)

  • UMI emphasizes the authenticity of performing live for her audience:

    “In a world where everything is social media and everything is digital ... the in personness is very necessary.” —UMI [21:21]

• Sound Baths and Guided Experiences (21:52–22:17)

  • On tour, UMI offers sound bath and meditation VIP experiences to deepen community and encourage wellbeing.

• Album Closer: Embracing Angst and Texture (22:22–24:09)

  • Final track “What Now” highlights vocal imperfection and unique drum textures:

    “There's a lot of imperfection and, like, grit in there to listen to and I think the texture of the drums is really unique.” —UMI [22:22]

---

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• On Embracing Vulnerability:

  “If UMI can share her therapy sessions with the world, then I can tell my friend that I'm not doing well.” —UMI [08:02]

• On the Essence of the Album:

  "...this is really a reflection of the people." —UMI [06:51]

• On Sound and Storytelling:

  “Life is not one sound.” —UMI [09:26]

• On Recording at Home:

  “It's imperfect. And if I want to make a album about people, it has to reflect that imperfection.” —UMI [14:20]

• On Artistic Process:

  “It just came through me.” —UMI [19:20]

• On Live Shows:

  “The in personness is very necessary to remind yourself that, like, this is actually a real thing.” —UMI [21:21]

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Introduction & "Familiar Friend" Song
  [00:09–01:32]

• UMI’s Reflections on Release
  [01:53–02:32]

• Origin of “People Stories” & Community Inspiration
  [03:03–04:05]

• "Mango Sticky Rice" & Bilingual Lyricism
  [04:05–06:26]

• Album Creation, Stories, and Therapy
  [06:34–08:34]

• Album’s Sonic Evolution
  [08:45–09:26]

• Song Listen: “The Universe” & Going with the Flow
  [09:43–12:53]

• Home Recording and Embracing Imperfection
  [13:43–14:48]

• Vocal Expression, Technique, and Freedom
  [14:53–15:42]

• “Pink Camo”: Sound Design & Nature
  [15:58–18:44]

• Freestyle Songwriting Approach
  [18:58–19:22]

• “10am” and Storytelling
  [19:26–21:13]

• Live Performance & Sound Baths
  [21:21–22:17]

• Album Closer: “What Now”
  [22:22–24:09]

---

Tone and Language

The conversation plays with warmth, humor, self-reflection, and a spirit of openness. UMI is candid about both her creative challenges and her ambitions for authentic connection—qualities mirrored by Alison Stewart’s supportive, curious style.

---

This summary captures UMI’s intimate, people-focused approach to songwriting and performance as shared in the “All Of It” episode. Whether you’re a longtime fan or new to her music, the episode offers insight into how stories, imperfection, and real-life moments become art.

Transcript

[A]

This is all of it on wnyc. I'm Alison Stewart. Singer and songwriter Umi is back with new music, this time a new full length album called People Stories. Here's a song off the album. This is Familiar Friend.

[B]

There you are again all for my friends Try to let you go didn't know it be this hard Here it comes again but that never ends Stealing my joy? You're a thief that knows my heart will t keep floating and I keep open the time is ready for change Tides keep falling I keep hoping the time is ready for change Here I go again Thought this was the end Think I'm addicted to a certain kind of thing.

[A]

That's my favorite from the album so far.

[C]

Really? That's so cool.

[A]

Umi grew up in Seattle and lives in la, but for the past few days, she's been in the city for the album release, including a show at Public Records last Saturday night. And lucky for us, Umi joins me now in the studio. People Stories is out now. Welcome to the show.

[C]

Thank you for having me.

[A]

So what are your emotions? You just released a new album. You just had it happen. What are you feeling at the moment?

[C]

I feel good. I feel excited. It's also surreal. I feel like. Well, I've never given birth, but I feel like it feels like giving birth in a way because you've prepared for so many months and years to do this and then you put it out and it's all this energy and rush to get the project out. And then now is kind of the real moment where now I get to share the music. You saying that you love Familiar Friend is so cool to me because it's just so cool that now the music is in other people's hands. When you say that, it reminds me. Oh, yeah. It doesn't just live in my Dropbox anymore.

[A]

Yeah, it was funny because I was going through the whole record and then I hit it and I was like, I love this. I just love the sound of it. I like the bounce of it. I like the sound of the lyrics.

[C]

I love that. I love that song too, because when I was making it, I was really thinking about my voice being an instrument and how I could tune my voice to have a deeper feeling to it. So I think you tuned into that.

[A]

All right. It's called People Stories, and it's based on stories you've heard from friends, fans. Who are the people that you wrote these stories about?

[C]

Mostly fans. Some about friends, some about family, but all of them stories that people have been telling me. I've been collecting stories over two years. Every time I go to the studio, I have a Discord group. I'll, like, go on Discord and say, send me a story of, like, the last time you cried or something you're going through. And then I'll take those songs and put them into Take those stories and put them into songs.

[A]

What made that a good inspiration for songwriting?

[C]

Well, the first song that this sparked was this song called Mango Sticky Rice. I was in Amsterdam on tour, and this fan came up to me afterwards and was like, umi, come here, come here. This is my girlfriend, and we met because we love your music, and we want to take you to this Thai food restaurant because we want to hang out with you. So I was like, sure, I have a day off. So we went to eat Thai food together, and we had mango sticky rice and we talked about their relationship. And then it all clicked. I was like, wow, why not take a break from talking about myself and talk about others? So Mango Sticky Rice is like, the originator, but the whole concept is as a writer, taking a break from yourself and being a storyteller.

[A]

Well, let's listen to Mango Sticky Rice.

[C]

Let's listen to Mango Sticky rice.

[B]

Yeah, Your love is I'm stuck to you car. Quite a movie tonight. You're definitely my type. We could be a vibe if we wanted. I want it to be it's up to you it's what you want to do I might stay for cool dancing in my room Meet you at noon we can't. Evil I make you at the kind of love that makes dry eyes cry baby brought me out of the cold it really bore my soul oh and from the moment under the moon I knew I will go I'll go so long as I'm with you down for something new I'm yeah Back the life I know Cross the ocean blue.

[A]

Okay, so people listening. You're singing in Japanese in this part of the song. Do you speak Japanese to your mom?

[C]

I do speak Japanese.

[A]

How did you decide to sing Japanese in this song?

[C]

I got stuck. I couldn't think of words in English, so I was like, let me use Japanese. That's usually how I end up using Japanese is when I just feel like I can't use English anymore. It's just not working.

[A]

Oh, that's really interesting. Why is that? It's interesting.

[C]

Oh, I think Japanese and English have a different cadence. Like, you can. Because every syllable is in a word. Every syllable is a sound in Japanese, you can take your time expressing what you want to Say versus English. You have to say a lot to fill a ver. Fill the line. So Japanese is nice for patience and like story building.

[A]

I feel like, oh, that's so interesting.

[C]

It's like a different paintbrush or like a different. Like acrylic versus watercolor or something.

[A]

Umi is my guest. We're talking about her new album, People's Stories. She's here for a listening party. When you first decided to make this a full length album, did you have topics on your mind that you wanted to discuss or did it simply come from the stories?

[C]

It really simply came from the stories. I would say every day I would be in a different mood, so some days I'd be happy, so I would ask for happier stories. Some days I'm sad. I asked for sad stories. So that was like the source of inspiration. But everything outside of that was just very much guided by the stories, which was fun. Like, I knew what the album was going to be, but it's like the people got to write it in a way. Like, this is really a reflection of the people.

[A]

Did you have an emotional journey as a part of it, or was this more of an. You being an observer?

[C]

Both. I think as I write these very specific stories, I found myself in all of them, which is why I think I could write about them so intimately. I'm writing about someone else's relationship, but it reminds me of something about myself. So I think that's very healing. And that's my hope for people too, is you feel very specifically connected to a sound, but you realize that your connection is also universal. Connection in that I think can make you feel less lonely, especially nowadays. It's made me feel less lonely and less alone. And I also interwove the album with interludes from my therapist. So I was like, pretty much just going to therapy and making music for like two years.

[A]

I was going to ask you about the therapist part of that. Could you explain that for us a little bit?

[C]

Yeah. So my therapist and my guide, my mentor, her name is Christine of Sepien. And I've just. I go and see her and I've been voice memoing all her sessions. And I was like, what's the most intimate thing I could share with people? Like, my therapy sessions. And my hope is like, fans will be like, if Umi can share her therapy sessions with the world, then I can tell my friend that I'm not doing well. Or like, I can tell a stranger that they have food stuck in their teeth. You know, like, you can just be a little bit more Open about your conversation. So that's. That's why I put that in there.

[A]

How much of the idea for this album change during the process of making it? You had an idea originally. Did it evolve? Did it stay the same? What was the experience like?

[C]

It evolved a lot because at first I wanted to make a folk album, like a folk fusion album that was very strictly going to be folk because to me, folk music is like the equivalent of folk tales, storytelling. But then as I made it, the sonics evolved because the stories couldn't just be told with folk music. Like, I had to use different sounds to be accurate to the story. So then I started pulling in R and B and pop and neo soul. And I didn't intend. I really was gonna do like a one sound kind of project, but it turned into this patchwork project that I think is a lot truer of a reflection of what life is like. Like, life is not one sound.

[A]

My guest is Umi. She's a singer and a songwriter. We're talking about her new album called People's Stories. She's here for a listening party, so let's listen to another song. We're gonna play the Universe. Now. What do you remember about the original idea for this song?

[C]

This song was inspired by. I. I listen. I really liked a lot of, like, guitar, drum sounds growing up. A lot of folk, Japanese, folk music as well. So when I went to the studio, I was just playing. This was one of the. This is me in my folk era.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

I want to make a folk song that hits and that feels like a mantra that you can repeat when you feel lost. And so we wrote the Universe.

[A]

Here's the Universe by Umi.

[B]

Is it gone or is it late? Trying to ask my hands away for holding on to yesterday Is there room for me to have it all? Or am I chasing waterfalls? When I take a second look at the fish that's on the hook Is it for my greater good or am I questioning in my wonder Cuz it didn't swim the way I thought when you get lost it's always working Sometimes it hurts but it's always worth it we fall apart what body's learning they kill it's always working Let it go and let it bend Like a leaf drop from the limb maybe we're just made up when never know when we'll settle down yeah and it's fine Cause we're together now all comes back I think Jesus it's always working Sometimes it hurts but it's always worth it to fall apart what Body's learning. They do.

[A]

So, Umi, it starts out folk, but that backbeat comes in with those drums right then and there. Tell me about that choice.

[C]

Oh, that one was a fun choice. Like, we. Most of the sounds we, like, played in the studio. The claps are all sounds we made in the studio. I wanted the. The drums to feel like heartbeat. I wanted to feel tribal, something that you want to start. Stomp, stomp, clap. Like, I could get the audience to join in with me. So we wanted to do something that just, like, evoke that, like, kind of human part of you that you can't suppress. Like, just that innate part of you.

[A]

Part of the universe is about just sort of going with the flow.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Does this apply to your life now? Did it apply your life then, or.

[C]

I feel like it'll always apply to my life. It definitely applies to my life now. Especially if, like, when you drop a project, you're just so out of your hands. Like, there's so much you can do, but a lot of it is just up to the universe and up to something greater and some story that you'll know at the end of your life, you know? Like, I know I'm in the middle of some beautiful journey, so especially when I'm in the middle is when I feel the most lost. And I think my own music in this song has been very helpful for me. It zaps me back.

[A]

Oh, so when you're in the middle of something, you're, like, not sure which way to go. Do I turn around and go back to the beginning, or do I keep going forward?

[C]

Yes. Do I go to the right? Do I go to the left? Do I, like. Do I do something completely different?

[A]

What do you do to make those decisions?

[C]

That's a good question. I. I like to meditate. And when I meditate, I feel like I get to clear out my noise in my head and just hear my higher self speaking to me. And usually it just says trust in the universe, and I get a little bit annoyed because I'm like, could you give me a little bit more clarity? But it's really that simple. Or I talk to people that I love. Like, I talk to my mom. I talk to my team, and they help me see things from outside of myself. Seeing things from outside of human self is always the best way to get clarity.

[A]

My guest is Umi. Her new album is called People Stories. So you recorded quite a bit of this at your home, is that right?

[C]

Correct. Yes.

[A]

Why did that feel right for this project?

[C]

Well, when I started, I Tried to do it in the studio, and it just was feeling too perfect. The sound was too perfect, the room was too perfect. Everything about it was just too clean. And I was. The inspiration was being zapped out of me. So when I went back home, you hear the AC running and the dog barking, and I was like, this is what real life is. Like. It's not perfect perfect. It's not pristine. It's imperfect. And if I want to make a album about people, it has to reflect that imperfection. So I think my intuition guided me and literally cut off my creativity when I. When everything was too, too perfect.

[A]

So what did that do for your vocals?

[C]

I think it made it more flexible, like, because some of these songs, like, for example, Right. Wrong, I literally recorded it within five minutes of waking up. I just was like, I need to record this song right now. And the studio being in my house gives flexibility for that. A lot of the songs that didn't warm up my voice for my vocal coach would not be happy to hear that. But it's like, I wanted to keep the. The. Like, the grit in my voice too. So I think the home studio let me do that.

[A]

What is your vocal coach teacher? What does he teach you on a regular basis?

[C]

Oh, she teaches me a lot about how singing is not about pushing your voice out, but allowing your voice. Like, if you really want to sing from your heart, you don't even. You're not even listening to yourself. You're just feeling it come out of you, and you have to take yourself out of the picture and let other people just consume and experience who you are. So she teaches me how to get out of the technique, actually, and to be more free, to just be. I think singing at its highest form is just a state of being. It's just like a meditative state. So she helps me achieve that.

[A]

Do you get in your own way?

[C]

Yeah, I definitely do. I'll be thinking about, oh, this high notes coming. I need to tighten here and place the sound here and. And then I out of it. And I. And I usually mess up on the note, so I definitely get in my own way. I'm still learning how to not get in my own way.

[A]

I hear you on that. I'm talking to vocalist and songwriter Umi. The new album is called People Story. She's here for a listening party. Let's listen to another track. This song is Pink Camo. What do you want us to know as we listen to this?

[C]

Oh, I love. Well, I dedicate the song to nature and also my manager Michelle, she's here with me, but I wrote it at her house, and she has this beautiful view of the mountains. And I was just staring at the mountains, and I felt like the mountains were just speaking to me. And I wanted to write a song. I was like, what does nature sound like? And so I made a song about what nature sounds like to me.

[A]

Here's pink camo.

[B]

Pink camo. Camouflage is really good. And wondering Dreaming of a wonderland I still want to make my mind up I turn to the fight I see a beautiful sign it makes me almost cry it makes me feel so alive See myself in all of the to do all the flowers that bloom all this life I never knew Goes on and on and on and on Anything else you want to say? Is there anything that you really want to say? Is there anything to get out your brain?

[C]

Ever want to like Mary Kay? Do you really feel like you mean what you say? I got a feel that trust gets.

[B]

Hard where do you go when you trying to be hard? Know you running just on far I want to be right there when you turn to the right I see a beautiful sign it makes me almost cry it makes me feel so alive.

[A]

Umi, what is the instrumentation that we're here hearing that? Is it a banjo? It's. What is that we're hearing?

[C]

That is actually guitar. Guitar going through a bunch of processing on. So, interestingly, all the sounds in this song are actually from the computer that we programmed, and we, like, created sounds, me and Viron. Viron produced this song, and she. She was, like, also really interested on how you can use the computer to make organic sounding sounds. So this album, surprisingly, like, you might think, a lot of them are live instruments, but also a lot of them are program sounds that we created.

[A]

So you made that sound.

[C]

Mm.

[D]

Wow.

[C]

Yeah, Veron made that sound.

[A]

That's a pretty cool thing to do.

[C]

It's so cool to do. It's like reinventing. It's like a. Yeah. Creating a new instrument through merging different instruments.

[A]

Well, when you're writing a song, I mean, I was gonna say which comes first, the lyrics or the music, but you have to put another line in there. Or is it a man made music?

[B]

I'm not sure.

[A]

What works for you?

[C]

For me, a lot of this album was freestyled, so Viron would produce the tracks. I would tell her what kind of sounds I'm feeling for the day. And then I would just be sitting there kind of humming, and then all of a sudden I'd be like, put me on the mic and I Would just sing the whole song, most of the lyrics included. It was just like. Like rain down on me. And I would freestyle it.

[A]

Wow. It just came through.

[C]

You Just came through me.

[B]

Wow.

[A]

We're going to listen to the song 10am what should we know about this song as we listen to it?

[C]

Oh, I love 10am 10am is the sweetest song ever. It's written about my friend who told me, I know I'm in love because I had breakfast in bed with my girl at 10am and there's nowhere else I wanted to be. And I literally took those words exactly. Put them in the song.

[A]

Let's listen.

[B]

Waking up and you're still here Whisper secrets in your ear I've waited for so long Now I'm opening my eyes, letting in Never leave your side Never leave this behind. Oh, pretty close to paradise. Breakfast in your bed is nice. I stay here forever Tell the world away I was turned to death I can never leave a sight Oh, I would rather die. You are the lover, I am the rock. You are the path of gravity ever stops over the ocean drifting away you are the sky I sing to every day. I love love of you.

[A]

That's Umi singing. 10am when you played these songs on Saturday night, what was it like to play this music in front of people?

[C]

Oh, so satisfying being in front of the people that I made the music for. I thought about as I was singing Envision when I'm thinking about music videos and they're just right there. It's so satisfying. It's so real. It makes you. Especially in a world where everything is on social media and everything is digital. Like, I think the in personness is very necessary to remind yourself that, like, this is actually a real thing.

[A]

And I wanted to let people know that. On your tour schedule it says you're hosting a guided sound bath experience.

[C]

Yes, if you come to my VIP experience, instead of just like a typical meet and greet, I actually like to do group meditation, journaling, conversation, so you actually get to know me on a deeper level and also leave with something that can make your life better. And I also open my shows always with some breathing meditation. It just puts us all in sync and I think it calms you down no matter where you came from.

[A]

We're gonna go out on one more song. We're gonna hear what now. What should we listen for in this song?

[C]

Oh, there's so much to listen for. Well, first, the angst in my voice. There's a lot of imperfection and, like, grit in there to listen to and I think the texture of the drums is really unique.

[A]

The album is called People Stories. It's by vocalist and songwriter Umi. Umi, thank you so much for being with us in studio. We really appreciate you.

[C]

Thank you for having me and letting me talk about my music. This is a dream come true.

[A]

Let's listen to what now.

[B]

That it's above us what now? I got lost in the thought of us somehow what now? Innocent hot sauce in the fire what now? What now? Over you is overkill to think about you? You what to do about the pages that I wrote about you I'm in trouble you're trying to make myself forget about you? Telling me lies like you're telling me you're stuffy not afraid to test the way I stuff it It's a shame, it's a shame, it's a shame But I got no.

[A]

That's the latest from Umi from her album People. Stories on the way.

[D]

This is Ira Flato, host of Science Friday. For over 30 years, the science Friday team has been reporting high quality science and technology news, making science fun for curious people by covering everything from the outer reaches of space to the rapidly changing world of AI to the tiniest microbes in our bodies. Audiences trust our show because they know we're driven by a mission to inform and serve listeners first and foremost with important news they won't get anywhere else. And our sponsors benefit from that halo effect. For more information on becoming a sponsor, visit sponsorship.wnyc.org.