LEAFY, Rising Singer-Songwriter Who Crafts Naturalness Into Song

At noon on August 27, 2024, a song quietly appeared on music streaming sites. This track, titled 'Green Home', had no flashy marketing or massive promotion, yet it quietly seeped into the hearts of listeners. At its center was LEAFY. This singer-songwriter, who expresses naturalness through song, first met the public through 'Singing Playground (Nonol)' and is now establishing herself as a notable newcomer in the music scene.

LEAFY's Story

LEAFY introduces herself as 'a singer-songwriter who expresses naturalness through song'. Her musical spectrum is broad. The simplicity of indie is layered with the sophisticated groove of R&B, and sometimes mixed with the rhythmical flow of hip-hop. But more important than defining genres is the musical philosophy she pursues.

'At first, I tried to fill my songs with fancy words, but it felt like it wasn't completely mine, so now I'm expressing my heart as it is', she says. Not embellishing or turning away from the emotions she sometimes feels, but expressing them directly in melody and lyrics - this is LEAFY's unique color.

Since her 2024 debut, she has proven her exceptional vocal ability and musical sensibility through original songs like 'Green Home', 'Fade away', 'RUN', and a cover of SZA's 'Nobody Gets Me'. She is particularly praised as a 'legendary R&B newcomer' for her deep emotional expression in the R&B genre and stable vocal skills.

Listening to LEAFY's music, your heart naturally becomes calm. Instead of flashy techniques or exaggerated emotional expressions, raw honesty provides deeper resonance. As she says, 'I want to show myself as I am', her music contains unpackaged sincerity.

Recent Activities

Recently, LEAFY has been actively performing on various stages. On the 14th, she participated in the 'Autumn Busking from Jeju' performance at Seoul's Cheonggyecheon Plaza, presenting a live performance with singer An Tae-gyun that allowed Seoul citizens traveling through the city center to feel the atmosphere of Jeju and autumn. This was part of the Jeju promotion program annually conducted by the Jeju Special Self-Governing Province Central Cooperation Headquarters, and LEAFY's music became a special time that provided daily healing.

Meanwhile, she communicates with fans through Instagram, showing her genuine side. In a recent post, she revealed, 'I released songs every year since my first single debut year, but this year was the first time I took a break', adding 'Though I took a break from songwriting, this was a year where I gained more than ever before'.

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LEAFY's Music

Meet LEAFY at Nonol

Meet their music live at the Singing Playground.

🎵 "Green Home"

From the moment the first note rings out, you feel like you're sitting by a rain-soaked window. 'Green Home' is a song that began from LEAFY's forest dream. As she explains, 'Sometimes I dream of being left alone in a forest. It's not scary to be alone - I love that harmless forest', this song creates a sense of space that is solitary yet peaceful. The vocals start stably in the mid-low range and naturally rise in the chorus, while the arrangement of acoustic guitar and simple drums reveals the song's essence without exaggeration.

In this version with subtitles, you can understand LEAFY's lyrical philosophy more deeply. This song, which captures the feeling that when you wake up from such a dream, you feel refreshed and somehow like the day will go well, has such strong appeal that over 11,000 people stopped to listen. The vocal style of this song somehow recalls the plainness of Lee So-ra and the lyricism of Jannabi.

🎵 "Fade away"

What to note in this song's intro is the monotonous repetition of the piano. Over a simple 4-bar chord progression, LEAFY's vocals flow as if in conversation. In this song themed around 'the emptiness that comes after separation', she freely moves between falsetto and chest voice to express layers of emotion. Particularly, the climax created when the vocal line rises in the bridge section recalls Billie Eilish's restrained expressiveness. The fact that over 12,000 viewers empathized with this delicate emotional expression proves this.

🎵 "RUN"

'I love this song nice very very' — this is the comment that received the most empathy. 'RUN' is the song where LEAFY most honestly reveals the emotions she feels while choosing the uncertain path of music. Her heart, which believes that although every day is anxious, someday it will shine brightly, is fully contained. What's notable about this song is the genre crossover where R&B vocals are placed over hip-hop rhythmic sensibility. Over an eighth-note-based beat, LEAFY's vocals naturally move between rapping and melody, and this style recalls Dua Lipa's early works.

🎵 "International Stages and Cover Works"

The live stage performed in Guangzhou, China shows another side of LEAFY. In this fan-cam video where she performs under the Chinese name Zhang Ye-lei (张叶蕾) and sings 'Still Breaking Up' (还是分开), you can see the vivid energy of the scene and her interaction with the audience.

In this live cover of Lee Hi's 'Our Season', LEAFY's interpretive ability stands out. She reconstructed the original's dramatic arrangement into a more minimal, acoustic guitar-centered arrangement that maximized the song's lyricism.

The cover of Lee Young-hoon's 'A Kind of Confession' filmed at Yangyang Ingu Beach is one of the videos that best shows LEAFY's sensibility. Against the backdrop of the sea, her voice sounds even more pure in this natural setting.

'Sunrise Surf' is a song that contains LEAFY's love for summer. In the simple message 'Love Sunrise and Sunset of the summer', her musical purity is contained.

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🎵 "Nobody Gets Me (Original: SZA)"

LEAFY boldly deconstructed the complex production that SZA showed in the original. Instead of a full band sound, she constructed the song's framework with only piano and subtle bass lines, and developed her own vocal interpretation over it. Particularly in the key phrase 'Nobody gets me, you do', LEAFY sings with even more heartfelt emotion than the original. Her affection for SZA, whom she revealed as one of her favorite musicians, is fully conveyed in this cover. Over 10,000 people were moved by this delicate reinterpretation.

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🎵 "LEAFY Full Ver"

What to note in this full version video is LEAFY's song composition ability. From the cozy intro of 'Green Home' to the dynamic finale of 'RUN', the four songs flow like one complete story. Her natural comments and smiles shown at the connecting points between each song create Nonol's characteristic intimate atmosphere. This video, filmed on the last day of February when finishing the long winter and preparing to welcome warm spring, fully captured LEAFY's unique bright atmosphere. The fact that over 12,000 viewers were captivated by this perfect setlist proves this.

What Fans Say About LEAFY

Learn More About LEAFY

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We're already looking forward to what stories her upcoming EP album and new music will tell. If you're curious about the next chapter of singer-songwriter LEAFY, who crafts naturalness into song, meet her first at Singing Playground.