Annika Zee - Bleu (2022)

''The album is a reflection of where I’ve been mentally, navigating the concept of having a broader perspective, says Annika... being a person of mixed race has taught me to see from opposing perspectives, which has brought about some inner turmoil, but has also helped me learn that having these deeper conversations across racial lines is where we can achieve real change. Having these conversations doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice your own culture but how can we lift up those who are oppressed to live their truth freely?

The title Bleu was inspired by Kieslowski’s film Three Colors: Blue in which Julie, a strong female composer, processes her grief after the death of her husband.

I felt like Bleu captured my state of moving beyond the lens of putting others' acceptance first, says Zee, of growing out of codependency and toxic feminine societal programming. It is about independence, freedom, and empowerment ... the liberty of oneself and others. A spiritual map for those who know how to read it correctly.

Annika Zee is a multimedia artist born and raised in Toronto who later studied at the Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music in New York. Her production style draws from a discerning palette of sound that melds the possibilities of real and digital instruments, incorporating elements of noise, experiments in sound design, and classic songwriting.