Shigeto announces new LP Cherry Blossom Baby
Cherry blossoms remind me of my mother and grandmother’s steadfast nature to look towards the light and the strength in “acting as one”. The cherry blossom trees that bloom every spring in Hiroshima are an enduring image of hope, resilience, and renewal. Even through the most turbulent of times.
Cherry Blossom Baby was literally ‘impossible’ to make without every single person involved.
It started in 2018 and was finished in 2024. A manifestation of our shared experiences of pain, struggle, hope and growth over the past 6 years and a true testament to the power of ‘togetherness’.
I am a cherry blossom baby.
We all are cherry blossom babies, we all are resilient, we all are growing, we all will continue to.
Photographs by Cody Stills
Today sees the release of Ready. Set. Flex. (feat. Zelooperz), the second single from the upcoming Cherry Blossom Baby album.
Shigeto’s latest long player has been in the making since 2018, a celebration of self-love and an expression of vitality informed by his Detroit identity and his family’s cultural history.
‘Shigeto’ is Zach Saginaw‘s middle name, passed down from his great grandfather with the meaning: to grow. As he mentions in the quote above, the work draws inspiration from cherry trees that blossom every spring at Hiroshima, an enduring image of hope, resilience and renewal.
Been from a mixed background myself, I’ve always identified with Shigeto’s ability to create from this melting pot. “My identity is always something I’ve struggled with, not being really considered Japanese, not being considered white'” he explains in the press release. “I think Shigeto was a way for me to have this identity, to create one for myself that I can latch onto, and it suddenly (with the dawn of Covid and the cessation of nightlife) didn’t exist anymore.”
Every track is a collab and the album features Zelooperz, Ian Maciak (drummer for Machinedrum), vocalist and musician KESSWA, rapper Cleveland Thrasher, harpist Ahya Simone, producer/DJ Tammy Lakkis, guitarist Sasha Kashperko and The Josh Craig.
PRE-ORDER THE ALBUM HERE – RELEASE 25 OCT 2024
