Biography
Mitski (born Mitsuki Laycock; also known as Mitski Miyawaki) is an American singer-songwriter born on September 27, 1990, in Mie Prefecture, Japan, to a Japanese mother and a White American father.[1] Her father's work with the U.S. State Department meant the family moved often, and she lived in many countries, changing schools almost yearly and first arriving in the United States at fifteen.[1]
She moved to New York in 2010, spent a year studying film at Hunter College, then transferred to SUNY Purchase, where she studied studio composition and earned a Bachelor of Music in 2013.[1] Her first two albums, Lush (2012) and Retired from Sad, New Career in Business (2013), began as student projects with piano and orchestral arrangements.[1][2] Her third album, Bury Me at Makeout Creek (2014), turned toward guitar-driven indie rock, and she signed with Dead Oceans in December 2015.[1][3] Puberty 2 (2016) and Be the Cowboy (2018) followed, and Laurel Hell (2022) reached the top ten in several countries.[1]
She has described herself as solitary and introverted, and drew on a lonely stretch alone in Malaysia between tours to write "Nobody," the 2018 single that became her best-known song.[4] It went viral on TikTok in 2021 and introduced her to a younger audience.[5]
References
- Mitski (Wikipedia) — Biographical details, education, discography and career milestones.
- Q&A: Mitski (American Songwriter) — Early songwriting, student albums and the shift to Bury Me at Makeout Creek.
- Bury Me at Makeout Creek (Wikipedia) — Album background and release details.
- Mitski interview (Radio Milwaukee) — Mitski on writing "Nobody" while alone in Malaysia and on solitude.
- Nobody (Mitski song) (Wikipedia) — Single release, composition and 2021 TikTok resurgence.