The relatively narrow space that Asian and Asian American artists have carved out for themselves in the Anglophone American music market has been, for the most part, associated with the genres of hip-hop, EDM and house music. With the release of her debut single "Switch Up" in late October, Korean-American singer-songwriter Sobae (소베) proves that there might be also a space in future and alternative R&B for Asian performers. The song's lyrics might be directed at a lover ('Baby I’m about switch up switch up/ Puttin on some makeup make up/ Boy I bet you stayed up stayed up/ I’m coming to you'), but it simultaneously serves as a mission statement to diversify what R&B listeners are accustomed to.
"Switch Up" easily finds its place alongside the sensual nocturnal musings of future R&B innovators like Frank Ocean and The Weeknd, but Sobae's swagger is armed with decidedly playful and witty demeanor (rather than socio-political commentary and nihilistic conclusions). 'Saw you lookin me up on LinkedIn/ Boy you here for business or pleasure?/ Don’t overthink it, Kendrick said it best/ Just need my women and weather': the song excels at evoking the hazy, flickering and libidinous state of mind that takes shape after midnight - when a different kind of rationality sets in. The accompanying music video, which is bathed in pink, purple and blue neon lighting, visually reinforces this aesthetic.
Instead of being the woman sung about ('Don’t you know they write songs about girls like this'), Sobae places herself in the driver's seat and takes control of the mood and tempo of the late-night rendezvous she foresees. As she croons over soft trap beats and a neo-soul melody, the boasts come across as being seductive, alluring and effortlessly captivating: 'You should get what you deserve/ Lowkey want me when I swerve/ Anytime anyplace any moment/ At my own fuckin pace'.
