Bea Kristi, a dreamy pop singer-songwriter also known as Beabadoobee, is a lot cooler than most 19-year-olds.
Born in Iloilo City, Philippines, Kristi moved to London with her parents when she was 3, and learned how to play the violin. At 17, she taught herself how to play the guitar via YouTube tutorials and recorded her first song, "Coffee," in a friend's bedroom.
"Coffee" quickly garnered hundreds of thousands of views on YouTube and caught the attention of Dirty Hit – the independent British label home to the 1975, Pale Waves and Wolf Alice.
Kristi has now released 5 EPs under Dirty Hit, including her 90s-grunge-meets-modern-pop hybrid, Space Cadet.
Space Cadet is an ode to 90s rock and navigating through young adulthood. The five-song extended play features songs "She Plays Bass," which is about her best friend/bass player in her live set up, and "I Wish I Was Stephen Malkmus," which is about figuring out her identity as a singer and, well, wanting to be the frontman of Pavement.
"My influencers are Sonic Youth, Pavement – this shit that totally shaped me," Kristi said.
"They shaped the way I dress, how I speak, act and just everything I am. With this EP, I was just craving a little bit more. Like, I wanna sing like Stephen Malkmus for fuck's sake!"
Kristi's guitar-heavy indie pop has been making waves. In 2019, she was included in NME, DIY, Dork and Amazon Music's up-and-coming artist lists, and won a UK Music Video Award for her song "Disappear."
Just last night, she won the Radar Award at the NME Awards in London, which is presented to the year's best emerging artist.
"This young lady happens to be the most exciting thing, I think, in rock music," the 1975 frontman Matty Healy said, addressing the audience before Kristi took the stage for a performance of "She Plays Bass."
Kristi is hitting the road on her first-ever headlining tour this March in North America and will be performing at Coachella 2020! She's also scheduled to support labelmates the 1975 on the UK leg of their Music For Cars Tour this month, as well as their North American Notes on a Conditional Form tour in April.
And as far as new music goes? She says:
Embedded content is no longer available.
Check out Beabadoobee's upcoming UK tour dates below, and head to her website for more dates and information!
Beabadoobee's 2020 Winter UK Tour dates:
February 15 @ Motorpoint Arena, Nottingham
February 16 @ Utilita Arena, Newcastle
February 17 @ First Direct Arena, Leeds
February 19 @ Bournemouth International Centre, Bournemouth
February 21 @ The O2 Arena, London
February 22 @ The O2 Arena, London
February 23 @ Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff
February 25 @ Birmingham Arena, Birmingham
February 26 @ M&S Bank Arena, Liverpool
February 28 @ Manchester Arena, Manchester
February 29 @ P&J Live Arena, Aberdeen
March 1 @ SSE Hydro, Glasgow
March 3 @ 3Arena, Dublin
