Good meowning, everybunny! Today's Bento Box Artist is Mei Ehara!
Mei Ehara is a Tokyo-based multidisciplinary artist, musician, writer, and designer whose quietly luminous work has established her as a singular voice in contemporary Japanese music. Born in Aichi Prefecture, she began making self-directed films as a student, an early creative pursuit that soon led her into home recording. After releasing a series of self-produced projects, she emerged in 2017 with her debut album Sway, followed by Ampersands, both released on the pioneering independent label KAKUBARHYTHM. Her introspective songwriting and warm, clear vocals have resonated widely, leading to collaborations with a range of acclaimed artists. In 2021, she contributed vocals and lyrics to Faye Webster’s I Know I’m Funny Haha, and appeared as a featured vocalist on Cornelius’s shimmering track Change and Vanish. She continued her collaborative explorations in 2024 by participating in HOSONO HOUSE COVERS (released in the U.S. as HOSONO HOUSE REVISIT), a Haruomi Hosono tribute album issued jointly by Stones Throw Records and KAKUBARHYTHM.
From late 2024 into early 2025, Ehara joined Faye Webster for a 23-date tour across the U.S. and Canada, where her performances drew praise for their understated power and emotional clarity. Throughout this period, she also remained active as a writer, photographer, and art director, contributing to film and video projects that mirror her multidisciplinary approach. Her third album, All About McGuffin, arriving September 17, 2025 (September 12 in the U.S.), marks her most adventurous and personal work to date, capturing a new phase in her evolution as an artist unbounded by genre or expectation. To celebrate its release, she will embark on her first U.S. headline tour, bringing her evocative live show to 4 cities starting September 23.
Ehara’s work synthesizes elements of Japanese folk, indie rock, ambient textures, and delicate pop, woven together by her curiosity and keen sense of atmosphere. Whether composing songs, directing visuals, or designing printed matter, she continues to expand her creative practice, quietly redefining what it means to be an independent artist today.