Naia Izumi is an American

virtuoso A virtuoso (from Italian ''virtuoso'' or , "virtuous", Late Latin ''virtuosus'', Latin ''virtus'', "virtue", "excellence" or "skill") is an individual who possesses outstanding talent and technical ability in a particular art or field such as ...

guitarist and singer songwriter from

Columbus, Georgia Columbus is a consolidated city-county located on the west-central border of the U.S. state of Georgia. Columbus lies on the Chattahoochee River directly across from Phenix City, Alabama. It is the county seat of Muscogee County, with which it o ...

Early life

Izumi received his first guitar by age 10. He learned how to play the instrument in a closet, hiding from his father, who disapproved of his interest in creating music. His mother is a choir director. At the age of 16, Izumi was diagnosed with

autism The autism spectrum, often referred to as just autism or in the context of a professional diagnosis autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or autism spectrum condition (ASC), is a neurodevelopmental condition (or conditions) characterized by difficulti ...

. He is open about being autistic, and describes autism as "not a problem but instead a unique brain chemistry one can use to accomplish the unexpected".

Career

Izumi began his music career

busking Street performance or busking is the act of performing in public places for gratuities. In many countries, the rewards are generally in the form of money but other gratuities such as food, drink or gifts may be given. Street performance is pra ...

on the streets of Los Angeles. Filmaker, Suzuya Bobo, met Izumi in LA and offered to create a music video for him. She suggested he submit a song to the ''NPR Tiny Desk Contest''. In 2018, at age 34, Izumi won the fourth annual ''NPR Music''

Tiny Desk Contest Tiny Desk Concerts is a video series of live concerts hosted by NPR Music at the desk of ''All Songs Considered'' host Bob Boilen in Washington, D.C. The first Tiny Desk Concert came about in 2008 after Boilen and NPR Music editor Stephen Th ...

with his song, "Soft Spoken". According to the series' creator, Bob Boilen, Izumi, "impressed the judges with his intricate, complex guitar playing and his sweet, emotive voice." The competition was judged by Boilen, Tarriona “Tank” Ball,

Sylvan Esso Sylvan Esso is an American electronic pop duo from Durham, North Carolina, formed in 2013. The band consists of singer Amelia Meath (born July 2, 1988) and producer Nick Sanborn (born March 8, 1983). They made their debut with the single "Hey ...

, and

Gaby Moreno Gaby Moreno is a Guatemalan singer-songwriter, producer, film composer and guitarist. Singing in both English and Spanish, Moreno's music covers many genres including Latin, Alternative, Blues, Folk and Americana. Biography Moreno was born i ...

. Izumi was surprised to learn he'd won, because he forgot he'd entered the contest. Following his win, he played a 10-city national tour. In 2019, Izumi signed to

Sony Masterworks Sony Music Masterworks (Sony Masterworks) is a record label, the result of a restructuring of Sony Music's classical music division. Before the acquisition of Bertelsmann's shares in the former Sony BMG, the label was known as Sony BMG Masterwo ...

. He is sponsored by Fender. On July 30, 2021, Sony Masterworks released Izumi’s debut album, ''A Residency in the Los Angeles Area''. On the album, he played vocals, guitar, bass, drums, Japanese Koto, mandolin, and

cittern The cittern or cithren ( Fr. ''cistre'', It. ''cetra'', Ger. ''Cister,'' Sp. ''cistro, cedra, cítola'') is a stringed instrument dating from the Renaissance. Modern scholars debate its exact history, but it is generally accepted that it is d ...

. Izumi was influenced by

King Crimson King Crimson are a progressive rock band formed in 1968 in London, England. The band draws inspiration from a wide variety of music, incorporating elements of classical, jazz, folk, heavy metal, gamelan, industrial, electronic, experime ...

Musiq Soulchild Taalib Hassan Johnson (born September 16, 1977), better known by the stage name Musiq Soulchild or simply Musiq (pronounced "music") is an American singer and songwriter whose style blends R&B, funk, blues, jazz, and gospel influences fused w ...

, and

Shakti In Hinduism, especially Shaktism (a theological tradition of Hinduism), Shakti (Devanagari: शक्ति, IAST: Śakti; lit. "Energy, ability, strength, effort, power, capability") is the primordial cosmic energy, female in aspect, and rep ...

. ''American Songwriter'' wrote, "it’s amazing to see an artist like Izumi make a bold, exciting new sound out of the cherished, ol’ six-string. That’s raw, unabashed creativity." In 2022, Izumi played a concert in

Bushwick Bushwick is a neighborhood in the northern part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is bounded by the neighborhood of Ridgewood, Queens, to the northeast; Williamsburg to the northwest; East New York and the cemeteries of Highland Pa ...

to raise money for

abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...

access.

Releases

Albums

''A Residency in the Los Angeles Area'' (2021)

Singles

Soft Spoken
(2018)
Our Gravity
nowiki>'' (2019)

Shows

Naia Izumi: NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert
(2018)

Personal life

Izumi resides in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

. He identified as

genderfluid Non-binary and genderqueer are umbrella terms for gender identities that are not solely male or femaleidentities that are outside the gender binary. Non-binary identities fall under the transgender umbrella, since non-binary people typica ...

, then, as a woman for seven years, but now identifies as a man. The song that won him ''Tiny Desk'' was originally titled, "Soft Spoken Woman", and was written about his experiences as a woman.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Izumi, Naia Living people Musicians from Los Angeles Year of birth missing (living people) People on the autism spectrum American LGBT singers People who detransitioned