Gleaming Continuity

You see Rina Sawayama’s list of interests—anime, Nintendo, strange music—and you immediately know her. That was my childhood too, basically. Spent it glued to screens watching whatever weird stuff I could find, learning about culture through games and cartoons and whatever was on TV. She grew up the same way, moved from Japan to London by her parents and surrounded by that same sensory chaos. When you meet someone with that background, you trust them.

She’s been making music for a few years now. Some of it electronic, some of it pop, but there’s always something distinctly hers in it. Her debut didn’t blow up the mainstream but it found the right people in the underground, which is the only place it mattered anyway.

Ordinary Superstar is basically her saying out loud: I love the 80s. Specifically the version of the 80s that exists in our heads—all glitter and darkness and shine. The video’s her with friends, dancing through that aesthetic, all styled for maximum camp. Karaoke moment included, completely over-the-top, which only works if you’re willing to look stupid.

It makes sense when you know Rina. There’s no separation between what she loves and what she makes. The 80s aren’t a costume or a bit—they’re part of the same visual and sonic language that drew her to anime, to Nintendo, to all of it. It’s all one continuity.

The song is good. It’s the kind of thing you listen to more than once. There’s genuine fun in it without any of the defensive irony that a lot of music has now. Just: here’s something that looks and sounds great. If you get it, you get it.