Bellevue Beats: Tomo Nakayama

Bellevue Beats: Tomo Nakayama

 

Born in Japan and raised in Seattle, Washington, Tomo Nakayama is an artist whose melodic, complex and emotionally compelling music has been praised by NPR, New York Times, and KEXP, an independent Seattle public radio station. 

"When music journalists say things like 'this artist is a fixture in Seattle music,' there’s probably no one right now who fits that title better than Nakayama." - KEXP

After two critically acclaimed indie-folk albums “Fog on the Lens” and “Pieces of Sky” (named "Best Folk Act" by Seattle Weekly), he surprised his fans by releasing the synthpop album  "Melonday" (on Seattle imprint Porchlight Records). Co-produced by Yuuki Matthews (The Shins, Teardrops, Sufjan Stevens) and mastered by Dave Cooley (M83, Paramore, Tame Impala), “Melonday” was named one of the Top Albums of 2020 by Seattle Times, KEXP, Seattle Met. and debuted at #1 on KEXP's NW Charts. He has toured across the US and Japan and played with Jeremy Enigk (Sunny Day Real Estate), Tom Brosseau, Cornelius, Shugo Tokumaru, and Sera Cahoone. An active, longtime member of the Seattle music and arts community, Tomo has also curated and produced various events for Forterra (Ampersand Live) and Town Hall, where he also served as Artist in Residence. He composed music and appeared as an actor in the Lynn Shelton film “Touchy Feely."

Virtual Tip Jar:

• Venmo: @TomoNakayama
• PayPal: @TomoNakayama

 

SEE UPCOMING SHOWS

Spanning April through fall, we’re reigniting Downtown's music scene with a free concerts in the Heart of Bellevue. Stream shows online every Wednesday, with outdoor in-person Summer Sessions beginning in July. Whether you catch the tunes online or make it Downtown for shows under the sun, enjoy our longest concert series yet!