Bea Kristi – now better known as Beabadoobee – had an eventful couple of years as her teens drew to a close. Born in the Philippines at the turn of the century, Bea moved to London at age 2 and by the time she turned 14 was listening to bands like The Cranberries and The Smiths, and was getting into trouble with her friends, experimenting with drugs and pulling all-nighters.
“That summer was one of the best summers I had friendship-wise,” Bea reflects. “But also the unhealthiest and the most confusing one, because I had no idea what the f**k I was doing with my life.” Her solace came when her father bought her a guitar, leading her to teach herself how to play and writing her first song, “Coffee,” which kicked off an unexpected career by going viral after she posted it to Soundcloud. That led to the release of a four-song cassette, a deal with Dirty Hit, and three EPs between 2018 and 2019. Then followed recognition from the BRIT Awards and performances at the NME Awards show and The 1975’s O2 Arena shows before finding herself locked down at her parents’ home as she finished up her debut album, Fake It Flowers.
Released in October, Fake It Flowers is an album addressing all of Bea’s concerns with the world with swirling, bombastic guitars and propulsive rhythms, and driving Pop tunes with an Alt edge featuring Bea’s raw, yet melodious vocals. The lead single, “Care,” is an anthem raging against insincerity and duplicity that soars as Bea delivers the chorus of, “you don’t really care, care care,” setting the stage for a trove of songs that raise every question about every kind of relationship she has encountered in her life.
“[Childhood] was a traumatic time,” she says. “I’m still trying to get over it… but writing this album has helped a lot. Every song is so personal, I’m f**king terrified to show it to the world.”
Hopefully, the strong support from dozens of stations, including WXPN, WFUV, Lightning 100, WPYA, 88.5FM/LA, Music Choice and WNRN will help her get past her fears.
