Kina

Italian producer Kina’s melancholy, downtempo beats provide atmospheric backing for yearning, confessional lyrics by a variety of guest vocalists. The artist shot to fame when tracks such as his 2018 singles “Get You the Moon” and “Can We Kiss Forever?” became viral successes, leading to a major-label signing. The Naples-based producer first began uploading his moody instrumentals, consisting of aired-out, trap-influenced beats and gentle, wistful melodies, around 2017. His self-issued EP Roses contained two tracks featuring submerged vocals by Shiloh Dynasty. In March of 2018, Kina released the song “Get You the Moon,” featuring singer Snøw. The track became a hit online, and continued to rack up hundreds of millions of streams over the following years, eventually earning platinum certifications in the U.S., Mexico, and Australia. Kina released several other heavily streamed tracks, including “I Still Dream of You” (featuring Thomas Reid) and “Can We Kiss Forever?” (with Adriana Proenza), and signed with Columbia later in the year. An animated video for the enduring “Get You the Moon,” as well as a set of remixes of the song, appeared in 2019. The following year, Kina released Things I Wanted to Tell You, a six-song EP including some of his most well-known singles as well as additional tunes featuring vocalists such as darkpassengerxx and Pink Sweat$. ~ Paul Simpson