In the new EP Club Shy, popular experimental artist Shygirl effortlessly creates an ambiance of daring dance floors and euphoria through blending the complex beats of electronic and house music with pillowy R&B vocals. 

Shygirl is a lyricist and DJ, writing, performing and producing her own music. She found home in the anonymity of the UK club scene, remixing Bjork tracks and now trying to“hit a sweet space between escapism and reality.” 

The EP is full of collaborators with similar artistic goals, each song featuring an artist or two. Shygirls devotion to quality over quantity shines through all six songs, and at 16 minutes, the listener isn’t left unsatisfied. This whirlwind of multi-textured synths, however, may give you whiplash. 

The Wolf interviewed Tualatin High School junior Hailey Malm about her thoughts on the EP. 

“It was really good. I liked ‘thicc’ the most,” said Malm. She went on to say it reminded her of a past friend she described as “sunny and electric.”

While Shygirls’ nuanced artistic lens can be appreciated by many, it’s important to reflect back on the circumstances that shape this lens. In a MixMag interview, she reflected on what has been formative in her style.

 “Growing up, being mixed race and being raised mainly by my white family, it’s been a journey and very hard finding the spaces that I feel welcomed by. The Black queer community– has always welcomed me with open arms.”

 In 2022, Music of Black Origin (MOBO) reintegrated the “Best Electronic” category after more than two decades, which Shygirl easily won. MOBO is an annual British music award to honor achievements in music of black origin. As we see a resurgence in electronic genre-bending music in artists such as Charli XCX, who is widely recognized, one must look back at the styles’ pioneers, largely from the LGBT and Black communities. This renewal of recognition in Shygirls’ win in Best Electronic Act reminds people of the extensive contribution of these two communities to the electronic music genre.