I spent the day with REI AMI, who just dropped her debut mixtape and is ready to be worshipped

We were in a taxi headed to Grand Central Terminal, the perfect place for a rainy-day photo shoot in New York City, when REI AMI had a sudden jolt of pop-star panic: "What if there are creepy fans there? What do you even do with creepy fans?"

That may seem odd coming from an artist with 2 million monthly listeners on Spotify and a cosign from Billie Eilish.

But REI AMI's viral breakout single, "Snowcone," was released mere months before the pandemic forced everyone inside. She built the majority of her fanbase in a virtual world, and said she'd only met one fan in real life. (Now, she's met at least two: A fan did approach her at the train station, and their mutual awe was precious to behold.)

A member of her creative team reassured us that anyone with a creepy vibe would be swiftly handled.

She also told us about another musician she works with, who was recently greeted at the airport by fans holding posters of his face, edited to look like the sun baby from "Teletubbies."

"Honestly?" REI AMI paused, smirking slightly. "I would love that."

One year ago, when REI AMI and I were introduced over Zoom, she was holed up in her parents' basement. The laptop for her corporate nine-to-five was propped open inches away. Her off-the-clock hours were filled, as she described ruefully, with "drinking alone" and "recording s---, God, just always alone."

This time around, the 26-year-old greeted me with a warm hug, jumping up from a crowded table that also held her publicist, her label's indie marketer, and her producer-turned-boyfriend, Christian Blue. Wearing just a white tank top and blue jeans, she still managed to vibrate with that intangible kind of star quality.

"This is tofu. This is sesame. This is Kimchi," she began excitedly, shocked to learn I'd never had Korean barbecue. "We can get a bottle of soju! No, wait, we probably shouldn't. I want to show you a good time. But this is a busy day."

It's hard to imagine any day soon that won't be busy for REI AMI. In the months since our first meeting, the rapidly rising star quit her day job, moved to Los Angeles, signed with Visionary Records, walked in Rihanna's Savage x Fenty show, dropped five singles, and finished recording her first full-length project. The cocoon-to-butterfly metaphor writes itself.

"It's true, I've been working hard. I've been feeding these motherf---ers! My babies, my Reibies," she said, referencing her fans' moniker. "They were getting so full, they were like, 'OK, where's the mixtape? Entrée time. We're sick of the appetizers.'"

On Friday, the "Reibies" were finally sated. REI AMI's debut mixtape, "Foil," is a 10-song joyride through her restless and fascinating brain.

The Seoul-born, Maryland-raised artist has made contrast her calling card. Born Sarah Yeeun Lee, her stage name combines the energies of two "Sailor Moon" characters: the in-your-face Rei Hino, aka Sailor Mars, and sensitive Ami Mizuno, aka Sailor Mercury.

"Foil" builds upon that dynamic. The title refers to a type of literary character that clashes with the protagonist, so as to illuminate the latter's true nature. REI is a foil for AMI, and vice versa.

The tracklist darts back and forth between misty soul-searching, mosh-worthy guitar licks, glossy pop hooks, and brash trap beats - sometimes even switching gears halfway through a song. It's jarring by design, as if REI AMI is daring you to make assumptions so she can laugh when you're wrong.

"It's chaotic, but that's me," she agreed. "I didn't want to put pressure on myself to come up with something that's super cohesive and put-together and perfect, because that's not how I feel. I have a lot of pent-up frustration, and I have a lot of s--- to say."

"I want to shock people," she continued. "I wanna train my Reibies to never expect anything specific. But I will never feed them something that is not nutritious. Call CPS, try me, I swear to God."

The first voice you hear on "Foil" is the artist's own, though it might not be immediately apparent. On the 33-second intro track, "Reivelations," REI AMI imitates her mother scolding her for falling asleep in church. "Sarah, Sarah, wake up," she hisses in Korean.

A few seconds later, you hear the voice of a fake pastor - convincingly impassioned, but doling out some unholy advice.

"On chapter nine of the Book of Reivelations, here says, 'Thou may be a dumb b----, but you are not a weak b----,'" he proclaims.

In reality, that voice belongs to Blue. They were playing with those airy piano chords when REI AMI asked him to improvise a church sermon. (He took the assignment "so seriously," she said, he ended up freestyling in character for 45 minutes.)

"My religious upbringing, that side of me, I think it was definitely the main contributing factor to who I am as an artist," she explained. "It's weird. Because it's the one thing I tried to run so far away from. But I thought it was important to add that personal touch so that I could set the scene: This is the reason why I'm a crazy b----. Here you go."

"It's that constant battle I had with religion growing up, not understanding it, not believing in it, but being forced to partake in it," she continued. "It fueled a rebellious spirit."

The "trauma and pain" of a strict Christian childhood took a toll on the singer's relationship with her parents. REI AMI has mended that relationship now, and they're supportive of her career, but not the "content" of her songs. They still haven't heard any of her mixtape, and she hasn't asked.

"My parents have worked very hard to prove to me that they do want to repair our relationship. That's all I can ask for," she said.

In fact, she said their reconciliation gave her "so much hope," a sense of clarity about how she deserves to be treated. "Like, if you really care, you'll show up."

This newfound optimism came in handy when she started falling for Blue, whom she met last year through a mutual friend. She was initially worried about mixing business and pleasure - until the first song they worked on together, "Saturn Emoji," quickly became a love letter.

"I was obviously writing about this guy," she said, gesturing to Blue with faux exasperation. "It just came out. I didn't even have to try."

"That song just strikes the heart chord," Blue added. "And that's what makes me fall in love with her."

She never actually utters the titular phrase in the song, but decided to name it "Saturn Emoji" because it was a symbol for their budding romance.

"I would always send that emoji to him. In my head, it belonged to him," she explained. "And also, it's such a cute-ass name. Like, who isn't gonna click on that?"

REI AMI wrote the self-titled fifth track purely so fans would chant her own name.

"I have an obsession with cults," she half-joked, leaning dramatically toward the audio recorder. "Worship me, please! Give me attention!"

This is a common songwriting strategy she employs: Start with an intriguing "buzzword" or character and construct a world around it. In the case of "REI AMI," it was her own public persona. The visuals for "F.R.A." were inspired by Lindsay Lohan's Lola from "Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen."

The most obvious example is the irresistible single "Ricky Bobby," which shares its name with Will Ferrell's lovable schmuck from "Talladega Nights."

For the music video, REI AMI gave her stylist a singular, vivid directive: "If Suki from 'Fast and Furious' and Ricky Bobby had a love child, that would be me."

"That song is all s--- talk, braggadocios. It's about confidence, being self-assured, going after what you want, and winning," she explained.

"But in the movie, Ricky Bobby gets checked. Life checks him: 'You aren't No. 1 and you treat people like s---.' He goes downhill in order to grow," she continued. "So that's why it's followed by 'Damn.,' which is a super 'AMI' song and super reflective."

REI AMI wrote "Damn." in just one hour and recorded the vocals while wrapped in a blanket fort. The tender takedown of an egocentric ex is rivaled only by "Do It Right," the mixtape's final track, as her most intimate song to date. They're both her personal favorites.

REI is "all talk," she admitted. AMI's unflinching openness is actually "scarier," more precious.

"Upbeat songs, high-tempo songs are great. Shake your ass, have fun. But at the end of the day, there's something about songs that are emotional and vulnerable that live in you, under your skin," she said. "I want to have that effect. Like, I hyped you the f--- up, now sit and reflect."

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