Perfect for work BGM too! Recommended Lo-Fi Hip Hop classics
Lo-fi hip hop—now firmly established as an internet-born genre—has been heavily influenced by legendary track makers like J Dilla and Nujabes.
On our site, we’ve already introduced plenty of must-hear tracks in the article “Perfect for remote work and staying in! Recommended Lo-Fi Hip Hop Hits,” but this time we’re focusing on albums.
Even if you enjoy songs through compilation albums or streaming services, many of you might not have ventured into full albums yet.
From timeless staples to hidden masterpieces, take this opportunity to check them out.
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Perfect as background music for work! Recommended Lo-Fi Hip Hop classics (1–10)
Monday LoopTomppabeats
Tonpa Beats, known for tracks like “Monday Loop,” which samples the popular song “Again” sung by the renowned American singer and actress Doris Day, is a producer from Helsinki, Finland.
Since “Monday Loop” was released in 2015, he started his activities quite early among artists considered lo-fi hip-hop.
His tracks are usually included in lo-fi hip-hop compilation releases in Japan, and he can be called one of the essential, representative artists when discussing lo-fi hip-hop.
Tonpa Beats’s memorable debut album is Harbor LP, released in 2016.
Comprising 38 tracks, most around one minute in length, it samples not only old jazz but also sounds from Japanese anime and classic films, making it a perfect work to play casually as everyday background music.
Unfortunately, the physical release is limited to extremely rare vinyl and cassette; those who want an easy listen should check out the digital version.
Againwun two
One-two, who has been active in this genre since quite early on.
Even when he released his acclaimed 2014 album Penthouse, he says he wasn’t particularly conscious of “lo-fi” as a genre.
In fact, since he had been proactively making this kind of music since 2003, he finds it curious that hip-hop incorporating jazz—like A Tribe Called Quest and Wu-Tang Clan had done since the 1990s—has only drawn special attention in recent years.
He also notes that the nostalgic music built on gritty textures simply sounded that way because of the limitations of the equipment used.
As a foundational figure in the genre, One-two remains unpretentious, delivering music you can relax to while driving or spending time outdoors.
Ji-Eun’s SunsetCity Girl
City Girl’s “Neon Impasse,” characterized by cute, anime-like BGM vibes, is perfect for a little relaxation time.
Although based in California, she seems highly attuned to Japanese pop culture, as evidenced by the manga- and anime-inspired illustrations she has used on the covers of all her releases since her 2017 debut.
She even describes her own music as “soft music for cat lovers,” showing her commitment to cuteness.
Its urban, cool sound seems like a great match for nighttime atmospheres.
Perfect as background music for work! Recommended Lo-Fi Hip Hop masterpieces (11–20)
m i s teevee
Released in 2017, “seeds” is a nostalgic-feeling album by the Dutch artist eevee.
She began making music after turning 20 and doesn’t use traditional instruments.
It’s said that this album was created almost entirely with a single laptop and a sampler.
That said, in 2022 she released a vocal album under the name eevee & cliffe, showcasing a broader musical range.
The timbres and melodies of East Asian–style instruments create a poignant mood.
Listening to it evokes the Japanese rainy season, with a muted, muffled sound design.
Then, suddenly, you catch bossa nova or samba-like vocals, or a slightly warbled piano that sounds like it’s playing from a stretched cassette—an intriguingly constructed album.
Behind the guitar and flute tones, the drums and additional guitar remain deliberately understated.
The unadorned, stripped-down sound is like the wallpaper of an old coffee shop.
It’s the kind of work you’d want to enjoy with a cup of coffee on a gloomy day.
French InhaleBSD.U
Beside You’s 2017 album Ligher hints at a fondness for Japanese culture, even in its artwork, which features titles and track names written in katakana and hiragana.
The artist is a smoker, and for this album they were inspired by a hard-boiled moment from the anime Cowboy Bebop, where a cool, world-weary man shows his character.
Beside You, who has been composing since the age of 14, says they prefer playing old video games at home to dancing in clubs.
Their style leans retro—evident in the release of an album on cassette in 2019.
The sound is gentle yet somehow melancholy.
With the acoustics tuned to make the low end resonate more deeply, the darker mood is emphasized.
Human voices are placed here and there as accents, making the album feel like a soundtrack to a drama or film.
And not so much to contemporary pop culture, but to something older—like what you’d catch on VHS or in TV reruns.
It’s a work you’d rather sink into in the evening or at night than on a bright morning or afternoon.
Machinegun Rap (feat. Awon)Bluntone
Hailing from Budapest, Brantone showcases a traditional style of hip-hop on his 2016 release Orbiting Rawbits, reminiscent of Pete Rock and A Tribe Called Quest.
He appears to have been active as a producer in the hip-hop scene since the 1990s, and has invited numerous guest rappers from the U.S.
and the U.K.
to feature on his tracks.
More than half of the songs on the album feature rap, evoking a vibe from before the surge of what later came to be called lo-fi hip-hop.
Play It AgainJoey Pecoraro
Joey Pecoraro, who hails from Detroit, not only composes but also produces music.
While Detroit is also known as a mecca for techno, his 2018 release Music for Happiness follows old-school hip-hop techniques and is colored by a charming, almost childlike sound.
He has been heavily influenced by fellow Detroit legend J Dilla, and he says that when composing, he makes a point of carefully considering the roots of each and every sound source he uses.