5 for Friday, October 14, 2022: Lofi Girl

LoFi Girl is probably the most iconic of all the YouTube channels providing music that plays in the background while people work and study. With the gentle beats and and soothing rhythms, it’s a relaxing antidote for the stresses of work and school. Because it’s background music, it’s easy to take for granted. We listen, but don’t hear, so to speak. But when it’s gone, people notice its loss. When the stream was taken down earlier this summer because of a fake copyright claim, it became a major news story. YouTube even apologized for taking the stream down. Although the music is what attracts the channel’s audience, it’s about more than the music itself.

The image of her sitting at a desk, writing in a notebook and listening to music on her headphones is something that people can relate to, since it’s something that most have done at some point. It’s even inspired artists to create their own versions, such as the one on the right which reimagines Zelda as LoFi Girl. Or is LoFi Girl cosplaying Zelda?

As of this writing, the various streams and videos have accumulated over 1.3 billion views on YouTube. That’s in addition to the people who listen on Spotify, Apple Music, and other websites. The selections listed below are some of my favorites.

Link	Channel	Runtime
lofi hip hop radio – beats to relax/study to	Lofi Girl	Streaming
Morning Coffee ☕️ [lofi hip hop/study beats]	Lofi Girl	1:04:27
lofi hip hop radio – beats to sleep/chill to	Lofi Girl	Streaming
1 A.M Study Session 📚 – [lofi hip hop/chill beats]	Lofi Girl	1:01:13
3 A.M Study Session 📚 – [lofi hip hop/chill beats]	Lofi Girl	1:00:03

Featured Image by Mirco Ian Millar from Pexels
LoFi Girl image from the blog of Manon Carpentier
Illustration of LoFi Zelda by an unknown artist on Reddit