A Touching and Inimate Evening With Yung Kai

Some rooms just feel different. On March 19th, SOMA San Diego was one of them.

Max Zhang, the Chinese-Canadian artist behind the name yung kai, grew up in Shanghai before moving to Burnaby, British Columbia, making music in his bedroom in his spare time while studying at the University of British Columbia. Then “blue” happened. Released in August 2024, it went viral on TikTok and has since surpassed one billion streams across platforms, turning a bedroom producer into a touring artist with a room full of people.

His debut album “stay with the ocean, i’ll find you” is a dreamy, light, and delicate collection centered around yearning for love and the desire for a momentary escape from the chaos of everyday life. And live, that feeling only gets heavier. With live instrumentals and gentle vocals, yung kai kept a calm yet captivating presence on stage, letting the music speak for itself rather than relying on elaborate production or effects.

“It was a quiet kind of magic. The kind you feel in your chest and carry home with you.”

Photography by @justinzlu