If you’re a student, or otherwise looking for an endless stream of “beats to relax/study to,” you know Lofi Girl.
Originally called ChilledCow, this YouTube channel plays lofi (aka low fidelity, a style where you can hear so-called imperfections of music production, like pops and crackles) hip-hop music on a 24/7 basis. All the while, you’re accompanied by Lofi Girl, an anime-style woman and her cat. There have been a few instances over the years where the stream stopped for alleged copyright reasons, but for the most part, Lofi Girl is extremely reliable. She’s usually at her desk, all day every day, endlessly writing in her notebook:
Lofi Girl in her usual habitat.
Credit: Screenshot: YouTube
Until yesterday, when our girl disappeared — but the stream went on.
Lofi Girl stream on April 10, without the titular girl.
Credit: Screenshot: YouTube
Not only was she gone, but the title of the stream changed to a question mark. The Lofi Girl Instagram account(Opens in a new tab) hinted that something was afoot, with multiple posts directing to lofiworld.com(Opens in a new tab) (which, as of publication, doesn’t appear to be loading).
Yesterday, a new stream with a countdown popped up with an accompanying Instagram post(Opens in a new tab). When the countdown ran out, it was revealed: There’s a Synth Boy(Opens in a new tab) in town, with a shiny-new stream titled “synthwave radio – beats to chill/game to.”
Synth Boy is the new stream on the block.
Credit: Screenshot: YouTube
Longtime viewers of Lofi Girl will realize this is a payoff to a long-standing question of what’s up with the blue window(Opens in a new tab) behind her, which has been featured the last few months:
Frequent Lofi Girl listeners may have seen the blue window in the background.
Credit: Screenshot: YouTube
As it turns out, that’s just Synth Boy getting his gaming on. In his stream, you can see the hint of Lofi Girl:
Hints of Lofi Girl appear in Synth Boy’s stream.
Credit: Screenshot: YouTube
So, no, Lofi Girl has not disappeared; she’s just made a new friend.
