Wow, I never thought I was so old as to be out of touch. To me, “lo-fi” without the “lo-fi hip hop” specification is really, like, rock/indie rock, but literally with lo-fidelity recording. It’s like a punk practice that was put into use for rock or indie rock, sometime in the early-to-late 2000s.

Think early white stripes, the growlers (their first album or so anyway), king khan & the BBQ show, maybe The Babies could fit into this category.

But “lofi beats”/“lofi hip hop” is a separate designation. But it needs the “hip hop” modifier because “lo-fi” existed before the YouTube playlist of simple, relaxing beats to study to thing.

So, I guess what I’m saying is, “these damn kids don’t know what lofi even is anymore. With their YouTubes and their handheld nintendos—dress them up all you want! I know a game boy when I see one!”