What Happened to Lofi Girl? Here’s Everything You Need to Know

someone call 911!

Either her endless hours of studying have finally paid off and the Internet’s favorite study buddy is gearing up for graduation, or we should seriously be worried as the icon of Gen-Z’s go-to YouTube channel has been MIA for the past 24-hours.

Introduced to the general public approximately five-years ago now,  Jade, AKA Lofi Girl, has been the face of the eponymously named 24/7 livestream launched in 2017 by French music producer and DJ, Dmitri, that plays calm beats and relaxing mixes on repeat using a Ghibli-esque animation of a character studying on her desk against the backdrop of La Croix-Rousse.

Counting 12 million followers and racking well above 1.5 billion total views since the channel was founded, those that have used the medley as a soundtrack to their more introspective moments in life have developed a somewhat sense of attachment towards the fictional character, designed by Colombian artist Juan Pablo Machado, who responded to a call put out by Dmitri for a new character after his channel was taken down for copyright reasons for initially using Shizuku Tsukishima from the Studio Ghibli film Whisper of the Heart as the face of Lofi Girl. Accompanied by her orange tabby, Jade has become the subconscious allegory of composure, patience, and tranquility in the minds of millions over the years.

Never seen taking a break, Lofi Girl’s constant presence on screens around the world has provided reassurance to the most lonely of us out there, making the slightest change of her repeated motions and movements an instant topic of conversation across social media platforms. Although uncommon, as she has barely moved a notch since she was first revealed, loyal disciples of the livestream were left scratching their heads on April 1 (April Fool’s Day) after Lofi Girl laid her head down and took a much-deserved nap after years of studying hard.

The unexpected move turned out to be a prank organized by the parent channel, however, mere days later, on April 7 to be precise, a video titled “What is happening with this blue window?” was published on the channel that saw a blinking blue light from a window found on one of the buildings opposite Jade’s studio apartment. Shortly after, Jade and her beloved cat disappeared, leaving the Lofi Girl fandom buzzing with questions. A handful of hours later, in the livestream’s comment section, it was revealed that the light was actually sending a message in Morse code redirecting users to lofiworld.com.

The website features a “launch” button that redirects users to a second live stream, playing the same kind of ambient music that made the channel’s initial fame in what appears to be a bedroom. The room is adorned with a fish tank, a guitar, a shelf stocked with random memorabilia, and a timer counting down to April 11 at 9:00 p.m. GST. Noticeably missing is Lofi Girl.

Several changes were also made to the account’s different profiles, with question marks appearing at the top of videos and as profile pictures, leaving fans excited about potential Lofi Girl lore.

Last night, Team AMW, the marketing agency that represents the Lofi Girl channel, published a press release finally uncovering the many mysteries that were weighing on everyone’s mind as they revealed the launch of a new interactive campaign that promises to be a “game-changer” in the entertainment industry.

It was revealed that the distant blue-tinted room belongs to a boy and his dog, two new characters designed by Lo-FI Studios themselves, who aim at opening a fresh new pocket of content on the channel, this time dedicated to sharing Synthwave music: a genre associated with action, science-fiction, and horror film soundtracks of the 1980s.

Expected to play a “diverse range of ambient music, perfect for studying, gaming, or unwinding,” while simultaneously “representing a departure from the familiar anime girl,” the new channel will provide fans who might be seeking to switch things up with a new alternative to study and relax to.

Lofi Girl and Synthwave Boy’s (as the internet has affectionately dubbed him) universe is connected as  you can see the new character’s blue-lit window in the background of Lofi Girl’s (who is safely back to her post scribbling notes) view, and you can make out the outlines of her window in his.

 

Now that the investigation has finally reached its much-awaited end, it’s time to sit back and enjoy the carefully handpicked selections of songs with the new round-the-clock live stream, dubbed “beats to game/chill to” accessible on streaming services from Spotify to Deezer, as well as on YouTube.

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