HAEYI / Exhale: Can an AI Voice Carry a Human Story?

The song began in a diary, not in a prompt.

The creator behind HAEYI (이해이) has kept diaries and written personal stories since 2019. In 2026, they returned to some of those real experiences and emotions, writing new original lyrics from the material.

Those words became part of an anonymous Korean indie-pop project working with AI music tools. The distinction matters: the lyrics come from the creator's own writing, while the recorded music and vocal performance were developed using AI. Neither part needs to be disguised to make the other worth discussing.

HAEYI reports releasing a debut five-track EP on October 31, 2026. One of its songs, Exhale (후우), introduces the project's reflective blend of Korean indie pop and mellow R&B.

What stays unsaid at the end of an ordinary day?

HAEYI describes Exhale as a song about emotions that go unspoken and the small relief of finally letting them out. The Korean title, 후우, suggests the sound and feeling of breathing out.

There is an interesting challenge in that premise. The creator's memories and words are personal, yet the listener encounters them through a generated singing voice. The production may be synthetic; the emotions that prompted the lyrics were not invented by the software.

That does not settle whether the song succeeds artistically. It gives us a more meaningful question to bring to the first listen: does the performance help the story reach the listener?

The creator's voice is part of the process.

HAEYI's creative credits are unusually specific, and that clarity strengthens the story. The lyrics were written by the creator from diary-based experiences. The music and singing were produced with AI tools, including Suno. In a follow-up, the creator added that they used their own voice as a starting point in Suno to develop HAEYI's singing voice.

That does not mean the released recording is a conventional, unaltered human vocal. By the creator's account, it remains an AI-generated performance. But it gives the artistic choices more context: the person shaping the project is contributing the memories, the lyrics, the creative direction, and a starting vocal reference.

HAEYI chooses to remain anonymous, keeping the focus on the music and the stories behind it.

One set of memories. More than one way to tell them.

Music is not the only form in which HAEYI is revisiting earlier writing. The creator has also begun adapting some older stories into Instagram webtoons, shared through HAEYI's illustrated-story account.

An English-language song is in development as well. No release date has been announced. For now, these are early signs of a project exploring how personal material can move between words, images, languages and AI-assisted sound.

The unifying idea is not that AI creates the feelings for the artist. It is that the tools may provide another way to express feelings the artist has already lived and written about.

Three questions worth asking after you press play.

1. Does the mood translate? Can the tension and release come through even if you don't understand Korean?
2. Does the AI vocal serve the words? Does the phrasing and delivery support the intended emotional arc?
3. Does the writing invite a return? Beyond the novelty of the technology, is there a feeling or detail that stays with you?

These are listening questions, not predetermined answers. HAEYI is an emerging project, and listeners can decide for themselves what the music communicates.

Explore the project: Spotify · Apple Music · YouTube · Instagram webtoons.