Q&A: MILLI is embarking on her first tour ever, and she’s ready to unleash her inner fighter

From the way that you might’ve seen MILLI everywhere — the Thai rap sensation who has been making waves in the industry ever since her viral “Mango Sticky Rice” moment at Coachella back in 2022 — you would think she’s been around forever. She’s collaborated with some of the biggest names in the K-pop scene (Jackson Wang, Changbin of Stray Kids and BIBI just to name a few), and she’s become one of the most prominent rappers to come out of Southeast Asia, especially with her albums BABB BUM BUM and HEAVYWEIGHT (both of which won Album of the Year in Thailand).

She made history as the first non-Korean female artist to compete on the ever-popular SHOW ME THE MONEY in its 12th run and reach the live grand finale, finishing as third runner-up overall. I myself personally stumbled upon a TikTok challenge she’d done earlier this year with the K-pop group CORTIS. But as she tells me on our interview this Monday morning, she is only 23 years old.

Right off the bat, even through the screen of our Teams interview, I can tell that MILLI has the kind of electrifying energy that leaves quite the lasting impression. I’d seen a couple of videos of her live performances before, as well as her episode of Dingo Music’s “Killing Verse”, where she was highly praised for being able to keep up her fiery energy for 17 minutes straight with nothing but the mic in front of her. It takes more than just writing verses and practice. MILLI has a lot of talent flowing in her veins. You don’t even need to be able to speak Thai to recognise that.

And this year, after much anticipation from fans on this side of the world, MILLI is officially embarking on her first-ever solo Asia Tour that she dubs, “MILLI JAA EHH! ASIA TOUR 2026” — which includes a Malaysia stop on 4th September 2026, held at JioSpace. While “JAA EHH” was born from the track in her HEAVYWEIGHT album, it’s more than just a series of shows: it’s meant to symbolise the mission that MILLI is embarking on, which is to bring her unfiltered, chaotic energy out to her adoring fans. This is MILLI is set to redefine the Asian music scene by breaking the rules you might think you know about a live rap show.

Below, the rapper talks about what fans can expect from her first tour and beyond, her artistic journey so far, and even a bit of insight on what it’s like to be a female solo rapper today.

Congratulations on embarking on your first ever tour! Can you share with us what went into the preparations for this tour, and  what fans can expect from you on this tour?

I’m going to be honest, I’m super nervous. Everybody is like, “Oh, but you perform a lot…” But this time it’s different. Because you’re going to stay with me for almost two hours. And it’s just me, like, I’m not a girl group, so it’s going to be me and only me. I hope you guys enjoy it. I’m bringing all the songs that I have in my life. I only have two albums. (laughs) But  I’m going to put everything in there. So, whatever that you expect the songs [to be], that you want to hear in my concert, I think you will hear it. But whether there’s anything unexpected… I’m always unexpected. (laughs) Just prepare your health, your heart, your lungs.

That sounds great! When I see your performances, you’re very captivating on stage. I’ve seen your fans talk about how you’re able to keep the energy going for so long. I’m pretty sure as nervous as you are, you’re going to be able to pull through.

Thank you. But actually I get my energy from the crowd though. If the crowd is really, really hyped, then my energy is going up, up, up. Sometimes I have to calm myself down. (laughs)

In your greeting video, you mentioned that you’ve been wanting to connect with your Asian fans beyond the ‘online’ scene. How do you hope to create that deeper connection with your Asian fans? We’ve talked about what your fans can expect, but what are you personally looking forward to? 

Right. So, instead of bringing everybody to my country and just only having one concert, I’d rather go to your hometowns, your cities, because I want to learn the culture. Because everybody knows me as, like, a Thai rapper. A female rapper from Thailand. But I want to represent the whole of Asia, especially Southeast Asia. You know, it’s kind of like a SEAbling thing, right? And I’m just really, really proud of that. I want to represent that to the world. I want to learn more about the cultures, the countries around us, you know? We’ve got friends all around here, and the more that I know about them, the more I can understand. I think a lot of our cultures come from the same roots, and it’s pretty similar in some ways, but we also still have our own unique styles. I just love to learn about that, and to have that cultural exchange.

Back in April 2022, you performed at Coachella and became the first ever Thai solo artist to perform there. How would you say you’ve grown as a performer since then?

Yeah, Coachella actually changed me a lot. At that time, nobody knew me at Coachella. It was like, ‘Who is that girl?’ I went there with 88rising, I didn’t even have my name on the poster. I was super scared, but my manager said one sentence to me that changed my whole life until now. She was like, “If you’re scared right now, remember that nobody knows you today. Just make them want to know you today. And that’s it.” So, I just went with [the mindset of] like, ‘Oh, you better know me today. After this, you’re going to search my name on Google.’ And maybe you’ll like me, maybe you’ll hate me, but at least you know I exist in this world.

And you’ll be performing both your albums on the tour, right? Let’s talk a bit about your last album, HEAVYWEIGHT, which won Album of the Year in Thailand — congrats by the way! Can you share with us a bit about the making of that album?

So, my first album [BABB BUM BUM], it’s a lot of variety, a lot of fun stuff, blah, blah. But in HEAVYWEIGHT, I’m talking about something more serious and you can see that, especially in how it moves from the first one. I’m talking about ‘heavy’ in different styles. ‘Heavy’ in love, ‘heavy’ on yourself, ‘heavy’ in what a female artist has to do when there’s a lot of pressure on her shoulders. And I like the word ‘heavyweight’ because I’m comparing myself to a boxer, you know? So, it’s like I’m starting from atomweight, which is the very first one, you know, the lightest one. Then I keep gaining my muscles, keep rehearsing and training, to get to the heaviest one. And that’s the heavyweight. And then I’m ready to fight with whoever. (laughs)

Since the release of the album, you’ve also been making a few more comebacks with hit singles. In this era where the solo female artist market is getting more competitive, what is it like to be a ‘strong’ female solo rapper today? What are the pros and cons, and how do you continue to improve yourself as an artist?

Okay, pros and cons. First, the good thing about being a female rapper is… we’re pretty. (laughs) It’s a good thing! And it’s more fun. I just feel like I can do literally everything, especially compared to a male rapper. For them, it’s like, you want to wear grills. You’re going to wear chains forever. Me? I want to wear earrings. Like, I think I can be more colourful with my fashion, and the way that I can talk, you know?

But okay, the ‘cons’, sometimes it’s really hard to be a female artist, and not just a rapper. In my perspective, as a rapper, you have to prove a lot. I feel like I just got included into the Thai hip-hop community, like, just this year. Everybody saw me like, “Oh, this girl can rap.” But not a rapper. And today, I totally define myself as an artist slash rapper, and you can see it through my work. I have my story too. And I’ve proven myself, I can do whatever I want to do too. As a female artist in the hip-hop community, you really need to prove a lot more than just ‘rap’. You have to be pretty, but more than just pretty, you have to have good behaviour. And more than just good behaviour, you also have to have good fashion. If you can dance, then you have to dance. And if you can sing, then of course, you have to sing. There’s a lot of ‘requirements’ that come with a female artist. A lot of expectations. And for the guys, sometimes they can just take off their shirts and everybody just loves it, without them having to say anything. (laughs) Yeah, I’m pretty feminist, sorry. But being a female rapper, and from Southeast Asia, is already ‘out of the box’.

And talking about the music itself, how has your relationship with your music evolved since then? Have you ever felt pressure to ‘reinvent’ yourself in terms of sound or visuals, or would you say you’re someone who already knows who you are in terms of your style, and prefer to stick to what you know best? 

Me and music, our relationship just keeps getting better. (laughs) No, but really, we’ve had some tough times before. Every time somebody asks me, “What is MILLI?” I would be like, “I don’t know. It’s me!” But I did a lot of research on that. I did a mapping of it, and I wrote down the keywords of what I want to be, what I can improve, and what I’m looking forward to in the future. So, I know myself much more when it comes to my relationship with music. I have to give credit to the SHOW ME THE MONEY competition. Because when you’re in the competition, you have to push yourself a lot. And for every round, I just did it like it was the last round for me, every time. So, if I pass the next round, I have to push myself even more. (laughs) It’s a good thing because I just break through my ‘wall’ every time. But what I want to be in the future, it’s still a bit blurry. I’m still 23, there’s a long way to go. But right now at least, I know what I want to do. And what I love is hip-hop.

Also talking about being a Southeast Asian rapper and everything, you know, lately, the Thai entertainment culture — especially in TV, film and music — has been experiencing quite a ‘boom’. We’ve also been having a lot of Thai actors and musicians coming to Malaysia for special appearances and shows. In your opinion, why do you think Thai music and the Thai entertainment culture has been getting even more popular recently?

I think we’ve definitely given more attention to [Thai] entertainment. Our government… I’ve been speaking and calling out for them to support [the arts]. I can see how they have developed and have continued to sponsor them. For example, they sponsored me to go to Mexico and to America. Also, our people have turned their focus back to the artists and the films and everything, the entertainment in the country. Like, right now, I’m also watching a Thai series, Mad Unicorn. It’s really, really good. So, you know, just because we didn’t ‘boom’ before, it doesn’t mean we don’t have talent. It’s just about the timing. And now it just so happens to be the time that we start booming.

Yeah, it’s a good point. And speaking of the people, you’ve also collaborated with a lot of artists over the course of your career — can you share with us some of your favourite people to work with?

My favourite is everyone, because if I’m gonna say them one by one, they’re gonna be like, “Oh, MILLI-ah, what about me?” (laughs) But they’re all so nice. I have to say that it’s a really good time for me to participate in this season because everybody is super cute! And when I say cute, I mean, really cute! Because you have some of them who are like, (deep, beatboxing voice) and then you have some who are like, “MILLI-ah!” (cute voice) They’re all so cute. And we might have a different tones of music and rap, but we have the same message that we want to express to people, which is to keep youth in mind. Our age can grow, but the passion, the feeling, the expression, you know, it’s still inside you and it keeps you young forever. 

Before you go, what can fans expect from MILLI in the near future (after the Asia tour)?

I’m starting to ‘cook’ my new album right now! I can’t say that much because I have nothing much yet, to be honest. (laughs) But yeah, it’s gonna be good. It’s gonna be a fun one for sure. (laughs)

For more information about MILLI’s “MILLI JAA EHH! ASIA TOUR 2026”, head to her official website HERE.