An #AMWF couple garage band that collaborates online.
Tell me about your history? How did you get where you are now?
Patrick Lew Hayashi (b. 1985) met Manda Kay (b. 1982) directly via friend request through an AMWF group on Facebook back on June 23, 2021, during the height of Patrick Lew Band's fame in indie music and on the Internet. dating began online as an LDR couple on December 23, 2022. After some difficult hardships they faced the first year together they were dating, they eventually reconciled on March 25, 2024 and became stronger as a couple since then. They finally met in-person on September 15, 2024 when Patrick flew to Chicago, Illinois to meet her and spent 5 days with her, solidiying their relationship altogether. Today, Patrick edits and directs all her YouTube videos. And Manda sometimes helps out with his creativity in the Patrick Lew Band, and remains very loving and supportive. Together, they plan to do more YouTube videos together and keep at it while being together as a solid interracial AMWF couple.
Tell us more about your band?
Patrick Lew Hayashi (Lewnatic) is a YouTuber, guitarist, singer/songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and bedroom producer from San Francisco, CA.
Born to a Chinese father and a Sino-Japanese mother in 1985, Hayashi began playing guitar at age 13. Whilst in high school, he began posting his home demo recordings online under various names. By 2006, he began a semi-pro indie music career under the once reviled, but now so-called prolific Patrick Lew Band. He has an extensive back catalog with his musical work with PLB, consisting of 13 full-length albums, one live album, and several EP’s and singles. A year after making his semi-pro debut in the Internet music scene and locally, he began uploading videos on YouTube.
Hayashi is also renowned for his cross-dressing male-to-female alter-ego Madeline Lew in the Patrick Lew Band, who is also a virtual band member and avatar in PLB. Which began his road to success in indie music, after several years of false starts and deeply intense setbacks in his life. Madeline's presence in the Patrick Lew Band also got Hayashi out of personal troubles, and led to his first major breakthroughs in indie music.
By Summer 2019, Patrick Lew Hayashi formed Lewnatic in the Bay Area music scene. Originally a rap-metal duo, Lewnatic quickly began playing live residencies at San Francisco’s famous DNA Lounge once-a-month until the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
The project’s band name Lewnatic was derived from his father’s surname and the word “Lunatic.”
A few years later during 2022, Hayashi relaunched the band Lewnatic as a “stripped down” touring and live-streaming experiment, as a spin-off related to the Patrick Lew Band. He quickly signed with the New York City based Bentley Records on July 19, 2022. Recording and releasing three EP’s under the Lewnatic banner during 2022 and 2023 while signed to his record label. Lewnatic’s 3rd album STARRCADE was launched worldwide on July 26, 2024 on all the music streaming apps and websites. Lewnatic would perform live-stream shows on Patrick Lew Hayashi's YouTube channel during 2022 and 2023, alongside 2 in-person live shows in San Francisco in 2022.
By late 2024, Lewnatic was rebranded as "Mr And Mrs Lew." On September 18th that year, Patrick Lew Hayashi got engaged to his long-time girlfriend Manda Kay (b. 1982), a Rockford, Illinois based up-and-coming online content creator on YouTube. Hayashi and his fiancee Manda Kay originally met online in mid-2021 on Facebook, and began dating online as an LDR couple by the tail end of 2022. Alongside being the sole filmmaker for her YouTube videos, Manda Kay also writes lyrics and contributes to the music project.
With influences such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Metallica, Green Day, Guns N’ Roses, Oasis, X Japan, The Beatles, and many other iconic rock bands from yesteryear, Hayashi’s introspective lyrics, and fiery yet manic guitar skills are always showcased in his compositions. With themes of alienation, resilience, and self-empowering identity. Lewnatic’s compositions are very much a blend of pop-metal, 90’s grunge, and classic rock. Lewnatic’s music is based on a simple basic setup: a Fender Telecaster, 50 watt Marshall amp, and a laptop showcasing a wide array of digitally edited and arrangements consisting of beats and instrumentals on the AUX cables.
Since an early age, Hayashi had an obsession of becoming a prolific East Asian musician and making cool music. He sings, raps, plays lead guitar, bass, and uses AI-generated rock instrumentals that are digitally edited, and mixes the majority of his ideas. He has toured all across Northern California with various local punk bands, and his music has reached 60 countries globally online in six continents through social-media.
Your musical influences
Just about everything. See our "Mr And Mrs Lew" playlist on Spotify. But Patrick is into J-Pop and classic rock mostly. Pat Lew's also into blues music, chiptunes, and punk rock. Just to let you all know, Pat Lew was mostly influenced by 90's rock. Especially, the band Nirvana.
What equipment do you use?
GUITARS: Epiphone Les Paul, Fender Telecaster
BASSES: Fender Jazz
AMPS: Vox AD50VT, Marshall CODE50
EFFECTS: Boss Turbo Distortion DS-2
DRUMS & PERCUSSION: Boss Dr. Rhythm DR-3
RECORDING: Mid 2012 MacBook Pro, Presonus AudioBox iOne, Logic Pro
Anything else?
Underground on, mainstream off! Support all diversity and inclusivity for all marginalized voices and faces!