On Sunday, March 24, singer-songwriter Kaina Castillo spent the day with her parents at her childhood home in Irving Park, working on a music video for the song “Green.” The director, singer-rapper Jean Deaux, wanted to film what Kaina considered a perfect day: spending time with her family and friends and kicking back with drinks and a good meal.

In April, the Fader premiered the video for “Green,” which Kaina had chosen as the first single from her debut full-length, Next to the Sun. The album comes out Friday through Sooper Records, an artist-run label owned by Morimoto, Nnamdi Ogbonnaya, and Glenn Curran. Kaina, 23, has been a fixture on Chicago’s overlapping hip-hop and soul scenes the past four years, both onstage and behind the scenes; she freelances in show programming and production, and last year she hit the road as a tour manager with Chicago R&B darling Ravyn Lenae. Kaina’s star has begun to rise in part thanks to collaborations with friends—she’s among the three guest vocalists on Saba’s Care for Me, one of 2018’s best albums.

Kaina album-release party for Next to the Sun Food, copies of the album, and other merch will be for sale. No live performances. Fri 7/12, 6-11 PM, Sat 7/13, 1-9 PM, Mama Castillo pop-up restaurant, 3056 N. Lincoln, free, all ages

Kaina, Kara Jackson, Luna Luna, Sen Morimoto, Kahekili Sun 7/14, 6:30 PM, Lincoln Hall, 2424 N. Lincoln, $15, all ages

Kaina’s father, Rene, came to Chicago from Guatemala in 1991, staying with an aunt who already lived here till he got settled. Rene and Maritza met in 1995 through mutual friends. They liked to hit the town together, and Kaina says they used to go to Latin clubs and dance till 5 AM. “Then I came and ruined their fucking life,” she says. “They were at all the Jordan games—they were going to all that shit.” Kaina was born January 22, 1996, just before the Bulls started their second threepeat.

The Happiness Club works with kids across the city, mainly from neighborhoods short on resources for young people, including Bronzeville, Chatham, Englewood, and Pilsen. Students get dance and vocal training and assistance with choreographing and writing their own shows, which are intended for youth audiences. Kaina performed for children throughout Chicago.

“The folks who are running the show have a responsibility to be calm,” Smith says. “I’m just naturally calm, and she was the other calm person that was able to navigate the chaos. That’s a skill that not a lot of people actually have—she’s able to remain calm in such chaotic environments, which is why she’s worked for damn near everybody in the city.”