Mk.gee Interview on BBC Radio 1

Mk.gee interview from February 21, 2024 by Benji B on BBC Radio 1. Mike talks about the ethos for his album Two Star and the Dream Police, liminal spaces, "human" music, and being a jazz kid.

[@audidreamin]

i dont think people realize how rare this is to even get an interview from this man

[@jonathanvalladares5350]

Too much aura

[@theinternetdudette]

This!!! ​@@jonathanvalladares5350

[@Jossarianz]

Itll be more and more common

[@audidreamin]

​@@Jossarianz I agree

[@luisdmatas]

Cause he is a new artist what is weird how a new artist get so much attention by big media like kimmel or bbc 🤔

[@yomulv]

ultra rare mk.gee interview wow

[@newmangan]

This confirms it, he’s gonna be an artist of this generation, he’s so aware and conscious on what he’s doing, he’s an ARTIST artist

[@Darksoulsboy69]

I think Mk.Gee is the freshest artist in years. With that said though, I'm not sure he will ever be "artist of this generation". I don't think his music is accessible as much as some like Tame Impala for example. On the other hand, a lot of big artist like Justin Bieber, Anderson Paak, John Mayer have already taken notice. It could be a cool chance for him to collab with said artists, providing instrumentation for them. Maybe I'm viewing "artist of this generation" too literally.. but I think of Nirvana, Pink Floyd, Beatles, Lady Gaga, etc. I could be so off though. Regardless, I think 30 years from now, we'll look back on this stuff the same way we do with My Bloody Valentine's "Loveless". He will be a deepcut of the past, who is everyone's favorite bands, favorite band.

[@jred96]

I could be close minded, but I hate the way that when an artist blows up the first thing they do is get a feature on a more popular artists track. If your art is worth its weight, it doesn’t need to use a pop artist (Bieber etc) to validate itself. This dude is doing something that no one else is doing and that’s enough to catch all of our attentions. I hope he keeps doing his thing and doesn’t bite at the first feature that offers him a big check.

[@Darksoulsboy69]

@@jred96 I get what you mean, but I think producing instrumentals here and there on the side for other artists is not a bad idea. His sound is too unique not to be integrated more into the zeitgeist. I’m not saying he should sing on a song with another artist.

[@animosus]

My god. He knew exactly what he was doing. I argue that the "one sound" to which he refers that hits with that liminal nostalgia is NOT the guitar. It's the synth that you hear in all the tracks and most in the beginning of Dream Police. that's the vaporwave, 80s feeling synth with tape distortion that was captured in the Kmart tapes.

[@jordankline3076]

He records and plays through a 4 track tape recorder. That sound is his guitar “peaking” or maxed out. It gives it that loud/harsh distorted feel. ❤

[@ElHamsterro]

...except that 'synth' is the guitar(s)...

[@animosus]

Listen closer. There is a filtered clavichord synth under the guitar. ​@@ElHamsterro

[@user-yk3ci3tg1s]

@@animosus he uses a roland midi pickup so its actually all triggered by the guitar! its pretty awesome

[@LoserInChief]

Nostalgia for a childhood you never had, in an era 20 years before you were even born. Kid has nailed it.

[@Dontstopthebeat327]

He did a great job bein “liminal” bc I swear I heard my pops play “candy” in his old thunderbird years ago😂🤌

[@JusBoogie]

Hearing him say that he wanted it to feel familiar but at the same time so new is exactly what this album feels like. I

[@jadetemple]

his take on making "liminal music" on that album is so interesting, cause it's exactly how it feels, like you've heard it before but you didn't thank you so much for the upload btw!

[@YY-lv1fg]

Hearing that one of the dudes from Inc. is on the record blew my mind and made complete sense at the same time. 'Swear' was 2011 for god's sake. Pop music might have finally caught up to them with this whole mk.gee x Dijon extended universe thing. Promising developments. Makes me so happy.

[@fjbills]

What a brilliant insight into an artist that clearly cares about how music is thoughtfully brought into the world with a purpose

[@mynameisdylan720]

I really wish he did more interviews. Amazing how articulate, thoughtful, and passionate he was about his music. And I love how he stuck purely to conceptual topics that everyone can understand as opposed to getting lost into the technical details feeding into the music theory/music nerd crowd.

[@MrMikkyn]

Yeah I like his poetic articulation

[@rickbiessman6084]

"I shouldn’t understand it, but I do understand it." 100% how I feel about the album!

[@lucasfolkmusic]

Hearing him describing his goals in making Two Star and I admire how much he nailed it

[@alyssa7171]

So we all agree he completely killed it on the liminal vibe, right? First time I played this album my thought was ohhhh, this is music I’ve been waiting to hear my whole life and didn’t even know it.

[@peterantoinette5819]

Simply put....a musician's musician!

[@benbaker4542]

Brother is a genius and severely underrated, superstar in the making

[@tyler8902]

I need a book on this album

[@sleepycat1878]

dude, i’ve been looking for this interview everywhere. thank you for BLESSING us with this interview with this living legend🙏

[@Ethanacm]

Thank you taylor for creating this interview- of course Mike is an arsenal fan 😂. I saw the ATL show of his tour and it was absolutely brain altering. I can’t wait to see what he does next and the wave of imitation is already upon us. 🕊️

[@kinamiii]

I hope this stays up forevvvverrrrrrrrr a gem ass gem thank you

[@alexmeshko8401]

thank you so much for the upload!!!

[@DREAM-LENS]

Thank you for uploading this dude, I no longer don’t have to search every corner of the internet for this!

[@OOEGGS]

What powerful sentiments, truly a gift to this time and age 💫

[@calileo6516]

Great to hear the man speak!

[@JuliaSmith-yq5nd]

for me his music is anti the modern mix, instead of instrumentation appearing separated, mk gee mixes are a return to the saturated sounds of 60s mixes, where instruments occupy similar frequencies to create a homogeneous whole.

[@Chris-pz8eu]

I wonder where I can learn more about this

[@george-st-george]

This is great !!!! Thanks !!! it gives me a good feeling for the future!!!

[@nataliaaquino83]

I’m loving this interview. Thank you for sharing ❤️🙏🏼

[@leovaldovinos4991]

Thank you for lettn him go in depth, he’s a genius

[@loz1204]

Thankyou sm for posting this

[@5324man1]

Bless you for the upload

[@VOIDSTRANGER2099]

Great great interview!

[@boimesa8190]

Man I dont know why but hearing Floating Points in the background making me emotional 😭

[@nbeutler1134]

Bruhhhh I knew I recognized that. Floating Points is amazing! You heard Promises?

[@lonerangerrobo]

His music is special!!!

[@CheffreyCook]

Very excited for this

[@lee9315]

This is the first time I heard him talk

[@VIBEROCKS96]

The Unsung Hero

[@playbookleon245]

I'm here to witness greatness, and I hope I can play with Mk.Gee one day 🙏

[@Ethanacm]

Speak it friend

[@chelseaseashells517]

ugh how did i know he’d have a sexy voice

[@matthewmuli4361]

amazing, wow. 'i shouldnt understand it but i do understand it'. 100 percent

[@fernandooliveiralino]

Mk.gee is awesome man.

[@keananbouwer4357]

Protect him at all costs

[@turntable009]

lol

[@Alex-jk7xu]

"I could go deeper into it" ...yeah go ahead...."I don't want to go too deep into it"

[@ChristopherSeufert17]

The return of TODD

[@lemurienconstricteur1745]

jesus this is rare

[@achgffgh]

"mkgee is officially a gooner"😳

[@trailersparks]

Apparently that's what Arsenal fans are called but I'm thinking maybe it's time to retire that word lol

[@chorusafoison]

Mk gee interview !

[@Ethanacm]

LETS GOOOOO DOG IM FIRED UP!

[@kolbecollett7102]

Love the nala sinephro at 7:45

[@yacko8885]

Goated

[@passwordprotectedd]

the future

[@FrankTrouble]

For some reason talking about the insinuation of drama made me think of the 80s/90s song Waiting On A Line, by Xtreme I think.

[@victoryzy]

I CLICKED SO FAST y’all

[@robbiesheets8411]

If Jeff Buckley and Kurt cobain had a kid , this is him

[@saladhands1127]

3 of my most intense musical obsessions, makes sense

[@leemorejacqueline]

and prince!

[@saladhands1127]

@@leemorejacqueline sting too

[@ChristopherSeufert17]

Look up "Walking... Walking.... in da rain...."

[@ChristopherSeufert17]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/gH-qfX95dtaSrqs

[@Background_character489]

What’s song playing when he talked about his jazz background @ 12:24

[@secret.dog.powers]

Jersey rock is so fucking fire😭😭

[@nbeutler1134]

lol “I want” definitely has Springsteen vibes

[@fjez]

yo thanks for uploading this! i was wondering if you edited it? there’s a song playing in the background on 7:00 and it’s off one of my favourite albums ever, space 1.8 by nala sinephro, and that little crossover was everything i needed

[@trailersparks]

That's all the dj/interviewer's doing. He played some great tracks earlier in the radio show as well. If you want the whole show, googling "mk.gee mixcloud" should get you there (it'll have the live sessions Mike did too)

[@MrSafeboss]

I Don't Want To Leave You, I Just Came To Say Good-bye - Shawn Phillips

[@carricktim7]

what are some examples of records that sounds so human (and took 3-4 years to make)?

[@finegoldstones]

I'd say most pop stuff nowadays, anything thats charting under pop

[@thaiczd]

had heard it already but thanks for uploading

[@djestouff]

oh ok we’ll check with you next time first

[@thaiczd]

@@djestouff haffhsasasffggf ure mean I like ir

[@heatepancakes]

@@djestouff LMFAO

[@CJsComment]

whats the tune in the background around 4 mins??

[@scubadiverrrr_music]

idk but If I Was a Folkstar by the Avalanches is a similar vibe

[@tadknuf7979]

14:30 mk gee is officially a WHAT?!

[@seamushorton01]

an arsenal football team fan

[@jonathanvalladares5350]

Oh wow I saw this at 444 views I hope yall see 444 too

[@cartermartin2887]

14:33 my fella what the fuck

[@mitchyyy18]

Taylor sparks has the inside scoop

[@trailersparks]

I wish haha, I just googled relentlessly until I found it because I was frustrated with it not being accessible. It’s not even on the BBC website. Thankfully someone else on here uploaded the Maida Vale live sessions he did for the show 🙏

[@tpskorby]

Can anyone ID the tracks in the background ???

[@Nakapeesh]

came here to ask this as well

[@GeorgeBoy123100]

first two are: Floating Points - Myrtle Avenue Nala Sinephro - Space 1

[@danoconn]

​@@GeorgeBoy123100Yep and that whole Nala Sinephro album is incredible

[@Nakapeesh]

@@GeorgeBoy123100 bless you dawg

[@MrSafeboss]

I Don't Want To Leave You, I Just Came To Say Good-bye - Shawn Phillips is the 3rd track

[@howischris_]

the second coming of PRINCE

[@alexfxlll]

It’s there but it’s not !

[@daniliotaloma]

One of God's own prototypes

[@eternalsence3033]

i dont understand what he means with making it seem more relatable is evil?? can someone explain

[@trailersparks]

I think he’s talking about the editing process and how some artists reverse-engineer their sound in a computer to appear more “human” and relatable-instead of actually making what they want and letting their humanity speak for itself. He’s saying if you stay true to your vision, it will be authentic and people will understand it, even if the music sounds “alien”.

[@tillgogum8288]

i love mk.gee's music and appreciate he took the time to be interviewed. i also strongly disagree specifically about the comment on people taking 3 years making something that sounds "humaness" being evil. for someone who makes incredible music, at that moment, he came across as a generalizer, and as white arrogance which is a shame. every artist is different in their approach and surely he knows this, as someone who said he got fired a lot from being a touring musician for being considered strange. there's no right or wrong. for some people, their music is really informed by their life. an artist might take just 1 to 3 days to make 1 track, but that 1 track might be informed by series of events that happened to said artist 2 years and 11 months of their life. im pretty sure d'angelo exemplifies this. it's strange that he didn't mention prince, the poilce and vangelis along with springsteen and methany as influences. having said this, i can tell he cares about music and the concept for two star and the dream police. it's without doubt an excellent album.

[@nbeutler1134]

Ya I did find that comment surprising, but “white arrogance” is a bit of a stretch 😂

[@djestouff]

I think he was speaking specifically about people trying to give their music a “rough/raw/human” feeling that ends up being quite disingenuous since they aren’t actually making something rough/raw, but instead something very manufactured and polished. he’s not knocking people for taking their time, he’s knocking the phoniness of the aesthetic.

[@tillgogum8288]

@@djestouffi hope he was speaking specifically about this. michael comes across articulate and passionate in this interview. so to be articulate and passionate but not be specific about this, is eyebrow raising for me. i understand that being interviewed on live radio is a bit of pressure because of the time limitations. so there is some room to give him the benefit of doubt.

[@HONUT]

What a racist thing to say. Why involve race?

[@markdressman9258]

Agree with some of that sentiment, as a huge two star fan I find that sometimes artists have a really hard time explaining the background behind the tracks and mk.gee is no exception 😂 saying a whole bunch but also nothing at all haha

[@guga7]

Damn...turn off that background music!

[@trailersparks]

You’ll have to take that one up with the interviewer

[@andersc6593]

I love his music but he’s talking like he invented experimental music