Released via Transgressive Records, the first song from the artist’s anticipated new album channels “gothic rock and 70’s late-night R&B across a subaqueous electronica-inflected architecture”
Replica Man cover star Mykki Blanco did it again: ahead of their forthcoming performance at BBC 6 Music Festival, which is scheduled for April 1 and will take place in Cardiff, the kaleidoscopic, ever-evolving artist has just dropped a new tune, Family Ties.
Confirming Mykki’s artistic rise as one of the most exciting personalities on the contemporary music scene, having worked with the likes of Kanye West, Charli XCX and Madonna, as well as founding hip-hop sub-genre “queer rap”, their latest song immerses listeners in a brand new world — the one they created for themselves following the release of Broken Heart and Beauty Sleep (2021), the mini-album they described as “the beginning of a new chapter”.
Recorded by the artist’s long-time collaborator Falty DL (Drew Lustman) and developed in synergy with R.E.M. frontman Michael Stipe, who features on the track, Family Ties captures the audience through an unexpected blend of gothic rock and 70’s late-night R&B, all paired with an electronic twist.
“Family Ties is the first song where I sonically found my voice and I mean that in a very literal way. It's the first song in my entire career where I am singing, I don't rap,” Mykki shared in a statement about the release of the track, which was inspired by the relationship between their ex-boyfriend and his father, who struggled with mental illness.
“When the person you love is going through a situation that you can't alter in any way, it not only hurts them but it hurts you. I think the core meaning of this song is compassion in the face of helplessness,” they explained.
