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Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep

by Mykki Blanco

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MYKKI BLANCO - 'BROKEN HEARTS & BEAUTY SLEEP' (2021 mini-album) -- due out June 18th digitally and October 1st in physical formats.


It's been just over a decade since the moniker ‘Mykki Blanco’ was created — first as a video art project portraying a teenage female character (inspired by Lil Kim’s ‘Kimmy Blanco’ alter ego) posting vlogs and raps on social media, but it inevitably evolved into a vehicle of self-discovery in the artist’s journey of forming their personal self-identity. The first official music release under this artist name Mykki Blanco dropped in the form of an EP entitled Mykki Blanco & The Mutant Angels in 2012. In the time since, they have pushed hip-hop to some of its most untethered bounds, melding noise and experimental elements with club and trap sounds, whilst also forging a uniquely subversive path within a genre historically entangled in a problematic ideological web of misogyny, homophobia, and transphobia. And while Blanco has been widely recognized as leading the charge as a pioneering trailblazer in the so-called ‘queer rap’ sub-genre, the music of this forthcoming new chapter of their career represents such significant musical evolution toward eradicating the confines of genre categories and mashing the previous perception of the ceiling of their potential reach.

Their new mini-album Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep marks their first official release in nearly five years since their debut full-length Mykki album. This 9-track body of work also marks their debut release as part of a recently signed deal with Transgressive Records in London (supported by PIAS worldwide). The music of this new mini-album introduces a more nuanced and genre- spanning set of work, suggesting the reflective wisdom of one who has experience and maturity on their side. Ushering in a fresh era for the artist, the songs take life and love into account, but also
personal stakes that are higher than they've ever been. “I couldn’t continue on that same trajectory,” they say, calling up releases of old. "I can't call myself a serious musician if you can't go on a journey bumping a Mykki Blanco record from start to finish."

Mykki’s desire to elevate their artistry provided the lifeblood. They felt the approach of the early part of their career had long resembled that of a performance artist rather than a musician; and as much as they hungered for longevity, they wanted more to connect with the mechanics of how they created their own work. “I liked my life. I liked the life my career had given me. I loved songwriting, but I was afraid,” Blanco admits. “There was still a level of musicianship that I was relying too much on other people for, and I could feel that spiritual gap.” To that end, the unique partnership they formed with producer FaltyDL — one that has been continuous since they first found themselves collaborating in 2018 — was instrumental in its creative process.

When the two began working on music together in 2018, Blanco was fresh out of a serious relationship — Mykki’s actual first — that had spread out over three years. After a twenties that was characterized by “a lot of sexual trauma,” an actual committed relationship proved to be a balm. “It was healing. It was like God brought that man into my life to teach me how to love myself better. It was through his love of me that I was able to realize that I was worthy of love.” And though that relationship has ceased, the impact of it remains powerful in Blanco's mind as both a beautiful memory and an experience they sought to capture in composition. At its core, Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep is a collection of songs about love that grew out of the end of this cherished romance. This mini album is further informed by Blanco’s childhood spent between California and North Carolina, listening to acts as disparate as Jamiroquai (their first concert) and Macy Gray (the first CD they paid for) to Riot Grrrl bands and the Neptunes. They’ve also been further influenced by being based primarily in Europe for the last few years and collaborating with a wide cross-section of artists in these years that have passed since their debut album. Mykki Blanco’s music and artistic career has long been an amalgamation of their broad tastes and continuous evolution; and with great intention, Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep is the next step on this long road.

Mykki set out to make a sound that was all their own when they started this work with FaltyDL, with Blanco penning the majority of the lyrics and FaltyDL settling into an executive producer role where they would go on to produce nearly all the music. Samples became a thing of the past, and, in their place, original sounds and layers would prevail. Working consistently with FaltyDL allowed Blanco to tap into an entirely new creative space that often felt like divinity. “When you start playing around in those worlds, God just starts flowing through you in all these different kinds of ways. There were some days in the studio where I literally was like ‘this isn't the old me’ -- this is some new energy that is coming through me.” They describe the production and recording process as a kind of osmosis between themselves and backing vocalists whose "voices were the ingredients for a cornucopia of ideas." Those singers — Mykal Kilgore (now a Grammy-nominated artist in his own right), L1ZY (known mostly for her work as part of the group Big Data), Leah King, and AKUA — are the unsung heroes who helped enable Blanco to expand their craft. Blanco was shocked to learn of their prowess for melody. They would present ideas for those backing singers, who would then do the octave changes and pitch changes to really bring the tunes to life — this was a whole new way of working for Mykki and is a cornerstone of the evolution heard on this mini-album.

Creative energy was also found with the boldfaced names that contributed to hemmaking of Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep. Lead single “Free Ride” had initially been shelved as a track which Blanco felt was too nostalgic, but then it was passed along to Hudson Mohawke who gave it a whole new life re-building the song back up from scratch following the original composition as a guide. “It’s Not My Choice” features Dev Hynes (Blood Orange) contributing vocals written by Blanco, but also includes Dev contributing instrumentally with parts he composed for the track. There’s a retro soul in both of those songs yet they manage to sound undeniably contemporary despite their old school leanings. Another big highlight on this mini-album is “Love Me,” which was originally produced by Daniel Fisher (aka Physical Therapy) with additional production by FaltyDL, and features a stunning vocal performance that Jamila Woods delivered; this song is a perfect example of a tune with lyrics written completely by Blanco but elevated by the contribution of Jamila as well as Mykki’s real-life brother Jay Cue. There are only two tracks of this 9-track mini- album which see a collaborator contributing lyrically and both were tunes designed with guest features in mind: “That’s Folks” with Big Freedia and “Summer Fling” with Kari Faux. All of these collaborations are as organic as they come with each guest being a genuine fan, if not friend or even family, of Blanco. Collectively they add unique flourishes, but the spirit of the mini-album is all their own.

Blanco’s evolution and road to Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep reflects an artist who's never been more in touch with their creative impulses and never more ready to bask in the magic of their own genius. “For me, I am one of those artists who many would say has taken the longer road to get to where I am now, but it’s that journey which has been the reward because the journey really has been my life; the career has just been the outer shell to the deeper things that I’ve experienced, and I can only be here now because of this journey.”

Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep is just the start of this next wave of music in Mykki Blanco’s career. Their creative process working with FaltyDL did not stop with just the nine songs found on this mini-album — there are more musical heroes and talented peers who have lent their gifts to this next phase of Mykki’s work. Expect more fruit from their labors to come very soon, as their commitment to the music over the last few years has yielded the most prolific batch of output ever before in their career. And on the live side of things, you can expect to see a significantly elevated stage show which will do justice to the layered depth of this new era of music - while not leaving behind the unhinged performative tenacity which has defined so much of Mykki Blanco’s legacy.

credits

released June 18, 2021

1. “Trust A Little Bit (God Colony Version)”
Produced by FaltyDL
Additional Production by God Colony
Lyrics by Mykki Blanco
Lead vocals by Mykki Blanco
Backing vocals by Mykal Kilgore, Leah King, and L1ZY

2. “Free Ride”
Co-produced by FaltyDL and Hudson Mohawke
Lyrics by Mykki Blanco
Lead vocals by Mykki Blanco
Backing vocals by Mykal Kilgore, Leah King, and L1ZY

3. “Summer Fling” (feat. Kari Faux)
Produced by FaltyDL
Lyrics by Mykki Blanco and Kari Faux
Lead vocals by Mykki Blanco and Kari Faux
Backing vocals by AKUA

4. “It's Not My Choice” (feat. Blood Orange)
Produced by FaltyDL
Additional production by Dev Hynes
Lyrics by Mykki Blanco
Lead vocals by Mykki Blanco and Dev Hynes
Performances on cello, keyboard, and drum machines by Dev Hynes
Performance on saxophone by Matt Blanchard
Backing vocals by Mykal Kilgore, Leah King, and L1ZY

5. “Fuck Your Choices”
Produced by FaltyDL
Lyrics by Mykki Blanco
Lead vocals by Mykki Blanco
Backing vocals by Mykal Kilgore, Leah King, and L1ZY

6. “Love Me” (feat. Jamila Woods and Jay Cue)
Produced by Daniel Fisher (Physical Therapy)
Additional production by FaltyDL
Lyrics by Mykki Blanco
Lead vocals by Mykki Blanco, Jamila Woods, and Jay Cue

7. “Want From Me” (feat. Bruno Ribeiro)
Produced by FaltyDL
Lyrics by Mykki Blanco
Lead vocals by Mykki Blanco and Bruno Ribeiro

8. “Patriarchy Ain't The End of Me”
Produced by FaltyDL
Lyrics by Mykki Blanco
Lead vocals by Mykki Blanco
Backing vocals by Mykal Kilgore, Leah King, and L1ZY

9. “That's Folks” (feat. Big Freedia)
Produced by FaltyDL
Lyrics by Mykki Blanco and Big Freedia
Lead vocals by Mykki Blanco and Big Freedia

Executive Producer: FaltyDL
Mixing Engineer: James Rand
Additional Vocal Mixing: Joe Crow
Mastering Engineer: Heba Kadry

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Mykki Blanco Los Angeles, California

It's been just over a decade since ‘Mykki Blanco’ was created — first as a video art project portraying a teen female character (inspired by Lil Kim’s ‘Kimmy Blanco’ alter ego), but it inevitably evolved into a vehicle of self-discovery in the artist’s journey of forming their self-identity. They recently signed with Transgressive Records and “Free Ride” is the first taste of their next chapter. ... more

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