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Michael Kiwanuka - All about the musician: full biography, ...

Who is he, the musical hero of the twentieth century?

The story of musician Michael Kiwanuka

To date, musicians from the UK who would masterfully play soul, blues and rhythm and blues can be counted on the fingers. And if we say that there is such an artist, and his name is known to everyone who follows the novelties of popular music! At the same time, he is also knocking out the first places in the Top Charts... And this is Kiwanuka.

Michael Kiwanuka
Michael Kiwanuka

Michael Kiwanuka: "...when I was teaching guitar and they wrote me a cheque, I thought, Oh my God, this is so much!"

A little biography

Michael is 31 years old. He already has a couple of hit records under his belt - "Home Again" and "Love & Hate", as well as nominations for various prestigious awards!

Michael Kiwanuka has emerged as the leader of Sound of 2012, an annual poll conducted by the BBC
Michael Kiwanuka has emerged as the leader of Sound of 2012, an annual poll conducted by the BBC

Many know him as a talented London-based musician who masterfully combines rock and soul elements in his work... Michael spent his childhood in Mazwell Hill, a suburb of London. From an early age he was fascinated by Radiohead, Offspring, Blur and Nirvana, playing in school rock bands.

For a long time Kiwanuka studied jazz and pop music, until chance introduced him to "(Sittin' on) the Dock of the Bay" - the famous Otis Redding recording that inspired Michael to create his own unique style...

In his interview, the artiste confessed:

"My style was influenced by artists like Bill Weathers, Bob Dylan, Pops Staples... They were all consummate masters of styles ranging from soul and blues to folk rock and gospel. It fascinates me to this day..."

At first, Michael performed as a session musician (the most famous examples are the recordings of James Gadson and Tinie Tempah). After that he started to position himself as a solo artist, performing in popular clubs in London. There he was noticed by Paul Butler from The Bees, who offered the young musician to record in his studio.

Today, Michael is one of the most popular British performers of our time.....
Today, Michael is one of the most popular British performers of our time.....

In 2011, Michael signed to the Communion label and two sumptuous releases, "Tell Me A Tale EP" and "I'm Getting Ready" were released.

Michael has subsequently performed as the opening act for Adele and was voted one of the best young musicians of 2011 by the Rising Star Award! In 2012 Kiwanuka won the prestigious BBC Sound poll, with the majority of listeners naming him "the most promising artist of the year..."

In 2016, Michael releases Love & Hate. The album received extremely positive reviews from music critics and online publications, which is very rare! The disc literally exploded the British Top Charts, where it occupied only the highest positions!

Love & Hate album cover
Love & Hate album cover

On style and collaborations

As far as collaborations go, things are just getting started for Michael:

"It's something uncharted for me... Before that, I couldn't stand working with other musicians. But once the Home Again album came out, everything changed! I started spending a lot more time writing music. I got the desire to hang out with other artists, to communicate with them, to discuss my ideas... It's great! If you find someone who motivates you to make great new tracks, you can make mountains!".

Also, Kiwanuka has repeatedly admitted in interviews that he is scared to do something new and different from his style:

"It scares me, because I don't know how the listener will feel about it..."

But Michael's worries proved to be in vain. In 2019, listeners were left in awe of his collaboration with Tom Misch called "Money"! In fact, Michael tried on a whole new image, becoming the author of a disco banger!

"This song was born all by itself, and very quickly! Tom and I had been in touch for a long time, and one day he asked me if I wanted to record something together. He's a friend of mine and I couldn't say no. We listened to a lot of music before we agreed on the 80s disco style! Tom was the most comfortable to work with, as I could discuss with him any idea I had, even the wildest one! You know: to record something like "Money" I imagine myself as someone else in the studio. I get into the role and then I go back to myself!" - Kiwanuka shared with the press.

Interesting facts

Many of Michael's fans wonder where their idol earned his first serious money. And now, the secret is out! In his interview Kiwanuka told the following:

"...I remember these times very well... I was 20 years old, I dropped out of school and got a job as a guitar teacher. I taught lessons at two schools at once. On average, it took me four hours a week. When they wrote me a cheque, I thought, "Oh my God, this is so much!" I remember being paid about £400, which I immediately spent on a guitar amplifier!"

Many fans of Kiwanuka's work were more than a little worried when there was a lull after the release of Love & Hate... As it turns out, the three-year run (Kiwanuka didn't release an album until 2019) happened because of perfectionism:

"I think every musician sooner or later has a creative crisis... No matter how much you want to, you just can't write anything worth writing! From time to time I take a holiday: it takes me a long time to write music that will make me happy and excited... I want to write the best music I can! I want people to enjoy my music... It takes time to write something great...".

Not so long ago, the artiste got a new hobby in which he immediately excelled - photography. Much to the delight of his fans, Kinavuka is not going to change from musician to photographer:

"I've always liked photography. When reading books about musicians, I always paid attention to the pictures... I got into photography recently. But it's more like a creative hobby for the soul..."

Asked if statuses and honours have any meaning to him, Kiwanuka said:

"It's a good question. Yes, sometimes they are very important for me, because thanks to them I realise that I am not standing still and I am progressing. Development, be it spiritual or creative, is a very important part of our life...".

Music videos

Let's enjoy Michael's gorgeous clips with engaging storylines:

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