It's been eight years since we've heard new music from MNEK, other than the extensive work he's done for dozens of other artists.
In February, the out gay singer/songwriter/producer talked exclusively with Out about helping Zara Larsson with the deluxe version of her album, Midnight Sun. Now, after collabs with other pop stars including Dua Lipa, Troye Sivan, and Selena Gomez ā and girl groups Little Mix and FLO, and K-pop groups Twice, aespa, and BTS ā MNEK just dropped his second solo album, Bulldozer!!
"It's fun. That's the thing, it's a different fun that I can have," MNEK, 31, told Out.
"A lot of the album is about me breaking through a lot of things that I've had in my way, or things that held me back from being my best self, or my fullest self," said the artist. "It's a loud, up tempo album, and it's about empowering. It's about being yourself, it's about standing in your purpose in a lot of ways. I know this sounds like a lot of like self-help mumbo jumbo, but I promise, it's not. "
That's clear right from the first track, "Reverse!!" in which he sings about how he "could turn a bad boy to a bad bitch in seconds."
"I think that my music has power to change perception, has the power to change everything," said MNEK, in discussion about that lyric's meaning. "I think that's the broadest way I could say what that line means. But then of course there's other connotations and it's just cheeky and fun and talking about, 'Just look! Look at what I can do. Look at what I can do, and look at how I can really just bulldoze through your expectations of what a man can be.'"
He revealed he's struggled mightily with mental health issues including depression and problems with self-esteem since that debut album in 2018.
"I've achieved all this stuff, but I'm afraid of being a has-been," he said. "I'm afraid of, I don't have the stamina to still do it. You know what I mean? Those are all valid fears of mine. And all stuff that I was working through in the time between my first album and now."
"I think of all the boys I let pass me by," MNEK sings on the "Oh no!! All the boys!!" track. "When will I get it right?"
"The overarching thing is that when it comes to me being a Black and queer pop music maker," he said, "there's a lot of people that'll be flat out against it. What they don't realize is that I've been doing this for a really long time and I've absolutely written and produced at least some of their favorite records."
Another new song, "Muscle Marys..," will resonate with any member of the LGBTQ+ community who's felt isolated in the gym because of how they look compared to others.
"Writing "Muscle Marys.." was about my feelings on body image and my experiences being a fat guy in the gay community who's fluctuated, who's been many shapes and sizes over the years, who's been perceived different ways, who's been maybe more masc in some situations, more femme in some situations, but I'm dealing with perception and being judged by how much I weigh," MNEK said.
"The song offers room to not be judgy against people who are in the gym working on their body because we're all working towards something, we're all going through something. And it's not like an 'all bodies matter' thing, but I do think we're all facing some type of turmoil," he added. "We can't all find satisfaction around our bodies. So, it was interesting to get to write a song about it and to feel, 'Cool, I want this to be a part of the world I'm building with this album.'"
MNEK's new album, "Bulldozer!!'LISETT LEDON
Bottom line, this second solo album is about "standing tall and not shrinking for anybody," MNEK said. "I think that everyone should be their own bulldozer and I think that was a another catalyst to why I wanted to name the album Bulldozer!!"
So who did he make it for? "If you wanna hear dance music from a Black bitch perspective that is fresh and unique and poignant and both deep and fun at the same time, that lets you feel empowered, that lets you feel like you can be your biggest self, that you can crash through the room like, 'Who gives a fuck?' then you wanna listen to Bulldozer!!"
MNEK's Bulldozer!! is now available.
