Michael Kiwanuka: “There is money being made in live music – it needs someone to give back out to the people”

nme.com:

Michael Kiwanuka has spoken to NME about his upcoming fourth album ‘Small Changes’, and the need for larger companies in the music industry to feed back into the grassroots.The singer-songwriter’s new effort sees him teaming up once again with Danger Mouse and Inflo – who also produced his previous two albums, including 2019’s Mercury Prize-winning ‘Kiwanuka’.

Having described the soul-influenced ‘Small Changes’ as “understated”, the artist explained how the sound was a reaction to the maximalism of its predecessor.“I remember sitting there in the studio and thinking: ‘What would it sound like without trying really hard to be cool or accepted?’,” he told NME. “With ‘Kiwanuka’ and [2016’s] ‘Love & Hate’, I wanted to show that I could be a creative, interesting artist as well as the singer-songwriter.

I wanted to expand on what people thought I was. With this one, I was like, ‘I don’t wanna focus on anything other than my instincts’.”He continued: “Maybe that’s also getting older – you try really hard to fit in and then you get to a point where you’re just happy with what you are, you know?” During our interview, the 37-year-old reflected on the fact that, as a Black teenager who loved artists such as Duster and Nirvana, he felt frustrated at not seeing Black musicians in guitar bands.

Noting that things have now changed, indie-loving Kiwanuka (who described Cindy Lee’s 2024 album ‘Diamond Jubilee’ as “one of the best things I’ve ever heard in my life”) praised genre-blurring contemporary Black artists such as Steve Lacy, Baby Rose and Hak Baker.Since our interview, the UK Government has backed a levy on arena-sized and larger gigs to do provide lifeline funds for grassroots venues and artists – something that Kiwanuka.