MNEK is back with his first solo album in eight years, Bulldozer!!, a record that places queer joy firmly in the spotlight. The 31-year-old south London artist, born Uzoechi Osisioma Emenike, says he is finally ready to enjoy himself after years of battling self-doubt and struggling to replicate his behind-the-scenes success as a solo act.
On the set of his music video for Muscle Marys.., the third single from the album, MNEK is surrounded by semi-naked men in a makeshift locker room in a south-east London warehouse. One dancer adjust a jockstrap, another removes his vest. “It is very gay, you're not wrong there,” MNEK says, as he gets his makeup done. Nearby, a group of dancers are hosed down while filming a shower scene, with the water confirmed to be warm.
An outsized impact on pop
MNEK's influence on pop music is hard to overstate. He signed his first publishing deal at 14 and has worked with Beyoncé, Kylie Minogue, Madonna, Christina Aguilera, Little Mix and Flo. His songs Never Forget You with Zara Larsson and Head & Heart with DJ Joel Corry have amassed more than 1bn streams. Earlier this year, he received his second Grammy nomination for Larsson's Midnight Sun, which he co-wrote and produced.
As a solo artist, though, success has been more elusive. His 2018 debut Language peaked at No 81. “I lost a lot of confidence after that,” he says. “I live every day knowing that most, if not all, of my money is made from being a writer and producer. But my solo music is also something I care about. Still, a lot of the time, I will be the only person vouching for me to make my own music.”
The album's explicit queer visuals and lyrics led one reviewer to suggest its muted response was due to homophobia and racism. “When it comes to going to the public with my own music, I am a fat Black gay man. Try and sell that,” MNEK says. He chose not to hide his sexuality, adding: “I feel like [withholding my sexuality] is something that maybe could have benefited me, but now we'll never know. I just didn't want to be on stage singing about girls if it wasn't my truth.”
Finding the pure desire again
MNEK began working on Bulldozer!! shortly after Language came out, but poor mental health, the pandemic and other commitments left him unable to make a coherent record. “I needed to figure out how to get back to the pure desire of wanting to make a project,” he says. A separation from his management helped. “It took me back to being 14. I was making music and there were no expectations other than me being excited about it.”
The title is confrontational. “As a six-foot-four Black man, I am very conscious of the space I take up,” he explains. “I am often trying to squeeze myself down. I mean look at where we are right now … Can I stand up straight in this space? But that's the reality of being as large as I am. Bulldozer came about because it's one of those words that I found very triggering. But because of that, it felt like the right title.”
Themes of self-doubt and desire
The album's themes are big. The Wall!! addresses pushing through self-doubt (“Six foot four and I still got growing pains,” he sings), while Reverse!! and Dirty Little Secret!! explore encounters with “DL trade” — men who sleep with other men secretly. MNEK acknowledges his own experience: “I have over the years. It's not my reality right now. But it's complicated. While there is a very rich queer culture within the Black community, there's also a deeper history with homophobia, which starts with colonialism, of course. There are a lot of people who believe in the 'batty man' ideology and that being gay is a sin. Those God-fearing environments create DL people. It's not about shaming anyone. I'm just saying: 'You don't have to drag me into it.'”
Sonically, MNEK draws on grime, garage and two-step. “I consider it dance music, as much as house and disco and all the different things I explore on the record. I wanted to claim some ownership of that,” he says. Clearing samples proved difficult: his request to use Lethal Bizzle's Pow! for Reverse!! was rejected. “They weren't comfortable with the lyrical content,” he sighs. “Even though Pow! is hardly a song about morality, [queerness] is a no-go area in a lot of these communities.” Other samples were easier: Lady!! interpolates Geri Halliwell's Bag It Up, and Oh No!! All the Boys!! samples the piano riff from the Clash's Rock the Casbah.
Body image is a lifelong struggle for MNEK. “I've always been fat. It's something that you're dealing with or running away from or keeping a tab on,” he says. “But I've taken up the gym, which has become part of the fabric of my life, as far as feeling confident about my body.” He recalls a painful hook-up with a “total Muscle Mary, a quintessential LA gay” who had tweeted about him: “Hey, this British musician is messaging me. I don't think he's that attractive, but should I do it just to say I did it?” MNEK calls it “vile”. “In those intimate settings, of course there's an element of transaction there, but you want to feel desirable.”
As filming begins, MNEK jumps up, tugging on a vest to protect it from his dyed yellow hair. “I wish I hadn't been so hard on myself [before] because I'm really fab and I've done really great things in my life. This time I want to really, really enjoy it.” Bulldozer!! is out now, and MNEK tours the UK and Ireland to 15 November, starting in Bristol.
