Clattermouuuth’s Music of The Week: Q&A With Malik English

By Andrew Kohler

Welcome back to Clattermouuuth’s Music of the Week, curating Rockaway’s music taste one week at a time. A couple of months ago, I had an interview with a very talented up-and-coming R&B artist, Malik English. I thought I’d share that interview with you all here:

Q: Describe your music for unfamiliar listeners​​​.

​A: My music is like a collection of colors. I take a lot of inspiration from different genres, whether R&B, Afrobeats, rap, dancehall, or rock. I grew up on a lot of different sounds. My music pulls from my own experiences and stories I hear from my friends or just people in the ether. I try to recreate those experiences, feelings, and emotions in my music to share and connect with more people.

Q: Describe your creative process.

​A: It varies. I usually get ideas from hearing songs, or a melody will just come to me once I lock in. I’ll add ideas on top of that and delete them just as quickly. It’s just a whirlwind of ideas until we get to the final product.

Q: Your debut album, “Love, M.E,” never has a dull moment. How was that album created? What is your personal favorite track on that album?

​​​​A: Thank you! Love, M.E was a process. It was fun to make, though. With that project, I wanted to show all the different types of love we encounter: platonic, heartbreak, fast love, etc. It was really fun to dive into all those different mindsets. My favorite song is probably “Closer.” It’s a really fun R&B record that I think slides between R&B, rap, and pop. I really like it.

Q: How’d you first get into making music?

​A: I was skipping school and would tell my mom I had band practice, and eventually she was like, “I’ve never seen you play,” so I had to learn an instrument really quickly to keep it going. But ended up actually really liking making music and went on to study music in university.

Q: Where do you find the inspiration to create music?

​A: Life, whether my own or the people around me, even stuff I see on TV. I can see certain relationships or scenarios play out and see an interesting story in that.

Q: Any new music soon? Anything you’d like to promote?

A: Just released the video for my latest single, “Tek Time,” and an anniversary version of “Closer” is coming up too! Also working on some new music I’m planning to release super soon!

Q: What music have you been listening to lately?

A: Been listening to a lot of older stuff recently — Bobby Womack, Outkast — and listening to a lot of soundtracks. I stay up to date with everything that comes out, too. I’ve really been liking Pinkpantheress and Rema’s latest drops.