Mk.gee

Last updated

Mk.gee
Birth nameMichael Todd Gordon
Born (1997-09-27) September 27, 1997 (age 26)
Linwood, New Jersey
Genres
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • music producer
Instrument(s)
  • Vocals
  • guitar [1]
  • piano
Years active2017–present
Labels
Website mkgee.com

Michael Todd Gordon, [2] [3] [4] better known by his stage name Mk.gee, is an American singer-songwriter, music producer, and multi-instrumentalist. [5] [6] His career began in 2017 with the release of his debut single "I Know How You Get". [7] In 2018, he released two EPs, Pronounced McGee and Fool, [8] [9] followed by his debut mixtape A Museum of Contradiction in 2020. [10] In 2024, Gordon released his debut studio album Two Star & the Dream Police . [11] Aside from his own work, Gordon has worked as songwriter and producer with various artists, including Dijon, Omar Apollo, and Kacy Hill. [12]

Contents

Early life

Gordon is originally from southern New Jersey. His interest in music began when he was around 6 or 7 when he took piano lessons. [1] [3] When he was 11, he started learning to play guitar. In high school, Gordon joined a band with some of his schoolmates. However, he preferred to play alone and began to record his own demos and play all the instruments by himself. [1] After graduating high school, Gordon moved to Los Angeles to attend USC Thornton School of Music, but dropped out before graduating. [1] [13]

Career

Gordon released his debut single "I Know How You Get" in 2017. The single was then included on his debut EP Pronounced McGee, released on May 18, 2018, along with three other singles "Roll with the Punches", "Over Here", and "You". [14] In the same year, Gordon released his second EP Fool on November 25, preceded by the single "New Year". On May 22, 2020, Gordon released his first mixtape A Museum of Contradiction. The mixtape was promoted by the single "cz", which was released on February 22, 2020. Rhys Buchanan, a writer from NME , praised the mixtape, giving a four out of five stars rating, and wrote: "As acknowledged with the mixtape title, this release merges genres from different worlds with both maturity and ease. Mk.gee is an artist with a natural ability to pair his emotional palette with vast musicality. A release that feels like an important stepping stone – you sense stardom is looming large here. [15] On February 9, 2024, Gordon released his debut album Two Star & the Dream Police to critical acclaim. [16] The album was supported by five singles: "Candy", "How Many Miles", "Are You Looking Up", "You Got It", and "Dream Police". [11] All four releases of Gordon have been home-produced by himself. [2] [13]

Apart from producing songs for himself, Gordon has also produced for other artists, such as Omar Apollo and Dijon, for which he co-produced the former's mixtape Apolonio (2020) and the latter's debut album Absolutely (2021). In 2021, "Mountains", performed by Charlotte Day Wilson and co-written by Gordon was sampled in the track "Fair Trade" by Drake featuring Travis Scott from the album Certified Lover Boy . [17] In 2023, Gordon produced and co-wrote the track "Kids Are Growing Up (Part 1)" by The Kid Laroi from his debut album The First Time . [18]

Discography

Studio albums

TitleDetails
Two Star & the Dream Police [11]

Mixtapes

TitleDetails
A Museum of Contradiction [10]

EPs

TitleDetails
Pronounced McGee [8]
Fool [9]
  • Released: November 25, 2018
  • Label: Orchard Ears
  • Format: Digital download, streaming

Singles

TitleYearAlbum
"I Know How You Get"2017Pronounced McGee
"Roll with the Punches" [19]
"Over Here" [5] 2018
"You" [20]
"New Year" [21] Fool
"Untitled" [22] [23] 2019Non-album single
"cz" [24] 2020A Museum of Contradiction
"Candy" [25] 2023Two Star & the Dream Police
"How Many Miles" [25]
"Are You Looking Up" [26]
"You Got It" [26]
"Dream Police" [11] 2024

Songwriting and production credits

TitleYearArtist(s)AlbumCredit(s)Ref.
"The Climb" (Miley Cyrus cover)2019 Role Model Non-album singleProducer
"Hey Boy"2020 Omar Apollo featuring Kali Uchis Apolonio Co-producer (with Omar Apollo and Budgie)
"Useless"Omar ApolloCo-producer (with Apollo, Oscar Santander, and Albert Hammond Jr.)
"Bi Fren"Co-producer (with Apollo, Michael Uzowuru and DJ Dahi)
"Thank You, God. For It All."2021 Childish Major Thank You, God. For It All.Co-writer (with Childish Major and Hollywood Cole)
"Fair Trade" Drake featuring Travis Scott Certified Lover Boy Co-writer (with Marcus Reddick, Teo Halm, Kyla Moscovich, Brandon Banks, D'Mile, Babyface, Varren Wade, Charlotte Day Wilson, OZ, Patron, Jahaan Sweet, WondaGurl, Travis Scott and Drake)
"Simple, Sweet, and Smiling" Kacy Hill Simple, Sweet, and Smiling Co-producer (with John Carroll Kirby, Jim-E Stack, Kacy Hill)
"Big Mike's" Dijon Absolutely Co-producer (with Dijon)
"Many Times"Co-producer (with Dijon and Andrew Sarlo)
"Noah's Highlight Reel"Co-producer (with Dijon)
Co-writer (with Dijon and Noah Le Gros)
"Rodeo Clown"Co-writer (with Dijon and Le Gros)
"End of Record"Co-producer (with Dijon)
"Kids Are Growing Up (Part 1)"2023 The Kid Laroi The First Time Producer
Co-writer (with The Kid Laroi)

Artistry

Gordon's musical genres have been described as indie, alternative, [3] lo-fi, [2] experimental indie, [13] R&B, and soft-psychedelia. [33] His musical influences include The Black Keys, Sly Stone, Larry Graham, [3] Grouper, Julianna Barwick, Down to Earth, and most importantly Jai Paul. [34]

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Two Star & the Dream Police is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter, music producer, and multi-instrumentalist Mk.gee, released on February 9, 2024, through R&R. The album was supported by five singles: "Candy", "How Many Miles", "Are You Looking Up", "You Got It", and "Dream Police".

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Corrigan, Graham (December 5, 2018). "Meet Mk.gee, the Guitarist-Turned-Singer Charting a Dreamy Path to Independence". Complex . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Buchanan, Rhys (May 22, 2020). "Mk.gee – 'A Museum Of Contradiction' review: Playful pop from the Frank Ocean-backed bedroom producer". NME . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Gillan, Claire (July 14, 2020). "Get to Know… Mk.gee". DIY . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  4. ↑ "ANABELL". ASCAP. American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved November 9, 2023.
  5. 1 2 "Multi-instrumentalist and producer Mk.Gee returns with "Over Here"". The Line of Best Fit . February 9, 2018. Archived from the original on June 11, 2022. Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  6. ↑ Shafer, Ellise (November 4, 2019). "Get to Know Nilüfer Yanya & Mk.gee, The Rising Stars of Pitchfork Paris 2019". Billboard . Retrieved June 11, 2022.
  7. ↑ Mk.gee (July 10, 2017). "Mk.gee – "I Know How You Get" (LIVE)". YouTube . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  8. 1 2 Mk.gee (May 18, 2018). "Pronounced McGee". Spotify . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  9. 1 2 Mk.gee (November 15, 2018). "Fool". Spotify . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  10. 1 2 Mk.gee (May 22, 2020). "A Museum of Contradiction". Spotify . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  11. 1 2 3 4 Kelly, Tyler Damara (January 19, 2024). "Mk.gee has announced his debut album, Two Star and the Dream Police, alongside the brand new single 'Dream police'". The Line of Best Fit . Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  12. ↑ "Credits for Mk.gee" . Tidal . Retrieved February 11, 2024.
  13. 1 2 3 "Mk.gee". Maison Kitsune. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  14. ↑ "Mk.gee - My double EP "Pronounced McGee" is now available..." Facebook . August 21, 2023. Archived from the original on August 21, 2023. Retrieved August 21, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  15. ↑ Buchanan, Rhys (May 22, 2020). "Mk.gee – 'A Museum Of Contradiction' review: Playful pop from the Frank Ocean-backed bedroom producer". NME . Archived from the original on November 3, 2022. Retrieved November 3, 2022.
  16. ↑ "Mk.gee - Two Star & The Dream Police". Metacritic . Retrieved February 21, 2024.
  17. ↑ Mk.gee (September 3, 2021). "Mk.gee on "Fair Trade" 🌑". Archived from the original on June 10, 2020. Retrieved June 10, 2022– via Instagram.
  18. 1 2 The Kid Laroi (February 10, 2023). "Kids Are Growing Up (Part 1)". Genius . Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  19. ↑ Mk.gee (November 17, 2017). "Roll with the Punches". Spotify . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  20. ↑ Mk.gee (June 8, 2018). "You". Spotify . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  21. ↑ Mk.gee (November 12, 2018). "New Year". Spotify . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  22. ↑ Le Roux, Rachel (December 17, 2019). "Mk.gee releases experimental feat, 'untitled'". Sniffers. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  23. ↑ Mk.gee (December 6, 2019). "Untitled". Spotify . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  24. ↑ Mk.gee (February 22, 2020). "cz". Spotify . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  25. 1 2 Schube, Will (August 11, 2022). "Mk.gee Returns with Two New Singles, 'Candy' and 'How many miles'". FLOOD Magazine. Retrieved August 18, 2023.
  26. 1 2 Murphy, Dylan (October 20, 2023). "Mk.gee shares double sided release 'Are You Looking Up / You got it'". District Magazine. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  27. ↑ ROLE MODEL (January 1, 2019). "The Climb". Genius . Retrieved February 11, 2024.
  28. ↑ Apollo, Omar (October 16, 2020). "Apolonio". Genius . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  29. ↑ Childish Major (July 23, 2021). "Thank You, God. For It All". Genius . Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  30. ↑ Drake (September 3, 2021). "Certified Lover Boy". Genius . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  31. ↑ Hill, Kacy (October 15, 2021). "Simple, Sweet, and Smiling". Genius . Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  32. ↑ Dijon (November 5, 2021). "Absolutely". Genius . Retrieved June 10, 2022.
  33. ↑ Hussain, Shahzaib (January 19, 2024). "Mk.gee Announces Debut Album 'Two Star & The Dream Police'". Clash . Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  34. ↑ Wojick, Regan (December 14, 2018). "Mk.gee Can Aid the Growing Pains". Amadeus Magazine. Retrieved June 10, 2022.
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