Rapper Mykki Blanco has announced their new mini-album Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep. It’s out June 18th, and you can catch a preview with new single “Love Me” featuring the incandescent songwriter Jamila Woods and Mykki’s real-life brother Jay Cue.
Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep isn’t just Blanco’s debut with Transgressive Records, it’s also their first project since 2016’s Mykki. It was produced by FaltyDL, with additional contributions by Hudson Mohawke, God Colony, and Physical Therapy, and features guest work from Blood Orange, Big Freedia, Kari Faux, Bruno Ribeiro, and the aforementioned Woods and Cue.
That’s an eclectic collection of collaborators, but “Love Me” offers a taste of how it all comes together. The track combines elements of hip-hop and electronica into something atmospheric, upbeat, and fun. It opens with a short swell and a thumping beat drop, deploying a deep bass and hand claps to hack your cerebellum and start your toes tapping. Blanco distorts their own voice, adding an earthy texture that plays off Woods’ airy splendor.
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In a statement, Blanco talked about what it was like working with Woods alongside their brother Cue, explaining,
“‘Love Me’ is essentially about so many forms of love, patience, trust, time. It is about the potion that is created when you sift through the ingredients that create “love”, the alchemy we as human beings take part in to convey these feelings deep inside of us.
“Jamila really comprises a lot of elements creatively that I just find awesome. Her soothing, soulful and folkloric voice is reminiscent of great musicians like Janis Ian or Joni Mitchell. I was completely drawn into Jamila’s leaning towards crafting songs with strong lyricism, poetry and themes exploring self-love, intimacy, Black pride, power and vulnerability. So I approached her about working with me and sent her the instrumental for ‘Love Me.’ She made my lyrics her own and created a hazy, cozy, mystical vibe to the production that really planted the seeds of what “Love Me” became. Months later I asked my little brother Jaycue (yes my real brother), to join in on the song. His section of the song he wrote himself and he poured himself into it heart and soul. That day working with my brother impressed me so much because it was like seeing my own creativity, our family bond, his intense creative force just all coming together and it was extremely emotional for me and it really cemented for me what ‘Love Me’ is about.”
Check out “Love Me” below. Broken Hearts and Beauty Sleep is out June 18th and pre-orders are ongoing. Previously, Mykki Blanco shared the lead single “Free Ride”.
Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep Artwork:
Broken Hearts & Beauty Sleep Tracklist:
01. Trust A Little Bit (God Colony Version)
02. Free Ride
03. Summer Fling (feat. Kari Faux)
04. It’s Not My Choice (feat. Blood Orange)
05. Fuck Your Choices
06. Love Me (feat. Jamila Woods and Jay Cue)
07. Want From Me (feat. Bruno Ribeiro)
08. Patriarchy Ain’t The End of Me
09. That’s Folks (feat. Big Freedia)
