When did you first start making music and what led you there?
I remember writing my first song at the age of 12 in music class. It was with one of my old classmates, and we wrote a song about a fictional character called ‘Mustafah’. All we had were our words, and a couple of bongos. It was received extremely well by everyone in the class, and that gave me the confidence to write more.
Tell us about your upcoming debut EP, Journals of an Immigrant & Minority.
So, Journals of an Immigrant & Minority is a collection of my thoughts, ideas, emotions and outlook on life. When you listen to the EP and take in the lyrics, it’s literally like going on a journey, with bends, curves, drops, highs and lows. When you listen to Journals of an Immigrant & Minority, you get Malakai – raw, live and in living colour.
How would you describe your sound and how did you come to it?
Constantly making music in the four years between the mixtape and this EP, with this current fusion of music, I just found what works for me. I love melody but at the same time, I’m a heavy lyricist and I enjoy word play.
What’s next for Malakai? Right now all the focus is on the current single, ‘Drive-Thru’.
The entire EP has been a collaborative effort from names in Australia and the US so it’s been one big effort from the whole team. The songs won’t stop coming from here, I can assure everyone showing love that. Also working to kick off some major shows in 2020, so stay tuned for those updates.
‘Drive-Thru’ is out now. Stay up to date with Malakai on his socials.
