Behind every new artist's first single is the story of how they got there. For Oliver Malcolm, it's a story that is intricately embedded into the very fabric of his creative expression. A feat not easily missed on his debut single "Switched Up".
Malcolm doesn't start off slow. Every word is spit out as if it's a chore, and then lifted with an Allan Rayman-like lilt to prove that it has a purpose. While the slaying percussive beat cuts through like a tempestuous bull, it's the looping chord, delicate yet sharp-edged that travels the furthest. And as he writhes on the snow-covered ground in his inaugural visuals, his raspy vocals matching the cold beneath him, you start to understand that this isn't an artist who is grateful to be here. This is an artist who has fought to be here.
Boasting of a long biography that starts with DJing at local pubs in his local UK town at the age of 13 to self-producing and performing all of his own tracks in L.A some odd years later, Malcolm is a rare sight to see. Hungry for perfection, his tenacious clawing to the top will seek its fair share of attention this year, as he gears up to release his debut EP this summer.