maũ is a Kenyan multidisciplinary artist who currently is based in Brooklyn, New York. He is a self-produced musician with a unique style and story that draws on his sporadic upbringing from Kenya to the U.K. to the United States. Much of his work has a particular focus on third-culture identity and Blackness, specifically its malleability and relativity depending on our environments, both familial and societal. Music isn’t his only form of artistic expression though —  maũ also uses film and photography as a way to express his creative side. In an exclusive interview with Forbes, the musician details his upbringing as a musician and his latest single “Zombie Flower”.

“I remember when I was younger I started out listening to music through my dad. He listened to a lot of oldies and was a huge Snoop Dogg fan. When thinking about it, my introduction to music is far different than the music I create now.” 

maũ released his recent single “Zombie Flower” on May 7th. The track is much different than what fans of the artist would expect. The rapper brought a level of vulnerability to the song as he shared his experience with encountering a new love. Accompanying the release of the single came an animated music video for the song which was directed by Danny Jenny He.

In a review by The Pit London, critics praised maũ for his more somber approach to the song. “Far more than just a rapper, maũ displays his ability to create melodies within his hook and bring out a lighter-touch to this bass-heavy, Hip-Hop-inspired single.” 

However, getting to that level of vulnerability wasn’t something that the “Try” singer was used to. “With “Zombie Flower” it was very difficult but it came out quite naturally. I remember creating the beat back when I and my now-girlfriend were just getting to know each other. We were away from each other at one point and I was still uncertain about whether or not I would be staying in the United States so everything was a bit high tension at the time about what was going to happen.” he said to Forbes.

“When I was writing it, I definitely had moments where I was afraid or worried. In the past, I have never written a lot of love songs because I just felt like it was a bit uncomfortable for me. I never thought it would be something that I would do because I’ve always been afraid of how much projection would get into it. I’ve always just felt like I’d rather write about myself and perspective instead of other people. Especially with love because love can be such a complicated thing.”

Following the release of “Zombie Flower” maũ also shared his plans for himself as an artist. He explained his hopes to connect with more Kenyan artists and collaborate with them on future projects. “I’d love to meet more Kenyan musicians who specifically never really got into the modern releasing cycle of music. I would love to learn more about the history of their work and create with a completely unique group of people.”

maũ’s “Zombie Flower” — along with his other projects — are available to stream on music platforms such as Apple Music and Spotify. His work can also be found on his official website.