Michael Kiwanuka has shared the music video for one of his latest tracks, Interlude (Loving the People). Loving the People is taken from Kiwanuka’s third studio album, Kiwanuka, which dropped on November 1st. Kiwanuka, which has been praised for “its brave experimentation and hard-won self-knowledge”, contains songs such as Rolling, I’ve Been Dazed and Hero.
Loving the People was directed by American filmmaker Phillip Youmans. Kiwanuka premiered the video to his official YouTube channel last night (December 14th), which has obtained over 9000 views already.
The videos’ introduction sees an upshot of a palm tree dotted boulevard, and samples a speech from John Lewis, the late US Congressman and civil rights activist. Lewis’ iconic human rights speech continues, saying: “A moving feeling within me/That I was sitting there demanding a God-given right/And my soul became satisfied that I was right in what I was doing/At the same time there was something deep down within me, moving me.”
Isolated piano notes mark the start of Loving the People, whilst the shot transitions to four young individuals in their home. As the music video progresses, we see the young people frolicking in the sun, body painting, skateboarding and dancing. All the while, Kiwanuka’s beautiful instrumental envelopes the psychedelic film.
Director Youmans said in a statement: “Listening to ‘Interlude (Loving the People) feels like sunshine on my skin.” Speaking out on the video, Youmans said: “This film is an escapist trip where young black people revel in the psychedelic experience. For me ‘Loving the People’ is about the adrenaline of unconfined love and joy, a celebration of black youth and imagination.”
Youmans’ psychedelic vision certainly appears within the Loving the People video. It is a celebration of youth, art and unadulterated joy, a visual masterpiece to calm the anxieties that 2020 has brought the music industry and the world as a whole. The short film can be watched in full below.
Michael Kiwanuka announced the arrival of the Loving the People music video via social media. Sharing a clip to Instagram, Kiwanuka wrote in the post: “Interlude (Loving The People) a film by Phillip Youmans. Featuring words by John Lewis. Link in the bio.” The post, which received over 10,000 likes and views, was met with a warm reception by fans.
Kiwanuka is a monumental record. As well as its commercial success amongst fans and critics, the self-titled record took home the Mercury Prize Album of the Year award last month. Kiwanuka beat out the likes of Dua Lipa, Stormzy and Charli XCX for the coveted prize.
In a statement following his big win, Kiwanuka said: “It has definitely encouraged me to keep dreaming big. I hope it inspires people who maybe have a similar story to mine or people who, in other ways, maybe feel like they’re going into something that is maybe outside of their comfort zone or not usually the path they would be expected to take.”
Kiwunaka went on to leave a motivational statement to his fans: “I’d hope it inspires them just to keep going and to keep being true to themselves, to keep going but not to compromise. That’s something I really believe in and I hope that is something that can garner from my music and especially the songs on this album.”
Kiwanuka is out everywhere now.
