Mk.Gee has truly established himself as one of 2024's rising stars. In fact, he's shooting beyond the emerging artist phase and straight into household name territory after his performance on Saturday Night Live last weekend, where he treated television audiences to his new single, Rockman, and Alesis., from his debut album, Two Star & the Dream Police.
The performance saw the guitarist wield his now-signature Fender Jaguar, which he strings as a baritone guitar. He was joined by guitarist Andrew Aged on what appeared to be a vintage Charvel T-style guitar and Zack Sekoff on samples.
Ever the elusive artist, Mk.Gee didn’t participate in any skits. However, host Bill Burr starred in a fictional '80s hair metal and “sex rock” band called Snakeskin, known for “rockin’ tunes about living fast, dying young, and doing sex,” as the comedian’s character put it.
Conversely, despite using 80s-indebted tones in his music, the young guitarist is more low-key, with an artistry that extends beyond the nuances of his guitar playing.
“I just want to be known for making the best music," he said in a recent interview with Dazed. "Not for anything else, really. I’m not trying to sell you anything – people have gotta stop selling you their personality, and just make a perfect song.
“Categorically, I think people are pretty confused by me, and when you’re confused, you put whatever’s confusing you in a particular box, or zone. And there’s nothing wrong with that if it helps you to understand the music.”
He continued, “But categorizing me as a good guitar player? I mean, I am a good guitar player; I like to find new cadences and interesting arrangements, and contextualizing different stuff on a guitar with weird production choices.
“But I don’t really relate to the guitar anymore. I don’t like its nature... Honestly, guitar is, like, the least interesting thing about the record to me.”
Recently, Eric Clapton named Mk.Gee as his favorite contemporary guitarist, praising his off-kilter approach to the instrument and comparing the experience of discovering him to the first time he saw Prince.
