Oliver Malcolm - Kevin

20-year-old Oliver Malcolm is only three songs deep into his career and the jack-of-all-trades has already solidified himself as an artist to watch. From spinning records at the age of 12 to teaching himself how to produce music on Apple‘s Logic software, the newcomer has honed his talents and crafted a string of lead singles that we can’t get enough of.

Oliver’s third single, “Kevin,” comes hot on the heels of the critically-acclaimed “Switched Up” and the captivating “Helen.” Recorded in a tiny DIY studio behind an automobile shop in London, “Kevin” is both unsettling and whimsical. The memorable chorus is composed of a series of vocals sung by Malcolm and a group of children. He admits that the lyrics are about the “archetype” of his character — one that most people will randomly encounter at one point or another.

Malcolm paired “Kevin” with an animated music video, because the concept fit the song like a glove. “I wanted the video for Kevin to be a cartoon because I like the idea of using a medium that is generally geared towards kids to tell a dark and gritty story,” he explained in an interview with Zane Lowe. “The contrast helps emphasize the difference between the light and dark. Plus, no one’s filming music videos during quarantine.” Heavily reminiscent of fellow British musicians, Gorillaz, the “Kevin” visuals are simple, but effectively bizarre. The rising star is even implementing self-referential imagery, with callbacks to his previous singles throughout the video.