mxmtoon's 'dusk' EP Out Today! Featuring Carly Rae Jepsen + Production by Merrill of tUnE-yArDs

dusk EP OUT TODAY FEATURING “wallflower” EP FEATURES CARLY RAE JEPSEN + PRODUCTION BY MERRILL FROM TUNE-YARDS

dusk EP Art  Today mxmtoon is releasing her dusk EP, the sister project to her previously released dawn EP earlier this year. On dusk we see Maia continue in her evolution as an artist embarking on a newer more sophisticated sound while still exploring issues of loneliness, isolation but also self-empowerment. To celebrate the release, Maia is also sharing a focus track from the EP “wallflower,” listen HERE.   Maia says of the EP, “as we begin to settle into the latter half of the year, i think we all find ourselves in a point of reflection over how our lives have progressed or stalled over the past months. one thing i’ve found myself stewing on throughout the course of this year specifically, has been the idea of new beginnings, and trying to remind myself that you can always start new stories despite the dark. dusk is meant to serve as a reminder that life is cyclical. while that may be a scary reality to some, i find comfort in the idea that despite the chaos and strife we experience in our daily lives, there is always the opportunity to begin again. even in darkness we have the capacity to strive forward, sadness is just as much a part of living as happiness is. i hope that people can listen to these songs on this EP and find comfort in the knowledge that not everything will go smoothly, but how you rise to the occasion and learn from what you’ve encountered is the important part.”   For this EP she purposely chose to work with other bold and talented female artists enlisting Merrill Garbus from Tune-Yards to produce some of the songs, as well as teaming up with Carly Rae Jepsen for the anthemic “ok on your own.” Covered by everyone from The New York Times, Pitchfork, NPR, Rolling Stone and more it’s an undeniable song which sits perfectly alongside other key EP tracks like “bon iver.”   In tandem with the EP, Maia and a group of artists including Ellie Black (@efblack36), Madeleine Welsch (@madeleinewelsch), Bailey Crawford (@blycrawfordan) and more, each illustrated a page to coincide with a track on dusk. Check them all out here.   Maia on the dawn & dusk pages project, “one of the greatest privileges i’ve had since working on music is having the ability to involve other creative minds on my projects! the pages project for both dawn & dusk has been so fun to work on, and i’ve gotten to work with a difference artist for every song and have them create a visual component to the music. each artist works within their own style and the color palettes for each EP, and as a result we’ve gotten to make an extremely cool compilation of artwork that can essentially make a visual extension of the music.”   Purchase/stream dusk HERE, also available on vinyl + cassette.   dusk EP tracklisting: bon iver ok on your own (ft. Carly Rae Jepsen) myrtle ave wallflower asking for a friend show and tell first   Already her music has amassed well over half a billion streams and she has more than 4 million followers across her socials, including 2.2M on TikTok, 772K on YouTube, 1M on Spotify, and 96.8K on Twitch and the dusk EP hails yet another exciting chapter from the 20-year-old.

"ok on your own (feat. Carly Rae Jepsen)"

Earlier this month mxmtoon also launched her new podcast 365 days with mxmtoon where each day for an entire year she will take you through the most interesting, weird, and funny events of that day in history. Released in partnership with Talkhouse and you can subscribe to daily episodes here. The podcast has received early praise from Drew Barrymore, who recently mentioned it on The Drew Barrymore Show’s Weekender pop culture guide, as well as New York Magazine’s Vulture, who included it on “8 Podcasts We’re Excited To Listen To This Fall.”

Photo Credit: Blythe Thomas  If dawn from earlier this year drew from the gentle optimism and hope found in a gorgeous sunrise, dusk is a beautiful exploration of the other side of the emotional duality that is the human experience. At once recalling mxmtoon’s earlier work while also expanding her sonic horizons more than ever before, dusk is an exciting new direction suggesting that the sky is truly the limit for Maia’s artistry.   The world’s changed a lot since dawn was released, and so has mxmtoon’s life. She recently turned 20 years old and, along with continuing to work on music, has dove headlong into the digital world by using her voice as an activist through social media platforms like TikTok, Twitch, and Discord.   From political explainer videos to charity stream sessions, Maia has been doing more than her best to, as she puts it, “keep some sort of normalcy amongst the chaos. These platforms are a way to connect and have conversations with people in a world where I don’t get to see them face-to-face for a while. It’s made me closer with my audience as a result.”   “If 2020 has proved anything, it’s that the world can keep throwing things at you even when it’s already crazy and horrible,” Maia continues while discussing her online activism, which has included speaking her mind and educating her fans on Twitter and TikTok. Maia is using her voice to empower the LGTBQ+ community, Black Lives Matter, and has been a vocal opponent against the Trump administration. “Speaking out on issues I believe in has always been incredibly important to me, especially in this time where being proactive is more important than ever. It’s about fighting for the issues that are really important and doing what we can for the world.”   dusk finds Maia continuing to explore who she is within that world around her—zooming in to moments of solitude and down time, documenting the downs that come after the ups. Joining her is an impressive list of collaborators ranging from Carly Rae Jepsen, to Tune-Yards‘ Merrill Garbus, who produced several tracks on dusk. “It was heavily influenced by my own desire to work with strong female producers and artists,” Maia states regarding the creative process behind the EP. “Getting the opportunity to work with so many incredibly talented minds was such a privilege during this project. My hope for any art I make is to lift up and involve the voices of other women, and dusk is no exception.”   “It’s introverted and reflective,” she continues while discussing the EP’s thematic bent. “It’s about sitting with the darkness for a little longer—finding the unknown and not quite wanting to move away from it yet. It’s the way I wish I could make my previous music sound—sad, but beautiful.”

"bon iver" Video

Indeed, dusk’s gloriously shaded sound sparkles even at its most darkly shaded moments. The lovely ukulele on first single “bon iver” calls back to that earlier sound with a shimmering richness of production value, while the elegant balladry of “asking for a friend” dissolves into a beautiful breakbeat-filled second half. Then there’s “ok on your own,” a slinky R&B jam featuring Canadian pop queen Carly Rae Jepsen. “I sent it to her and, to my surprise, she really liked it,” Maia enthuses. “To have her involved in the project is incredible.”   At the center of dusk is a message that’s universal and relatable: there’s no happiness without sadness, and learning to live with both can lead to discovering new depths in the pleasure of living. “There’s different emotions that come with being human,” Maia states while discussing the message she wants to deliver, “and that’s something all of us have to work on.” Praise for mxmtoon:   "...a Bedroom Pop Empire in the Making” - The New York Times   “Mxmtoon is an 18-year old singer-songwriter from Oakland who's amassed a sizable following on Twitter and YouTube on the strength of her endearingly intimate presence” - NPR "surprising and compelling - PAPER Magazine "The internet belongs to mxmtoon" - i-D “A mix of by plucky ukulele strumming and nostalgia, "ok on your own" is exactly what you think closure sounds like." - Refinery29 "The acoustic slow jam loveliness of “ok on your own” exists on several levels: it's in the Dido-esque '90s soft pop beat, the echoing harmonies between mxmtoon and Carly Rae Jepsen..." - Teen Vogue “...an absolutely killer mid-tempo melody that’s a little reminiscent of Billie Eilish — but no matter what name she’s working under, ,mxmtoon/Maia is fully her own artist." - Variety "Like mxmtoon’s other work, “ok on your own” begins with a few ruminative ukulele strums. From there it builds up into a sort of sad summer R&B jam, beats anchoring both Maia and Carly’s reflections on relationship difficulties and getting some time alone to figure your shit out." - Stereogum "Armed with a ukulele, Mxmtoon opens with soulful reflections on “OK On Your Own” before a buoyant beat drops. Jepsen’s vocals arrive later, adding dimension to mxmtoon’s cool-toned delivery." - Uproxx   "On the masquerade, which features songs written over the last two years, she's offering the most polished picture of herself yet. And it's one that, like all of her music, succeeds based on her candor and intelligence.” - NYLON   Follow mxmtoon: Facebook | Spotify | Instagram | Twitter | TikTok | YouTube | SoundCloud