Newcomer Julian Mika Projects Idiosyncratic Rap Cut ‘Pattern’

Born in Rome to a Sicilian mother and an American father, and raised in North-West London, JULIAN MIKA throws a lustrous light on London’s overcast streets, bringing with him a new shine to the currently thriving UK scene. With his off-kilter melodies, silver-tongued lyricism and half-sung flows, Mika fills a stylistic void in the Great British urban scene as he releases ‘Pattern’.

Julian moved from city to city through early-childhood before settling in the UK aged 10 and adopting London as his home ever since. But Mika’s restless early life has made him an outsider looking in, catalysing a perspective that allows him to see things from a step back.

Those nomadic beginnings allowed Julian to soak in a variety of cultures and ways of life, nurturing the fibres of his being, and developing his already innate capacity for empathy. With the familiar story of a fatherless upbringing, he was forced into an untimely maturity, honing a sharp moral compass and becoming a ‘big brother’ – not just to his family – but also to his friends. His ability to resonate and deeply feel his peers’ stories and their troubles, as if experiencing them first-hand, later took form as seeds of songwriting inspiration.

Julian’s in-house producer Jamurai (also Jelani Blackman’s DJ) forms ‘Pattern’ initially from offbeat claps and percussion, fusing together and then stirring under concrete snakes of melodies, while the newcomer’s flows filter through the stainless steel foundations of the lo-fi mix.

Mika expands on ‘Pattern’; “When Jamurai played me the beat I instantly felt a blend of good vibes mixed with an undercurrent of melancholy, a place I find interesting to write from. At first the listener can definitely get into the vibe (and even buss a lil’ two-step) but once you dig a bit deeper you’ll discover a mix of empowerment and paranoia, facing your personal struggles; whatever it is your going through, and harnessing that feeling to overcome them. I hope people hear it and use it to guide them out of a bad place by not avoiding their problems, but facing them and growing from there.”