McKinley Dixon is no stranger to making critically acclaimed music. The Chicago via Virginia rapper already had two full albums under his belt when he started to generate some serious attention in 2021. That year he released his album For My Mama And Anyone Who Look Like Her which received massive amounts of praise from nearly everyone that heard it, including music critics. The album was praised for its conceptuality and for its rich instrumental palette which pulled from a wide array of influences.
But even more so, it was praised for Dixon's writing and performances. The album presented a mix of genuine and earnest emotion with clever wordplay and a seemingly endless series of catchy hooks. It also delivers a rich variety of collaborators, something that fans have come to expect with every new project from Dixon. But if 2021 was when he made himself known to conscious rap fans, 2023 served as a full-on breakthrough for McKinley Dixon.
Late last year, McKinley Dixon announced that he had signed to City Slang Records. And with the weight of the label behind him he transitioned into an even bigger undertaking. McKinley Dixon's Beloved! Paradise! Jazz!? dropped in June of this year after it was teased with 5 singles and numerous music videos. The album is an even bigger group undertaking than his previous work with both the volume and variety of collaborators increased.
With Beloved! Paradise! Jazz!? McKinley Dixon climbed to new heights commercially and critically. The album reached more fans of conscious hip hop and jazz rap than ever before while dazzling critics in the process. Fans of the album also became obsessed with Dixon's live performances, many of which were shared throughout rap circles online. Now, McKinley is reflecting on a year that brought him some major changes and unprecedented musical success.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
HNHH: You dropped your new album Beloved! Paradise! Jazz!? this year. When you look back at 2023 was that the most important thing that happened to you?
McKinley Dixon: Yeah. See the thing with the album is that it's kind of over a long period of time. Like it "came out" on the 2nd, but it didn't really come out to me on the 2nd. It was a big moment in my career you know. Big overarching pivotal moments. Like among the moments that were non-personal, that was the biggest moment. To my audience, it was a big moment, which is valuable in its own way but different than a pivotal moment to me.
Are you the type of person to pay attention to the response to the album from fans and critics? Because it's been quite positive.
I think it's hard not to. Especially because I put so much of myself into a record. I think what's not really thought about is that when somebody critiques a record by a rock band it's like 4 individuals came together to make this record. But when it's a rap record it's kind of like critiquing the direct life of this artist. Because I've been doing this for so long outside the realm of the public eye I don't really give too much to it, though it is sometimes really funny to read reviews. Sometimes I go on Rate Your Music, it's very bad, it's horrible.
Because people are misconceiving the words and the concepts, or you just don't think they're giving it a fair shake?
Just because people are ridiculous. Having access to this many opinions at once is not what we were meant to do. Especially to be reading it before 9:30 in the morning, definitely not. So no, I try not to think about it.
One of the things that stands out right away on the new record is the variety of collaborations. Do you go into an album already deciding that you want it to be a sort of group project or does that just happen along the way?
I always sort of do, I just think that it sounds better. With each new record, it's a new large layer of people's introduction to myself. I took this one and just had the resources to make it a little bit closer to how my mind thinks about it. With each record I want to get a little bit closer to what I think I want to sound like. This record is close, it's very close, it sounds great.
Do you think there's a particular collaboration or song on the record that came together in that perfect way?
I just remembered that the last question was about collabs, okay I'm back on that. I've always collaborated and I think it's better to have a record that is a joint effort because people usually record when they're feeling a lot of things. I think it's really nice to have everybody's ideas and feelings on a record. A lot of my albums are very messy but they've always involved a large group of collaborators. But on this one, I was able to tighten it up. I always work with the same people and it's like a Wikipedia article, people and past memories sort of come in and out during different eras. I love adding people to this world that I made. I love every single person on there. Every single rapper on there is my favorite rapper. I've worked with them all so closely and all of them are still so reliable. They're all special to me.
We also got the "Run Run Run" Remix with Blu. You said that the Blu and Exile album Below The Heavens was something that made you want to be a rapper in the first place. So what did it mean to you to get to work on a track with Blu?
I've been in contact with Blu for a long time. You know, Blu is accessible he's not hard to reach. I've always known that I love this artist and always been aware that there is a way to contact them eventually. I talked to Blu in like 2017, 2016 maybe, and I was like 'Let's do something' but that never came through. It wasn't the MOST like it wasn't obnoxious. It did just sort of keep this person in close proximity so that when I did have the resources we could do it. And it means a lot. I was in like 9th grade when that record came out, it's the first record I ever owned on vinyl. It was my first underground rap. That record was just like, a connection between these rap icons and somebody who's just like, in their room. Which was me at the time, and Blu too. It's cool now because nothing's impossible.
You played quite a few live shows this year. You just got back from your first time touring Europe. How was it?
Extensive, long, eye-opening, affirming, and stressful. I would also say beautiful. There's a lot.
And are you thinking it's time to take a break from touring now?
Oh my god, yeah. Maybe the US but Europe, oh man. I was there three times this year. It was cool, people knew the words out there which was beautiful and affirming. I would do it again, maybe in 2025.
People who love your music particularly love some of the live performances that make their way around online. Are there any particular performances of you out there where you really feel like you were at your absolute best?
Back when I was doing house shows there were some CRAZY moments. If you go to my Facebook page and go back to 2016/2017 I was doing a wall of sound with sax, violin, drums, bass guitar, sometimes two drummers and there'd be 35 people in there. The first shows with Soul Glo where we started to see the upwards trajectory a lot of those recorded moments are history not only for me but for the local scene and what was going on around that time, it was crazy.
Outside the scope of music, what sort of personal time did you get this year?
The transition from Richmond to Chicago showed me that you have to be intentional with your loved ones. It's good to grow and change, that's a big thing. As I'm seeing other countries it really is like, you have to be intentional with everyone you meet. Really just learning to talk to everyone you can try to remember everybody.
Have you had the chance to listen to much music that came out this year?
Yeah, what have I been listening to this year? ICECOLDBISHOP's album GENERATIONAL CURSE, really solid rap album. I really liked Pierce The Veil's The Jaws Of Life. Sampha's album, Armand Hammer, Noname's album, Kelela's album, Sweet Pill, Spanish Love Songs.
Since you're clearly paying attention to rap music, recently there's been some big artists like Offset and Lil Yachty and older guys like Juicy J musing on the state of hip-hop and calling it kind of stagnant or uncreative. What are your thoughts on that?
I think I'm making cool sh*t. There's not really a lot of folks that sound like me and not a lot of folks that sound like peers of mine. Maybe Juicy J should do a jazz album, that'd be cool. Maybe Offset should do like a spoken word thing with The xx or something. Maybe they should switch it up a bit. Because I think it's easy to have cemented a place of concrete understanding and not really critique yourself. I can list off a ton of artists that are incredible, just not in the mainstream. Who am I to change that? Juicy J should change that. That's Juicy J's job, he's done it two times already I admit that.