Jon Muq Delivers a Sweet Blend of Afropop With "Shake Shake"
The Ugandan artist's debut album, Flying Away, is produced by The Black Keys' Dan Aeurbach.
Texas-based Ugandan singer-songwriter Jon Muq is announcing the release of his debut album, Flying Away, due May 31 via Easy Eye Sound.
The album, which was produced by The Black Keys guitarist/singer Dan Aerbauch, is spearheaded by lead single "Shake Shake" — a track that offers an uplifting, joyful blend of Afropop guitar lines and warm vocal melodies in an invitation to dance. Muq mentions that the song was inspired by his youth in the outskirts of Kampala:
“Growing up around over 50 tribes that had different kinds of dances, each tribe focused on a specific part of the body when dancing, and the joy was endless," Muq says in a press release. "That moment of joy and happiness will always be yours, as long as you can 'Shake Shake' what you got.”
Muq got his start singing in the streets of Mutungo, which led him to a local hotel gig. According to a press release, a video of him performing in the streets eventually made its way to Norwegian Cruise Lines. "They saw the video and asked me if I wanted to sing on a boat,” Muq mentions. “This was like a city on the water. I couldn’t believe it would float. My friends thought the pictures I showed them had been photoshopped.”
His road then led him to Austin, Texas, where he caught the attention of Auerbach, who signed him to his label Easy Eye Sound. “I never expected it to work this way," says Muq in a press release. "I never said, I’m going to get a job at a hotel. I’m going to get a job on a cruise line. I’m going to work with Dan Auerbach. Everything happened because I was following sound. I was chasing it. I was just singing.”
Watch Jon Muq's music video for "Shake Shake," directed by Robert "RoboShobo" Schober, below.
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