Michael Kiwanuka says winning the Mercury Prize “woke me up” after years of seeking validation from his peers.
The 37-year-old singer – who has just released his fourth studio album ‘Small Changes’ – says winning the prestigious prize four years ago for his 2019 LP ‘Kiwanuka’ “freed” him from the “desperation” to make music for other people’s approval.
He told the BBC: “It sort of woke me up.
“I’d been desperately looking for approval from my peers and certain [media] outlets – and the Mercury freed me from that desperation.
“It allowed me to feel that, actually, I just want to make the records that come naturally.”
Michael – who had been nominated for the accolade twice before – has suffered from impostor syndrome in the past, but rather than “moaning” about his insecurities, he’s relishing how lucky he is to have the coolest job on the planet.
He said: “When you have impostor syndrome and you’re busy beating yourself up, you’re actually using up all your energy doing that, as opposed to being like, ‘Wow, how amazing it is to be making my own record?’, or, ‘How amazing that I’m playing the Pyramid Stage [at Glastonbury]?’
“The list is so long of how cool this job is, and I spent most of my time moaning. Winning the Mercury kicked off that feeling of, oh, I’ve got to sort this out.”
An example of this being when he laughed off an issue with a synthesizer that forced him to abandon his performances of ‘Small Changes’ during his Glastonbury set this summer.
He recalled: “I could hear my friend Joe laughing, and I sort of forgot I was on the Pyramid Stage.
“A second later, I heard the crowd cheer, and it lifted me up off the ground.
“It was an amazing feeling. I felt like I had a massive battery pack from these people. I could do no wrong. Wherever I went, they would hold me up.”
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