mgk’s “cliché” is Little More Than Cliché
mgk’s new single, “cliché,” is a pop rock song fit for the radio, a little underwhelming and fitting for the theme of a cliché. mgk, real name Colson Baker, has created a song that skirts by his previous works to be a more energetic tune, especially in comparison with his last two albums, Tickets To My Downfall and mainstream sellout. Both albums employed a pop punk sound reminiscent of the early 2000s that was a departure for Colson as he had been best known as a rapper, but the tune switch likely saved his career after a disastrous rap beef with Eminem in 2018. “cliché” continues the evolution of his sound by riding the wave of radio friendly hits of yesteryear.
The beat takes the title to heart as the pattern isn’t anything surprising or worthwhile, sounding eerily similar to Halsey’s “You Should Be Sad” upon first listen. Despite this, the energy he’s giving is charming to hear from someone who’s typically playing around in darker material. From his last two albums as a solo artist, “bloody valentine” and “sid & nancy” tended towards violent notions to explore his feelings around love instead of the more intimate notions displayed here. Nowadays, his romantic relationship with Megan Fox has seemingly given him a new outlook that’s finally coming through within his music. Even still, he references his past behavior with the chorus, “Tell me, would you wait for me? / Baby, I’m a rolling stone / I got a lotta right in me / But I don’t wanna say this wrong.”
Because of how mgk was thrust into the public eye in 2018 on a global scale with Eminem’s “Killshot,” he seems to be more gracious with criticism instead of taking an offensive stance. He confirmed as much when he quote-tweeted a review saying, “i do what i want,” in response to, “the lyrics are cliché, the dancing is cliché, the video is cliché, the rhythm is cliché, the scenarios are cliché. Everything.” And it isn’t as if the song is terrible, it’s catchy and memorable for the energy he’s bringing, but it isn’t anything special compared to previous efforts where he played around with form a little more.
In conjunction with the release of the single, mgk released a new merch line on his official store and has been teasing the rollout of his next album. While it’s unknown if this is going to be considered the lead single for his album, title yet to be officially revealed, but supposedly lost americana, it creates a notion that he’s leaning towards a more radio friendly sound, reflected by being given the first song on Spotify’s “New Music Friday” playlist, as well as attaining 38% of the vote for Billboard’s Favorite New Music.
