MAFRO announces ‘Higher’ with EP title track

Rising electronic producer MAFRO reveals details of his forthcoming EP Higher, due for release on 22nd Jan 2024 via LG105. To celebrate the announcement, MAFRO has shared the EP title track – a euphoric slice of deep house featuring an arms aloft vocal sample.

In many ways, ‘Higher’ reflects the journey of MAFRO’s creative process, as well as a sense of love and community from the people that inspired it as MAFRO explains: “I was walking through Tottenham one weekend passing a group of beautifully-dressed people after Sunday service. They were smiling, carrying flowers and all sorts of food. Having never been particularly religious myself, I was surprised to discover feelings of awe within me. The sense of family and community they had with one another was inspiring. Music and spirituality have always gone hand in hand and I wanted to channel some of that in my songwriting process with ‘Higher’.”

In contrast to his debut EP Bloom, MAFRO’s forthcoming project Higher represents a newfound passion for songwriting, exploring an even broader range of influences and leaning naturally towards a more vocal-centric direction within his music. MAFRO’s multicultural background has profoundly inspired his music-making. Growing up in North London with a Trinidadian mother and an Irish father, MAFRO’s home was filled with a blend of steel pan-infused Soca beats, and traditional Irish melodies, while his older sister liked UK Garage and RnB.

Accepting this diverse mix of influences wasn’t always easy. He had very different reference points to his friends and as one of the few black or mixed-race people in his circles, MAFRO often struggled to define his identity, both as an individual and as an artist. Over time, embracing this journey of self-discovery grew to become a creative advantage. Rather than viewing his heritage as a burden, he began to dig deeper into it as a source of inspiration. As the electronic music world becomes increasingly more diverse, MAFRO feels more confident than ever leaning into his individuality. Steel drums, gospel pianos, and even elements of traditional Irish music with its extended chord progressions find their way into his music. This fusion doesn’t always make sense on paper, but it’s exactly this experimentation that excites him most as a musician.

In his own words: “When people ask me about the music I create, I often respond with a smile, saying it’s ‘crossover electronic music that can’t be easily labelled.’ And you know what? That feels right to me. It embodies my journey, from feeling slightly out of place growing up to finally creating music that is authentically me.”

MAFRO’s technicolour electronic music strikes the perfect balance between club euphoria and melancholic introspection. The multi-instrumentalist, producer and songwriter cut his teeth co-writing and co-producing for huge global names including the tear-jerking ‘Killing Me’ with TSHA & Aluna, ‘Somebody’ with TSHA, Ellie Goulding and Gregory Porter, Diplo’s huge breakbeat anthem ‘Let You Go’ as well as working on high level composition projects for British and American Film & TV. Since then, MAFRO has stepped out as a rising star within his own right following the release of his debut EP Bloom earlier this year and is now regarded as one of the most exciting new names in electronic music: Bloom landed MAFRO on NME’s list of emerging artists for 2023 and was supported across the board at BBC R1 by Clara Amfo, Danny Howard, Jack Saunders + many more. He also covered Spotify’s UK House Music playlist for 5 consecutive weeks around the EP with further covers for Metropolis, Portal and The Loft.

So far, MAFRO has released two singles from his forthcoming EP – ‘Bad Enough’ landed him a BBC R1 Hottest Record back in August and Spotify selected his most recent hit ‘Love Me (feat. Eldè)’ as their RADAR: First Listen artist in September. Also building his live show this summer, MAFRO has already supported SG Lewis, Jungle and Bonobo and performed at Field Day and Lost Village this summer. As an essential new addition to your record box, keep an eye out for more from MAFRO coming soon.

MAFRO Tour Dates

27.10.23 – Headrow House (DJ) – Leeds, UK
10.11.23 – Pitchfork Festival (LIVE) – Paris, FR