From baring his heart on ‘Halo’ to walking on runways, UK musician Bakar is right where he belongs

“Halo offers an antidote to the chaos.”

Upon the first listen of Bakar’s 2018 mixtape Badkid, it was clear to listeners they’d stumbled upon something special. Gritty, confident and effortlessly cool, it seamlessly transitioned between genres, shifting from jazz-influenced guitar chords ​​à la King Krule to heavy alt-rock choruses akin to The Maccabees. 

Atop it all, the Camden singer-songwriter’s deep, raspy voice delivered a flow with the energy and prowess of his grime contemporaries. Coming from a Yemeni and Tanzanian background, raised on a concoction of R’n’B records, the Quran and the early Soundcloud scene, Bakar had a style that gave glimpses of the creative landscape around him, but remained wholly his own. No one else sounded like Bakar. They still don’t.

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Those who got in early (interest sparked by his now-legendary Scott Free ColorsxStudios performance or his independently released debut track ‘Big Dreams’) felt like they were holding onto a big secret. Of course, that’s not the case anymore – talent of that calibre can only go unnoticed for so long.

With a growing reputation in the UK circles as indie’s most exciting fresh face and new music in the works, it was only a matter of time before word got out. Among Bakar’s early fans was none other than fashion icon Virgil Abloh, who enlisted the musician to walk in his debut Louis Vuitton runway at Paris Fashion Week for his Menswear SS19 collection and then again for his Menswear FW19 collection. 

His appreciation for Virgil prompted him to release a limited-edition version of his last album, Nobody’s Home, raising funds for the late designer’s Post Modern charity scholarship. Later that year, Bakar was picked up by Prada to model alongside Pixie Geldof and Sara Blomqvist as part of its ‘A Gift to Give’ campaign. 

It was around that time that the young artist found himself squarely in the public eye with the release of ‘Hell N Back’, the lead single off his 2019 EP, Will You Be My Yellow? The track was somewhat of a sleeper hit – it holds the record for the longest-ever journey to the number one position on the Billboard Triple A Charts, taking close to six months to finally reach the top.

Once TikTok found it, the rest was history. With more than half a billion streams, double platinum certification in Australia, New Zealand and Canada and platinum status in the UK and US, the song marks the moment when the world truly met Bakar. 

Now, after a string of sold-out tours, an opening position for Travis Scott and appearances at internationally renowned festivals from Coachella to Reading and Leeds, Bakar will be coming to Australia for the first time ever. This October, he’s locked in for shows in Melbourne, Sydney, Perth and Brisbane, as well as a performance at Wollongong’s Yours and Owls festival.

The tour will follow the release of Bakar’s highly anticipated sophomore studio album. Set to drop on September 23, Halo was crafted as a sonic counterpart to Badkid. Gone is the hectic, self-described “schizophrenic” style as found on the artist’s debut. Instead, he offers something gentler and more refined. 

Early singles ‘Alive!’ and ‘Right Here, For Now’ show a newfound vocal clarity – his typical relaxed and airy tone remains, but he hits a wider range of notes with ease and forgoes the frenetic yelling of his earlier days. The record shows a fully conceptualised sound. It sees Bakar explore the bittersweet feeling of living out his dreams, but feeling the sense of gnawing loneliness that comes with the ever-changing life on the road.

Moments of intimacy are frequent throughout Halo, hitting especially hard on the paired-back ‘Hate The Sun’ and ‘Selling Biscuits’. If Badkid’s brazen attitude helped to secure Bakar the attention he deserved, Halo offers an antidote to the chaos; a sweeter, cruiser and more palatable concoction that hasn’t lost the artist’s gripping lyricism and signature genre-bending. 

In both his music and his fashion work, Bakar has defined himself as an artist who’s not afraid to hold tight to his own distinct vision. Whatever may come next, one thing is certain – everyone’s watching now.

To listen to Bakar’s Halo album, head here.