Kieran Webber
Director and Founder of CLUNK Magazine, CLUNK Events, and other CLUNK affiliate businesses. You’ll probably find me tucked away somewhere sending emails, listening to music, and creating content.
Hailing out of Perth, Australia comes the emerging neo-soul/vibe merchant Rein Mali who talks us through his new music, his humble beginnings and more
Rein Mali is a new face on the Australian music scene but there’s no doubt he is going to become recognisable within a short time. His soulful, groove infused music that is complimented by his soft, butter melting vocals cuddles the listener in a warm embrace, leaving you itching for more. Unfortunately, we only have three singles to enjoy but there’s much more on the way.
Rein recently released his latest single ‘Give you Space’ a release which continues his uber chill flow and head bopping beats. With this in mind we hit Rein up to chat about his music, beginnings and so much more.
Kieran: Thank you so much for taking the time to chat with us! How have you been?
Rein: Yo CLUNK magazine! Thanks for having me fam. I’ve been very well man – it’s been a great couple of weeks with ‘give you space’ being out, I’m feeling the love for sure!
Kieran: How’s 2024 treating you so far? Any highlights?
Rein: 2024 has been a great time fr. I’ve done a lot of travelling, been writing a lot of new music, spending much more time with family and I’m even out here fishing regularly, lets go. 2024 is the year of self love and doing what makes you rested and happy.
I gotta say at this moment, the highlight has been all the creative things I’ve been doing, been collaborating more, been writing more etc. 2024 probably the most freely I’ve ever felt in a long time in a creative sense , which gets me excited because it’s only May.
Kieran: Okay, your new single ‘Give You Space’ recently dropped. Could you talk us through this release?
Rein: Yessir – ‘give you space’ is single no. 3 and it’s my version of a self love autumn anthem. This one has been in the works for a while, so I’m so happy it’s out. I’m showing some new colours and definitely showcasing another side of me with this one. We really delved into some new things with this song, it’s my intro to the realm of alternative r&b for sure.
Listen to ‘Give You Space’ here:
Kieran: Can you talk us through the recording and writing process of this release?
Rein: The writing process for this one has been one of my favourites. I collaborated with the homie, Corban Chapple, on production for this tune. Every time we got together and worked on the tune, it was like the lottery. Just kept getting wins over wins when it came to the evolution of the song. Corban’s production style really opened more doors for the aesthetic of the sound, we got nu jazz influences and a more alternative r&b sounding texture on this one. I think the combination of both our brains and artistic directions really let the song grow in the most organic and authentic way. What you hear when you play the song is all coming from a place of natural flow and musical intuition.
Kieran: What artists or people influence you directly when it comes to your music?
Rein: The UK R&B scene as a whole had a huge influence on ‘give you space’, I’ve been loving the direction they’ve taken in R&B for a while and have been super inspired by the UK R&B palette, so that came out naturally onto the track itself. Shoutout to Radiant Children, my favourite UK trio, their sound has been key in the making of ‘give you space’. Also, got to give credit to D’Angelo, he is my goat and everything I write will have a piece of D in it.
Kieran: How long have you been making music and was there a pivotal moment that led you to start?
Rein: Man, I grew up in the church and I have vivid memories of myself as a toddler crawling on the stage annoying on the musicians. I been playing ever since I could talk really. I started out playing drums in church from a young age, and that evolved into me learning the guitar, the keys, bass and eventually into me singing. Church taught me a lot about music, I owe a lot to the days I spent on Sunday mornings playing in my Dad’s congregation. It wasn’t until I was in my late teens that I decided I loved doing music, wanted to pursue it outside of the church walls and never looked back since.
“Church taught me a lot about music, I owe a lot to the days I spent on Sunday mornings playing in my Dad’s congregation”
Rei Mali
Kieran: What three words would you use to describe your music?
Rein: Kentucky Fried Chicken. We out here creating tasty music. No but really, I want peeps to enjoy listening to music as they do biting eating some good good food. Minus the food coma that comes afterwards.
Kieran: Lastly, what are three artists who you think we should check out?
Rein: Okay, do yourselves a favour and check out:
Lana Burford – Perth based alt. r&b neo soul goddess. she is doing some incredible things, I advise peeps to catch on early. Some of the coolest sounds you’ll ever hear.
Madoc Plane – the homie and an outstanding vocalist and artist. His style is ethereal, soulful and retrospective. Alternative pop in a way you’ve never heard it before.
Elmiene – the man is beyond blessed vocally and artistically. I would say he is this generations ‘Marvin Gaye’ level type artist, I am a huge fan and everyone needs a piece of Elmiene in their life.
Discover more from Clunk Magazine
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
You must be logged in to post a comment.