Orchestrated disruption: in conversation with Magi Merlin

In collaboration with Dr. Martens

Magi Merlin – Montreal’s alchemist of sonic chaos – is taking over Glamcult TV in collaboration with Dr. Martens.

Magi calls her sound ‘Broken R&B’, but really it’s whatever she feels like wrecking and remaking: soul, UKG, punk, electro – she smashes them into glittering pieces and rebuilds them on her own terms. Whether it’s music or acting (peep her recent debut in Mile End Kicks with Barbie Ferreira), Magi is an observer and a translator of the personal and the political, a vessel of collective experiences, especially those that are uncomfortable, challenging, or often attempted to be censored.

We caught up at her performance of “POP POP POP” by Idles, a post-punk reimagining that’s a cover only in name. Magi tears it apart, flips it inside out, and makes it pulse with her own infectious energy. Offstage, she’s sharp, warm, magnetic; onstage, she’s pure electricity. Her style is mischievous preppy – deconstructed plaid and a pierced tank – with the Maybole Loafer underfoot to ground it all (no gatekeeping here, you can get your pair from Friday on at Glamcult Store). 

Hey Magi! So excited to catch you at the beginning of your tour. How are you feeling? How did your Paris concert go?
I’m good! Yeah, we’re still early in, but it’s really nice. I’m always so happy to be able to travel through music. You get such an interesting perspective on the world, being somebody who’s just hopping around. You’re also kind of integrating yourself into a community because a lot of locals will just come to shows. So, going to Paris, if I were just travelling there without music, I don’t think it would be the same. You wouldn’t be talking to the same people after the show, even though you’re there for such a short time.

Do you have any memorable tour tales of romance or friendship?
There was one time we were on tour in Europe and we played Milan, around 2022. And we still refer back to this moment. But basically, after a show, we were chilling with the locals, and they invited us back to their apartment, made us some pasta. They were being so cute. We were just talking for hours and hours with them. It was really, really special. It felt quite romantic, even if there’s no direct romance involved. It’s just like, you fall in love with people. It’s so beautiful.

That sounds so special! Let’s start at the beginning – how has your upbringing in Saint-Lazare shaped your artistry and its rebellious spirit?
Honestly, no shade to Saint-Lazare, but I don’t identify with the place very much. When I’m asked where I’m from, I always say Montreal because I feel very emotionally attached to the city, versus growing up outside of it. I love Saint-Lazare because it’s like it was quiet and there were trees and birds, but I am a city girl for sure. I remember going to Montreal and just being in awe of the community there. There was one time I went to this beatbox battle in an abandoned warehouse. That was random. That was back in the day when I was still living in my parents’ house. I still to this day couldn’t even tell you how to get there. We had to cross some train tracks and yeah, it was so random. 

You’ll have to find the coordinates again.
Exactly! But yeah, Saint Lazare was far away from everything, so I had to find a way to feel fulfilled where I was. I would make a lot of music and YouTube videos on my own. I think it was really good for my inner world.

Coming back to your music, I love the description of your sound as ‘Broken R&B’. Could you elaborate on what that means to you both sonically and conceptually?
Funkywhat, the collaborator that I work with all the time, and I were trying to figure out what our sound is. Often people would ask, and we would just say alternative R&B. But there’s a lot of other genres in there, like live we come off more punk or more edgy sometimes. It’s not really in alignment with what R&B does most of the time. We kind of coined the genre name Broken R&B, which is basically based on my love for the R&B I grew up listening to and more contemporary artists. We have artists like Frank Ocean experimenting with texture and all that. And then there are punk influences, also electro, house, UKG. We just wanted to emulsify all that and compose it into one genre. The ‘broken’ part felt really appropriate because it seems more of a mosaic of different things on a piece of paper that is R&B.

Do you feel like it’s going to grow into a genre, with other artists picking up on it?
I think so. I’m almost 100% sure there’s a bunch of people making shit that can’t necessarily be placed under like neo-soul or alt-R&B because it’s not polished enough. I definitely think they can feel free to grab that and run with it. It feels really nice to be able to say ‘broken R&B’ and for people to understand what it means or what it could mean.

Coming back to your music, I love the description of your sound as ‘Broken R&B’. Could you elaborate on what that means to you both sonically and conceptually?
Funkywhat, the collaborator that I work with all the time, and I were trying to figure out what our sound is. Often people would ask, and we would just say alternative R&B. But there’s a lot of other genres in there, like live we come off more punk or more edgy sometimes. It’s not really in alignment with what R&B does most of the time. We kind of coined the genre name Broken R&B, which is basically based on my love for the R&B I grew up listening to and more contemporary artists. We have artists like Frank Ocean experimenting with texture and all that. And then there are punk influences, also electro, house, UKG. We just wanted to emulsify all that and compose it into one genre. The ‘broken’ part felt really appropriate because it seems more of a mosaic of different things on a piece of paper that is R&B.

Do you feel like it’s going to grow into a genre, with other artists picking up on it?
I think so. I’m almost 100% sure there’s a bunch of people making shit that can’t necessarily be placed under like neo-soul or alt-R&B because it’s not polished enough. I definitely think they can feel free to grab that and run with it. It feels really nice to be able to say ‘broken R&B’ and for people to understand what it means or what it could mean. 

For sure. It makes me think of POP POP POP as well – IDLES is a post-punk band, but your cover of it works so well.
One of my favourite live shows that I’ve ever seen was an IDLES concert in Montreal. It was so captivating. But their album really made an impact on everybody that I’m around. I love post-punk’s grungy, dirty texture, and then flipping it and making it that sparkly and pretty, but still a little textured, and like fun and weird. I love weird. When people are like, I don’t know what the fuck is going on, I’m like, hell yes.

I love that! I want to know more about how you approach translating such different genres into your own sound?
Honestly, there’s more connection than one would assume. For example, in POP POP POP, the original instrumentation of the drums was done by Kenny Beats. So the drums on the track are more hip-hop. I love this aspect of bands that have their roots in a certain genre, but aren’t scared to play with other genres. You’re able to really come up with such interesting music by collaborating that way and mixing things in that way. So, those drums have this kind of hip-hop feel. I was working on it with Funky, and he was like, oh my God, when you speed them up that’s just UKG. So, everything is just connected, nothing’s really categorised. 

And on a more personal side, what feelings or inspirations do you build your music upon?
I’m influenced a lot by what’s happening external to me. What’s happening in the world politically, environmentally. I tend to comment on it quite a lot. It’s essentially my perspective on how the world is affecting me and what I think can change it. I think that it’s a nice perspective to pull from because I do think people are thinking about the same things I’m thinking about, and maybe it’s cool for them to hear it in a musical context

My next question was going to be about this, actually. How do you balance the personal and the political in your work?
I feel like it kind of balances on its own because everything’s happening all at the same time. My relationship with the world is what I pull from. I feel like it’s more cathartic, if anything, to be able to write it out and to feel like I’m doing something with what’s happening in my mind, because sometimes I can feel so small and so insignificant, like nothing that I do will ever change anything. It makes me feel a little bit more active, like an active player in the world, even though it feels really big. And even if maybe that’s delusional, I take it, because otherwise I’ll go crazy.

Within that, what feelings and affirmations would you like to impart to your listeners with your artistry?
I would hope that the listener feels uplifted because they know that somebody else is feeling similarly to them. I want them to feel like they’re not alone. I want to feel like I and everyone around me can change things. I really do think that at the base, that mentality is what we require to make change. I want people to feel happy and dance and feel that catharsis so that they can feel calm and have the space to think about ways to change the world around them, or the world in general, if you want to be crazy.

I can definitely feel that! Your creative universe also expands beyond music – you recently made your acting debut for Mile End Kicks. What was that experience like?
Yeah, what an honour that was! I’ve always been really interested in acting, kind for the same reasons I write. I’m always psychoanalysing myself and what’s happening around me. I feel like acting is the ultimate psychoanalysis of humans. You’re forced to empathise and see where you as an individual fit into this non-existent person who could be anybody. Obviously, my role is very small, but it was still really fun to think about it. But it felt really fun to be within proximity to the film world. It’s so kooky. 

The history of Dr. Martens is tied to people defying convention. How do you utilise your artistry and voice to challenge societal norms and limitations?
I would like to think so. I don’t know if this is too honest, but I want to be able to say what I need to say. Obviously, there are a lot of things that artists are encouraged not to talk about.

You can say anything here.
Okay, thanks. So, obviously, the whole situation with Palestine and not being able to say free Palestine or that there’s a genocide going on. It was a conversation I had to have a few times because certain things can happen if the wrong person hears you talking about something they don’t like. But talking about it is the job of a musician. I really do believe that. We’re messengers. It’s always so funny to me when people say that music isn’t political. Unfortunately, everything is political, and especially the experience of a marginalised person. I’m a Black woman, and I should be able to talk about how the world and its politics affect me and how I feel about them. Sometimes during or after shows, people are like, oh, I came to watch a concert, why make it political. But music is always political because the musician is talking about their life. So, unless you want me to just lie, I don’t know what you want me to do. I’m just going to talk about what I see and how I feel about it. And it will probably resonate with a lot of people. But yeah, that’s what I would hope I’m able to do and have the courage to do. Unfortunately, you have to be brave to kind of defy the system. 

Yeah, and have thick skin, I imagine.
Yeah, it’s a bit spooky. I think I’ve been lucky not to have had too much bad feedback in terms of what I make or what I say. It’s been pretty tame in comparison to what I think a lot of people have experienced. But I would hope that no matter how difficult it gets, I would continue to speak my experience and my truth.

I’m sure of it. On a final note, I love the way that you styled your Maybole Loafers. Do you have any tips for others who want to style them uniquely?
I love my Dr. Martens. I’ve always admired Dr. Martens, ever since I was young and in my Tumblr era, you know. I feel like when it comes to the connection between this song and the brand, I think it makes so much sense for us to be wearing Docs during this particular performance. It’s kind of ragged and ready to work. We’re ready to run. Styling-wise, most of the clothes that I’m wearing are made by one of my friends. So, ideally, I would look into your community and who’s making what. The reason why this friend and I started working together is that I saw he was printing on t-shirts. He’s a tattoo artist first, and he made some stamps. I thought that would look really sick on pantyhose or socks or something. So I hit him up, and since then, he’s just been making me stuff. He’s been so incredible. So, yeah, I think there are just so many people who are not necessarily famous but are making such interesting things that you can pull inspiration from. So, when it comes to styling the Docs, I would challenge to continue the legacy of Dr. Martens and their avant-garde awesome vibe and just try and be weird with it. And ask around. 

See what’s up.
Exactly.