I think the most apt representation of a man’s musical ability is his lyrical understanding of the human experience. When an artist can truly grasp onto the ropes that bind him to the mortal coil and recognize that even in heartache and struggle there is beauty, that is when he’s transcended music and made something so solid, so unconscionably real that it almost makes anything else seem fraudulent in comparison.

Kiwanuka takes his influence from such poets as Bob Dylan and Tim Buckley, combines the straightforward with what I can only classify as the classic, and brings to life some of the most inspirational music to ever grace my ears. He’s not only a master of the simplicity of emotion; he knows how to expand that into something so pure that it’s almost untouchable. You can see the artistry in his music. It’s so simple, lacking both pretence and attempts at flamboyant prettiness, that even with its almost flawless nature it’s so easy to relate to, so easy to fall into its arms.