Rapper MAVI on his latest album ‘Shadowbox’

Episode notes

(Photo Credit: Vivian Khanounsay)

MAVI is a rapper from Charlotte, North Carolina. In recent years, he’s become one to watch. A favorite of pioneering, acclaimed artists like Earl Sweatshirt, Mike and The Alchemist.

In 2022, he released Laughing so Hard It Hurts. It was dense, interior and beautifully raw. The album was vulnerable about the pain of losing friends and loved ones, generational trauma, and the end of relationships.

Earlier this year, MAVI followed up that record with Shadowbox. The album is contemplative. It’s even more dense, more raw, more interior than its predecessor. MAVI’s flow teems with self doubt and anxiety. Shadowbox haunts you. The melodies and samples linger long after the record’s finished.

MAVI joins us on the latest episode of Bullseye to discuss Shadowbox. The themes in his albums are filled with pain and loneliness, so get into how he’s been doing lately to handle those feelings. Plus, his relationship with education and school – he’s a fan of teachers but has some conflicting feelings about the institution.

Shadowbox is available to purchase and stream now. MAVI is also on tour. Check out the tour dates here.

In this episode...

Jesse Thorn

Host

Kevin Ferguson

Senior Producer

Jesus Ambrosio

Producer

Richard Robey

Maximum Fun Producer

Daniel Huecias

Maximum Fun Production Fellow

Daniel Arón Speer

Video Editor

Guests

MAVI

About the show

Bullseye is a celebration of the best of arts and culture in public radio form. Host Jesse Thorn sifts the wheat from the chaff to bring you in-depth interviews with the most revered and revolutionary minds in our culture.

Bullseye has been featured in Time, The New York Times, GQ and McSweeney’s, which called it “the kind of show people listen to in a more perfect world.” Since April 2013, the show has been distributed by NPR.

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