R&B singer/songwriter Michael Gordon (aka Mk.Gee) sits on the fringe of the genre, with dreamy instrumentals and funk-infused guitar lines that have drawn comparisons to -- and a co-sign from -- Frank Ocean. Following several buzzed-about EPs, he released the full-length mixtape A Museum of Contradiction in 2020. His official debut album Two Star & The Dream Police arrived in 2024.

Born in 1997 in Linwood, New Jersey, Gordon started playing piano at the age of seven. By his teens he had joined a band, but he began to feel creatively stifled by the group dynamic and started to record solo material. He moved to Los Angeles, where he attended USC School of Music, landing on his alternative R&B sound in the process. Mk.Gee's debut album, Pronounced McGee, appeared in 2018, quickly gathering a following, which he capitalized on by releasing a further mixtape, Fool, later the same year. His second mixtape, A Museum of Contradiction, followed in 2020. Several singles arrived in 2023, including "Candy" and "How Many Miles," with both landing on his 2024 full-length Two Star & The Dream Police. ~ Liam Martin