Malibu Ken

Malibu Ken is a collaboration between New York underground rapper Aesop Rock and electronic musician TOBACCO.

The pair first met in 2007 when Aes toured with Black Mother Super Rainbow–TOBACCO’s psychedelic rock band. The following year, Aesop appeared as a featured artist on TOBACCO’s 2008 album Fucked Up Friends on the song “Dirt".

Malibu Ken released their self-titled debut album over a decade later in 2019. The album blends together TOBACCO’s experimental production and Aesop’s dense and abstract wordplay to “intertwine feelings of tension and anxiety with sensations of bemusement and pleasure” (Rhymesayers). Aesop described how Malibu Ken’s debut album formed in a statement for Stereogum.

TOBACCO and I have thrown around the idea of doing a project together since we first toured over a decade ago. I find his production to be something special, and always wanted to see what I could bring to it. We recently found time to record some songs, and Malibu Ken was born. I brought a few stories to the table, but also did my best to let the production dictate the subject matter throughout. We hope you like the soup.