Malia Obama directs Michael Kiwanuka's new music video
Via Marco Grey

Malia Obama directs Michael Kiwanuka's new music video

Singer-songwriter Michael Kiwanuka has released a new music video for "One and Only", the fourth single from his recent album, Small Changes.

The eerie video, in which a woman hunts down her doppelganger in an abandoned forest, is directed by none other than former First Daughter, Malia Obama (credited under her alias, Malia Ann).

This is not the first filmmaking credit for former President Barack Obama's eldest daughter. Recently, she received the Young Spirit award at the Deauville Film Festival for her film The Heart, a collaboration with Donald Glover's production company, Gilga. Her work has also been featured in a number of festivals including Telluride, Toronto, and Sundance. "One and Only" marks the filmmaker's first official foray into music videos.

Small Changes, released on November 25, is Michael Kiwanuka's fourth studio album. His previous project, Kiwanuka, went on to receive a Grammy nomination and win the 2020 Mercury Prize. In an interview for The New York Times, the songwriter discussed his newfound sense of self and how it inspired his recent project:

"There’s so many parts [of you] that you are discovering — sometimes wrestling with, sometimes enjoying. ‘Small Changes’ for me is like, ‘Oh, that’s off my chest.’ So this is me being me, without trying to be anything.”

Kiwanuka recently announced a 2025 UK/European tour. You can find tickets to those shows below.

Ben Barzilai

Writer, podcaster, amateur karaoke philosopher

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