M∆CKEN & MACKINLEY TURN CHAOS INTO CATCHINESS WITH THEIR NEW SINGLE “UGLY”

Every so often a pop record drops that feels like someone cracked open the group chat, scooped out all the messy relationship drama, and turned it into something you can scream-sing in the car at 1AM. “UGLY,” the new single from M∆CKEN featuring rising firecracker vocalist MACKINLEY BOURNE, arrives with exactly that kind of energy, raw, relatable, and way too easy to replay.

Most people first met M∆CKEN through the EDM world. He’s the powerful voice behind Afrojack & Dyro’s global smash “Top of the World,” a track that’s been blasted at festivals from Tomorrowland to Coachella and even remixed by giants like David Guetta, Hardwell, Swedish House Mafia, and Steve Aoki. But his new chapter leans into pop and R&B storytelling, and honestly, it suits him absurdly well.

“UGLY” is his first release since his 2023 collaboration “Same Line” with London’s LZ7, and it feels like the moment he’s been building toward. It’s sharp, personal, and soaked in that emotional honesty that makes pop actually feel like something. A huge part of the track’s punch comes from its production. The song was created with Juno Award–winning producer Neo Tempus, the same mind behind Aqyila’s celebrated “Bloom.” The two locked in for two weeks in Vancouver, crafting a sound that blends M∆CKEN’s smoky R&B tone with MACKINLEY’s gritty, slightly Miley-Cyrus-leaning edge. The result? A track that feels like a fight, a confession, and a late-night phone call, all at once.

At its core, “UGLY” is about the kind of relationship most people won’t admit they’ve been in. The kind where two people love each other too much to walk away, but not enough to stop hurting each other. It’s that cycle where you swear you’re done, but the second you’re lonely, you’re right back where you started.

M∆CKEN and MACKINLEY go back and forth like two people sorting through the last scraps of hope they have left. M∆CKEN points out the cracks, the ways they’ve been drifting, the things she can’t pin on him anymore. And then MACKINLEY counters with a chorus about not wanting to keep living in this loop, even though she gets why he doesn’t trust her. Her voice is raspy and emotional in a way that makes every line sound like someone finally telling the truth.

The song opens with a warped vocal sample that instantly gives it a nostalgic haze, almost like flipping through old memories you wish you could delete but keep replaying anyway. From there the track builds into a glossy pop-R&B blend that feels both modern and familiar, the kind of production that hits right in the chest. The track also quietly highlights how much both artists have grown. M∆CKEN’s writing has sharpened into something vulnerable but self-aware, he wrote the entire song solo, and his vocal control carries the emotional weight without ever slipping into melodrama.

Together, they’ve built a classic pop record that still pulls from R&B roots, stitching together a story of two imperfect people making imperfect choices, and singing through it anyway.

If “UGLY” is any indication, M∆CKEN’s next era will be bold, honest, and impossible to ignore. And MACKINLEY? She’s absolutely one of the next names to watch so turn the volume up, turn your notifications off, and let yourself sink into this one.