W: Joshua Taylor I: Fred Odede

KABEAUSHÉ is no longer just a musician; he is the architect of a crumbling empire. With the release of his latest single and video, ‘UNTITLED 1981’, the Nairobi-born, Berlin-based polymath offers a visceral look into his upcoming sophomore album, KABEAUSHÉ PRESENTS: I.S.U.I.L.P, arriving February 27 via Monkeytown Records. The track serves as a pivotal chapter in the saga of Herr Iggy—the delusional, egomaniacal ruler of the fictional Doerf Kingdom. Blending the grit of 1970s blaxploitation cinema with the jagged brilliance of Jean-Michel Basquiat, KABEAUSHÉ deconstructs gospel and rap into a "glam-funk" fever dream that feels both physically immediate and intellectually profound.

The accompanying visual for ‘UNTITLED 1981’ is a stark, theatrical masterpiece that draws heavily from the shadows of 1920s German Expressionism. Channeling the distorted aesthetics of The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, KABEAUSHÉ portrays Herr Iggy’s descent into paranoia as his authority dissolves. Clad in a fantasy uniform dripping with absurd medals and sporting a luminous blonde pageboy cut, the performance is a masterclass in "sarcastic force." It captures a ruler applauding his own demise, mirroring the album’s overarching exploration of power structures, overconfidence, and the inevitable decay of the ego.

Following his award-winning debut, this new era solidifies KABEAUSHÉ as one of experimental pop’s most vital voices. His "Gesamtkunstwerk" (total work of art) approach fuses everything from French Baroque and Hitchcockian suspense to the raw energy of punk. Whether he is screaming in an aggressive falsetto or marching to haunting, industrial drums, the goal is a "positively overwhelming" experience that bites at the ears and stirs the soul. As he prepares to take this theatrical maelstrom on his first German tour this April, ‘UNTITLED 1981’ stands as a bold testament to an artist who refuses to stay within the lines, choosing instead to set them on fire.