Music

MARVIN x De’Wayne: The genre-crossing new prince of pop-funk has his eyes on the divine.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, as taught in most Southern Black churches, such as the one where De’Wayne discovered his magic. What struck him was “the way they would sing and the passion with how they would do it,” the musician says on a recent Zoom call, speaking just after finishing up a string of fall shows supporting Duckwrth across the U.S. When crafting his latest album june, the 28-year-old drew from the soul of the church, imagining he was surrendering a “goddess woman” who was Black, beautiful, and had a scent of sweet honey.

Driven by the experience of love, the album blends historically Black genres, including funk, rock and roll, soul, and R&B, for a deeply personal journey. “If you’re making rock and you look the way that we do, you’re probably inspired by Chic, or Earth, Wind and Fire, Parliament Funkadelic, Prince, [and] Lenny Kravitz,” he says. “They all pulled from a lot of that, and I’m just one of their offspring. I wanted to hold it with high reverence and respect and make sure I wasn’t just doing the thing.”