I’ve been a fan of Mikey J for a while, so I was very excited to hear that he would be releasing a new album in 2025. Made in China captures twelve years in Mikey’s life in Shanghai, reflecting the people, places, and experiences that shaped his life during that period. It’s his eighth studio album, adding a powerful chapter to his lifelong story of love, hope, growth, and reflection. The first single from the album, “Where Do I Belong?,” is currently available through all streaming services.

One of your earliest EPs on Bandcamp is Blue Tracer from 1999. What kinds of memories that one bring back? 

That was a fun time! I had just finished high school and my band mates were still there. We spent a weekend at our bass players house when his folks were away and recorded into a minidisc device that he had hooked up to a computer! The songs are pretty rudimentary, but fit the time of life we were! It also has my one and only backwards guitar solo…

How has your thinking about music changed since then? How has it remained the same? 

Thinking wise, it’s very much the same; play music that makes me happy and enjoy the process! Obviously the things that have changed is the technology available to record, and the fact that I’m now just doing things myself rather than with the band! I still remember how to play all those songs, which is how I narrow down what songs I write will be worth continuing with – if I can remember it a week, two weeks or whatever down the track, I think it’s a good song! I never write any of the music down, just go with what I feel works!

Your eighth studio album, Made in China, will be available on Bandcamp in March and through streaming services in April. What’s the thinking behind spacing them out like that? 

I really like BandCamp as a platform and feel that I want to get my music to people who might really want it before going out to the world of streaming. We all know streamers don’t really support indie artists, so giving it to them even just a little after the release makes me feel better!

The album is based on your experience living in Shanghai. What made that period of your life particularly memorable? 

It’s where I became a man. I moved to China pretty much on a whim after leaving a pretty toxic relationship, for what was supposed to be maybe two years at most of fun! I then met the girl of my dreams, we got married, had a kid and all of a sudden it was twelve years later! It was such an exciting period of Shanghai’s development as well – 2005 was when it really started to develop in a big way and it was just so fun! 

How did some of those memories translate to songs? 

I wanted to write an album that was a little more thematic than I have previously written and China seemed a pretty significant part of who I am. I had some ideas about people, places and events that were pretty memorable and it just kind of came together! Of course, there is a good smattering of my patented sappy love songs about my wife to boot!

When it comes to writing about such a significant time in your life, I suppose one of the challenges is deciding what not to include. Did any of your experiences not make the cut for one reason or another? 

There were a few things I perhaps wanted to write about that didn’t make the cut – the night I proposed to my wife at the Whampoa Club, Chinese New Year, and a song about the pull of Shanghai as a city paved in gold are a couple that come to mind – for simply no other reason that I just couldn’t get the lyrics out! It’s the hardest part of writing songs for me, so to get out 14 tracks worth of material that I’m proud of is pretty cool! I could probably have an EP of songs about just pets that we had too (alongside the snake, we’ve had dogs, cats, birds, a squirrel and even a crocodile!)

The album’s title is certainly evocative. Is it fair to say that China made you — or at least made you who you are today? 

Very much! As an adult, China made me without doubt. I was still a child when I left, never really having lived as a proper adult. When you’re alone in a new country, a new language and without the normal supports you grow up pretty quickly. But I wouldn’t change it for a love nor money!

The lead single, “Where Do I Belong,” is already available. You’ve said it’s about the challenges of finding one’s roots while far from home. How did being in Shanghai help you discover your roots? 

I have had an affinity with Asia, and China in particular, for a long time before I went there – I’d even started taking Mandarin lessons on a Sunday without ever thinking I would go there to live just because I was bored and wanted something to do! It’s odd, as a culture and political system, it’s very different to Australia, but it just felt like home as soon as I arrived! The lights, the energy, the convenience, the people (and the food) are all just so infectious and endearing!   

The music on Made in China brings together a number of disparate styles, including pop punk and blues. They’re not necessarily genres that people tend to associate with each other. How do you make that combination work? 

I don’t really know if it does!! But I wrote songs that make me happy and I would want to listen to! I like a pretty eclectic range of music as a listener and I think that just flows through into what I write! Although there are also some musical themes that run through these tracks with chord progressions, keys and even some lead motifs that feed off each other!

What’s next for you? 

I’m sitting on about 30 songs that are in some form of production so I will spend some time working in them – as well as probably keep writing new ones! I’d also really like to do some more collaborations so if anyone wants to have some fun, let me know!