Meet Sakima: London's Rising Star Making Sexually Inclusive Pop

London singer Sakima is bringing provocative queer lyrics to radio pop, putting a flame to the palatable narratives mainstream LGBTQ musicians push and speaking about sex in the same way straight artists do. "I'm not interested in love songs," he says. "I'm only interested in songs about sex because those create the most social change."

Sakima's debut four-track EP, Facsimile, is an accidental gateway into queer eroticism, with heated words packaged inside addictive, R&B-leaning production that mirrors his charting heterosexual contemporaries. This strategic dichotomy is all part of Sakima's master plan to normalize LGBTQ experiences through music.

"[Facsimile] means to make an exact copy of something, he says. "I felt that was such a beautiful one word description of what I'm doing, and that is to replicate pop music or R&B and make a copy of it to rewrite queer stories into it--taking what Chris Brown might say about licking pussy and rewriting that to be from a gay perspective."

On Sakima's EP opener, "I Used To Have An En Suit," the rising artist is hungry for attention. "Tell me where you want me," he declares amidst bright, bouncy synths. "Awaiting instruction, fuck me like I'm a problem." On "Happy Hr," Sakima's throbbing desire continues. "Watch me while I cum," he insists, before breaking into a smooth, easy chorus. "Loving is so good, why would I ever leave here?"

A strong sense of self-awareness pervades Facsimile, with honesty Sakima credits to being openly queer all his life. "I never 'realized' I was gay," he says. "I always knew. I've never known anything different. I've never known what it's like to be in the closet. I've never known what it's like to be separate from that part of yourself.

Related | Women in Power-Pop: 50 Musicians Taking Over

With sexuality so naturally woven into his entire identity, Sakima's music sounds as confident as his intentions, like Madonna in her Truth or Dare era--giving blowjobs to bottles and posing naked next to Naomi Campbell in Sex. Sakima aims to liberate queers on a global mainstream level, just as Madonna did for women.

"It's really important my songs have a certain level of connectivity, where I'm not alienating people that aren't part of the LGBTQ community," Sakima says, citing Madonna's "Material Girl" as a moment that advanced culture by advocating for women in a way pop hadn't ever before. "It's not about making it sugar-coated. Gay people have sex--we fuck, so why isn't that sung about?"

Stream Sakima's breakout Facsimile EP, below.