McKinley Dixon – Sugar Water (feat. Quelle Chris & Anjimile)

McKinley Dixon kicks off Magic, Alive! with “Sugar Water,” a track that blends soul, jazz, and live-band boom bap. Featuring Quelle Chris and Anjimile, the song wrestles with memory, loss, and the weight of keeping the past alive. Dixon’s lyricism, always sharp and introspective, turns the concept of remembrance into something almost spiritual—what does it truly mean to keep someone alive in memory? What’s the cost of carrying those who are gone through time?

Built on a foundation of warm instrumentation, “Sugar Water” features Sarah Tuzdin’s guitar work, gospel-infused harmonies, and soaring jazz trumpets that push the song beyond standard hip-hop frameworks.

The song serves as the first glimpse into Magic, Alive!, an album that expands on Dixon’s signature storytelling, following three kids grappling with the loss of a friend. Instead of just mourning, they search for ways to reconnect, blurring the lines between the real and the imagined.