“The craft of songwriting is 100% what I’m about,” says Dent May. “That’s what keeps me going. My goal is to just live a long life and write a ton of good songs.” With the Mississippi-raised, Los Angeles-based musician and pop auteur what you see is what you get: a restless and prolific artist who worships at the altar of a memorable hook and a sharp lyric. There is no gimmick or press-ready narrative about May overcoming past trauma, mental breakdowns, or surpassing insurmountable obstacles. This is simply a guy who is extraordinarily good at making warm and inviting tunes. He’s done it for over 15 years and isn’t stopping anytime soon.
The 38-year-old artist has made a career of impeccably crafted pop songs starting with his 2009 debut The Good Feeling Music of Dent May & His Magnificent Ukulele, which came out on Animal Collective’s label Paw Tracks. His follow-ups in 2012’s Do Things and 2013’s Warm Blanket solidified him as a bedroom pop pioneer whose songs felt equally timeless and ahead-of-the-curve. Following a move from Mississippi to Los Angeles, May signed with Carpark and released two increasingly adventurous albums in the psychedelic Across the Multiverse from 2017 and the silky Late Checkout in 2020.
His latest LP is What’s For Breakfast?, his sixth album and third with Carpark, marks a shift from timeless pop to more guitar-driven rock. The 12-song collection is some of May’s most energetic and immediate tunes yet. It mirrors his relentlessly prolific streak, which includes platinum-certified singles with Eyedress and guest appearances with The Undercover Dream Lovers, Bob Jr., and Paul Cherry. Alongside two other artists, he operates and works out of the recording studio Honeymoon Suite in northeast Los Angeles.
