Multi-platinum, BRIT Award-winning, and GRAMMY-nominated pop powerhouse MIKA returns with his triumphant new single “Modern Times,” out now via Republic Records. The release marks the beginning of an exciting new chapter for the global icon, who has teased that a full-length album is on the horizon. The single arrives alongside a cinematic music video filmed in Vienna and directed by Rupert Höller (Foster the People).
“Modern Times” opens with five intertwining piano parts — “like the turning cogs of a mechanical machine that beats the rhythm of a heartbeat” — before building into a soaring anthem that captures both the chaos and beauty of life in motion. Co-produced by MIKA and Nick Littlemore (Empire of the Sun), with additional production by Peter Mayes (PNAU), the song is entirely written by MIKA and embodies his signature blend of theatricality, honesty, and melodic power.
“The song for me is like a treadmill, and that treadmill is life, life in all its good and all its bad,” MIKA shares. “As time goes on and life gets more confusing and sometimes overwhelming, we look further than the world around us, into the world of mythology, desire and dreams. ‘Modern Times’ is a cathedral-like cry, for faith and spirit, resisting the grind and weight of life and the passing of time.”
The track follows a creative streak that’s seen MIKA expand far beyond music. From hosting Italy’s David Di Donatello Awards and mentoring on La Voz Spain, La Voix France, X Factor Italy, and the UK’s The Piano, to receiving the Nordoff & Robbins Global Impact Award earlier this year, he continues to prove himself a dynamic force across art and culture.
With over 20 million albums sold worldwide, platinum and gold certifications in 32 countries, and performances at Coachella and the Eurovision Finale, MIKA’s impact on modern pop remains undeniable. As “Modern Times” ushers in a new era, it’s clear that MIKA’s kaleidoscopic world — full of color, hope, and heart — is still expanding.