The multi-Grammy-nominated songwriter behind hits for Dua Lipa, Justin Bieber, and Miley Cyrus announces his debut album 11 Days, arriving April 17.
For years, Marcus Lomax has been one of the most quietly influential names in popular music. You have heard his work without knowing it. His pen helped shape records for Dua Lipa, Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, Teddy Swims, Lil Wayne, and a long list of others. Now, under the name MarcLo, he is stepping out from behind the curtain entirely.
On March 13, MarcLo releases his new single ONS, a sharp and emotionally layered R&B track about a one-night stand that turns into something neither person planned for. The single arrives alongside the announcement of his debut album 11 Days, due April 17.
The story behind ONS and what it signals for MarcLo
ONS is the kind of song that reminds you what a skilled songwriter can do with a familiar premise. The subject matter is well-worn territory in R&B, but MarcLo approaches it with enough nuance and vocal range to make it feel personal rather than formulaic. It builds on the momentum of earlier singles including Interest, Marvel, and Muni, each of which introduced a different dimension of his artistry to an audience that is still getting to know him as a front-facing performer.
His vocal and sonic references are not subtle. Critics and collaborators alike have pointed to Maxwell, D’Angelo, and Musiq Soulchild as touchstones, and those comparisons hold up. At the same time, his sound sits comfortably alongside contemporaries like Leon Thomas, H.E.R., Daniel Caesar, Lucky Daye, and Jacob Collier. MarcLo occupies a specific and increasingly rare space in modern R&B where musicianship and songwriting craft still drive the work.
How 11 Days came together during the Los Angeles wildfires
The circumstances surrounding 11 Days are as striking as the music itself. The album was written during the Los Angeles wildfires, a period of collective anxiety and forced stillness that shaped every theme on the project. Love, resilience, gratitude, and clarity run through the record, not as abstract concepts but as emotional responses to a specific and difficult moment in time.
MarcLo blends R&B, pop, jazz, disco, hip-hop, and gospel across the album, a range that reflects a musical upbringing rooted in church, musical theatre, and an unusually wide set of influences. He grew up in South Florida, first picking up bass guitar, clarinet, and piano before eventually moving to Los Angeles with the creative collective The Monsters and Strangerz. His breakthrough came through Maroon 5’s V album, and the work has not slowed down since.
His recent activity has only raised the stakes heading into the April release. He performed at the Sun Rose in Los Angeles, where R&B artist Alicia Creti showed up to support. He was also spotted in a jam session with Justin Bieber and has received a public endorsement from Teddy Swims, a close collaborator who has watched MarcLo’s transition from behind-the-scenes architect to solo artist from the beginning.
Interest, the first single written for the project, set the emotional tone early. Written as a tribute to his partner, the track captures the kind of love that quietly reshapes your life over time. It was a deliberate opening statement, warm and grounded, and it signaled that 11 Days would not be a vanity project or a calculated pivot. It would be something more considered than that.
MarcLo has spent the better part of a decade making other artists sound like the best versions of themselves. 11 Days is where he finally gets to do the same for himself.
The album arrives April 17. ONS is out March 13.