At the end of 2020, we were in a dark place and found ourselves stocking up on both comfort food and music, we basically listened to folklore and evermore on loop. But 2021 is a new day, the hibernation period is over – although we’re not quite out of wearing pyjamas as daywear yet.

But if there was anyone who could help us get our groove back, it’s East London clubkid, Lynks with his latest track, ‘Everyone’s Hot (And I’m Not).’ Taken from the upcoming Smash Hits Vol. 2 EP, the lyrics are hilarious, dry, confident, sexy and definitely a world away from Taylor’s cozy cardie. Take our money now, Lynks!

Yaaaassss, congratulations on today’s release of ‘Everyone’s Hot (And I’m Not)’.
Thanks you. I’m so excited. This EP is definitely the best music I’ve ever made.

Looking at your Soundcloud, that must be saying something because you have already made a lot of music!
People say that I’m prolific but I don’t feel like that at all.

I’ve been trying to work out my favourite lyric to ‘Everyone’s Hot…’ and I think today it is ‘Everyone’s a birth and I’m a C section.’
Aw thank you. I think, ‘Everyone’s a model and I’m a librarian from Wigan’ is really good. I’m so proud of the song. It was the easiest one I’ve ever written. Sometimes I’ll spend months on a song but this one just came out in two sessions. I wrote most of it while sitting on the top floor of a bus coming home from a night out. I’d actually had kind of a bad experience. I thought I was flirting with a guy. Then I began to flirt a bit harder, he realised what was going on and violently rejected me. It was actually a very straight event. So it was this simultaneous feeling of rejection but also being an alien. So I just got on the bus with this phrase in my head, ‘Everyone’s hot and I’m not.’ Songwriting helps me work through the logic in a way that you can’t when you’re just thinking.
I’ve been in fairly straight spaces my whole life, I’ve not really had the chance to be in the gay community much – I’ve only been to gay clubs as Lynks. Being a gay person in a straight environment makes it very hard to feel desirable or sexy. If I flirt with someone who is not gay, that feels pervy to me and non-consensual even though that is definitely partly to do with internalised homophobia on my part. I’d never really questioned that being in those spaces might be why I didn’t feel that confident. Then I spoke about it with some friends and they were like, ‘Yeah you need to go to some gay clubs.’

What kind of guys do you go for that make you feel like you are not hot?
To be honest I don’t go for guys, I’m really bad at it. But I feel much hotter having written that song. Confidence is what makes you hot and I feel so hot. I had a couple of shit situations with men but I’m getting my mojo back.

Other tracks on your upcoming EP Smash Hits Vol. 2 include ‘Brand New Face.’ Whose face would you like?
That’s an interesting question because immediately I am thinking of faces I find really hot but that’s a different question. Let’s just say Pete Burns. It’s a medical marvel.

You cover your face with masks. How do you see this progressing? Permanent?
I don’t believe in planning for the future.

Well, let’s go back to your past. When did you first perform?
My first performance was as Fat Sam in Bugsy Malone in Year Six. Being clinically obese and cast in that role was great for my self-esteem but I killed it so it was fine. I started performing non-Lynks music onstage while at uni which was good but it was wannabe James Blake, sad boi vibes. Then I played a friend some of the weird beats I’d been making on the side and he told me they were sick. The he told me he was hosting a party in a basement and asked me to perform and I was like, ‘Fuck it, ok!’
At the same sort of time I had decided I wanted to be a club kid. I’d just watched the McQueen documentary and had become obsessed with Leigh Bowery. There’s something about the gimp look. My performance was trash both literally and metaphorically because I was wearing bin bags. It was kind of Black Swan out of white bin bags. I actually performed ‘How to make a bechamel sauce’ at the first gig I ever did.
When I played my Jame Blake type stuff I’d get a smile or a nod, but when I performed as Lynks the crowd were beaming and laughing. I felt total abandon onstage and knew that that was what performing was meant to be. 

Do you make your costumes yourself?
I do, yes – with the exception of a knitted thing that the lovely Davidsabunny gave me. I only learned to sew recently – uptill then it had been mainly hot glue and string.

With your costumes and alter ego, do you see it as drag?
My initial education of drag was an obsession with Drag Race. It makes me cringe to say it. But since Lynks, I started not only performing at loads of drag shows but going to loads of drag shows. That was actually part of what made me stop watching Drag Race – realising exactly what drag is and how much that show has fucked it up.
I remember being in dressing rooms pre-show talking with queens who had been doing drag before Drag Race and how much it had changed everything. The expectations on them as performers have changed completely. It kind of made me sad. Plus the slang from the show has infiltrated the gay community because it’s so addictive and catchy. It’s nuts that gay culture used to be so rich and have so many references but the only reference is really Drag Race now. The nail in the coffin for me was that they still haven’t had any transwomen on. But Gottmik is progress.

Lastly we are named after the biggest selling single of 2001, so we always ask everyone – what is your favourite Mariah Carey song?
Off the top of my head I would say ‘Emotions’. I am not a Mariah staaaaan. The whistle tones are wild though.

‘Everyone’s Hot (And I’m Not)’ is out now.
Smash Hits Vol. 2 is coming soon.
Lynks – Instagram / Facebook / Soundcloud