MICO Announces Debut Album With 'Like You Mean It' Video

Official Announcement | Published: May 13, 2026 10:30 AM EDT

(CR) 23-year-old alt-pop-rock artist MICO officially announces his debut album When the lights turn on, arriving June 26 via Columbia Records, alongside the release of new single "Like you mean it" and its accompanying official video.

A soaring, emotionally charged anthem built on shimmering guitars, explosive drums, and MICO's signature heart-on-sleeve lyricism, "Like you mean it" captures the frustration of loving someone who only reaches for connection when they need saving. The track balances raw vulnerability with a hook-heavy energy that builds toward a cathartic chorus.

About the song, MICO shares: "It feels right to enter this new era with this song. It's the perfect mix of the old sound I've developed with the new things I've gotten to explore on this album. I poured everything into this one and all of the visuals, and I hope that passion comes through.

I really had to break down and simplify everything I was feeling at the time because there was so much I wanted to get off my chest, and this chorus just feels like reality check after reality check.

This song tackles a part of early 2000's nostalgia that got left behind in the revival going on right now. It was really fun getting to put my own spin on this type of sound, because it's so much of what I listened to growing up."

The song arrives with a new video that expands the mysterious world of "Stillville" - the unsettlingly perfect neighborhood first teased during the rollout for previous single "DREAMBOY." In the visual, MICO moves through manicured streets and picture-perfect suburban routines as small but eerie irregularities begin to surface around him. What initially appears idyllic slowly reveals itself to be something far stranger beneath the surface.

When the lights turn on captures MICO's evolution from bedroom upstart to "internet hometown hero" to an artist navigating what comes next. Written during a whirlwind year of sold-out touring, personal upheaval, and rapid career growth, the album wrestles with the disorienting feeling of outgrowing the people and places that once defined you.

Across the album, MICO channels the sticky nostalgia and emotional immediacy of 2000s/2010s pop-punk through a modern alt-pop lens, blending explosive hooks with hyperpop textures, restless energy, and deeply personal songwriting. The result is a coming-of-age record that feels both intimate and massive in scope - documenting the growing pains of becoming your own person in real time.

Born Miguel Veloso and raised in Toronto, MICO first cultivated a devoted audience through Discord performances, TikTok, and a string of self-released songs that transformed him from an online cult favorite into a global touring act. Today, he boasts over one million followers across platforms and a rapidly growing fanbase of "amicos" who have connected deeply with his candid storytelling and genre-blurring sound.