Move over, Jon Bon Jovi. Marcus King just released his own version of “Wanted Dead or Alive” out into the TikTokverse, and fans can’t get enough.
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The 28-year-old blues prodigy first offered fans a tantalizing taste during GRAMMY week, when MusiCares honored Jon Bon Jovi as its Person of the Year. King, who performed at the MusiCares Gala, broke into a spontaneous cover of the anthemic 1986 hit.
King posted a video of himself singing a few bars to his TikTok page. “Isn’t that the best part?” the GRAMMY-nominated singer-songwriter asked the camera.
“An iconic song by an iconic man,” King wrote in the caption.
Fans Want More, Marcus King Delivers
Fans weren’t satisfied with that little snippet, however. “I wanna hear a full cover of this song,” a TikTok user commented.
As King said in the original video, “Whatever songs bring the people together.” The South Carolina native posted a clip of his cover in its entirety Sunday (March 3.)
“Shoutout to the legend @Bon Jovi for this banger!” King captioned the video. “Sure hope y’all are singin’ along at home.”
He then proceeded to take his following to church. The soul practically oozed from King’s pores as he strummed along on his guitar.
“it’s hard watching someone be so much more talented than you, it’s so much easier when it’s Marcus king,” a fan wrote in the comments section. “this man is everything.”
Another fan pleaded, “Please record this and put it on Spotify so I can listen to it every day.”
New Marcus King Music Is On Its Way
On Tuesday (March 5), King teased a new song on social media. “Hero,” the next single from his forthcoming album Mood Swings, hits the airwaves March 8.
The track tells the story of “a strong willed, self assured young woman fallin’ for another wandering lost and broken heart,” King wrote on X/Twitter.
“‘Hero’ felt like it almost wrote itself,” the artist told his social media following.
King teamed up with the legendary Rick Rubin on Mood Swings, set to drop April 5.
[RELATED: Marcus King Releases New Pain-Laced, Rick Rubin-Produced Track “F-ck My Life Up Again”]
Mood Swings, King’s third solo studio album, sees the “Hard Working Man” singer confront his personal demons as he leaves self-medication behind. Variety described the upcoming record as, “What if Al Green also played a mean axe and made a record about dealing with anxiety and depression?”
Featured image by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
