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Michael Ebenezer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr. (born 26 July 1993), known professionally as Stormzy, is a British rapper, singer and songwriter. In 2014, he gained attention on the UK underground music scene through his ''Wicked Skengman'' series of freestyles over classic
grime
Grime may refer to:
* Dirt, in the form of black, ingrained dust
* Grime (music genre), a genre of music
* ''Grime'' (album), a 2001 album by Iniquity
* ''Grime'' (video game), a 2021 Metroidvania video game
* "Grime", a 2022 song by Dallas Woo ...
beats.
Stormzy's song "
Shut Up
Shut may refer to:
*Yana Shut (born 1997), Belarusian snooker and pool player.
* ''Shut'' (1988 film), directed by Andrei Andreyevich Eshpai.
* ''Shut'' (2009 film), starring Lee Baxter.
* ''Shut'' or ''šwt'', "shadow", an Ancient Egyptian conce ...
", which was initially released as a freestyle on
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
, became popular and peaked at number eight on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
after he launched a campaign to reach
Christmas number one
In the United Kingdom, Christmas number ones are singles that top the UK Singles Chart in the week in which Christmas Day falls. The singles have often been novelty songs, charity songs or songs with a Christmas theme. Historically, the volume ...
.
Stormzy won Best Grime Act at the 2014 and 2015
MOBO Awards
The MOBO Awards (Music of Black Origin, also known as the MOBOs) are an annual British music award presentation honouring achievements in " music of black origin", including hip hop, grime, UK Drill, R&B, soul, reggae, jazz, gospel, and Af ...
and was named as an artist to look out for in the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
's
Sound of 2015 list.
His debut album, ''
Gang Signs & Prayer'' (2017), was the first
grime
Grime may refer to:
* Dirt, in the form of black, ingrained dust
* Grime (music genre), a genre of music
* ''Grime'' (album), a 2001 album by Iniquity
* ''Grime'' (video game), a 2021 Metroidvania video game
* "Grime", a 2022 song by Dallas Woo ...
album to reach number one on the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
and won
British Album of the Year at the
2018 Brit Awards. In 2019, Stormzy achieved his first UK number-one single with "
Vossi Bop
"Vossi Bop" is a song by British rapper Stormzy. It was released as a single on 25 April 2019 through #Merky and Atlantic Records as the lead single from his second studio album, '' Heavy Is the Head''. The music video was also released the same d ...
" and his headline appearance at the
2019 Glastonbury Festival was widely praised; he wore a
Union Jack
The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...
stab vest
A stab vest or stab proof vest is a reinforced piece of body armor, worn under or over other items of clothing, which is designed to resist knife attacks to the chest, back and sides. Stab vests are different from bulletproof vests, most of wh ...
designed by
Banksy
Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based street artist, political activist and film director whose real name and identity remain unconfirmed and the subject of speculation. Active since the 1990s, his satirical street art and subversive epigram ...
, in light of the
rise in knife crime in London.
His second album, ''
Heavy Is the Head'', was released on 13 December 2019.
On 22 September 2022, Stormzy released the single "
Mel Made Me Do It
"Mel Made Me Do It" is a song by English rapper Stormzy, released as a single on 23 September 2022 through 0207 Def Jam and #Merky. It contains guest appearances from Jamaican musician Stylo G and English actress Michaela Coel. The song, Stormzy' ...
" accompanied by an 11-minute music video featuring popular artists, actors and sports figures such as
Usain Bolt
Usain St. Leo Bolt, , (; born 21 August 1986) is a retired Jamaican sprinter, widely considered to be the greatest sprinter of all time. He is the world record holder in the 100 metres, 200 metres, and 4 × 100 metres relay.
An eight- ...
and
José Mourinho
José Mário dos Santos Mourinho Félix GOIH (; born 26 January 1963), is a Portuguese professional football manager and former player who is the current head coach of Italian Serie A club Roma. Once dubbed "The Special One" by the British ...
. His third album, ''
This Is What I Mean
''This Is What I Mean'' is the third studio album by British rapper Stormzy, released through #Merky and 0207 Def Jam on 25 November 2022. It follows Stormzy's 2019 album '' Heavy Is the Head'', and was preceded by the lead single "Hide & Seek" a ...
'', was released on
Def Jam
Def Jam Recordings (also simply known as Def Jam) is an American multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It is based in Manhattan, New York City, specializing predominantly in hip hop, contemporary R&B, soul and pop.
The ...
on 25 November 2022.
Early life
Michael Ebenezer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr.
was born on 26 July 1993 in
Croydon
Croydon is a large town in south London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a local government district of Greater London. It is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an extensi ...
, London.
His mother is
Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
ian, his father was a taxi driver and he is a cousin of rapper
Nadia Rose. He grew up in
South Norwood
South Norwood is a district of south-east London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon, Greater London and formerly in the historic county of Surrey. It is located 7.8 miles (12.5 km) south-east of Charing Cross, north of Wood ...
, London, with his mother, brother, and two sisters.
Stormzy did not come from a particularly musical household, although he liked music. He attended
Stanley Tech South Norwood. He began rapping at the age of 11 and would clash with older rappers at his local youth club.
Stormzy has said about his school years: "I was a very naughty child, on the verge of getting expelled, but I wasn't a bad child; everything I did was for my own entertainment. But when I went into an exam I did really well."
He said he got six A*s, three As, and five Bs on his
GCSE
The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a particular subject, taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. State schools in Scotland use the Scottish Qualifications Certificate instead. Private sc ...
s, but then only achieved a "humbling" ABCDE on his
A Level
The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational aut ...
s: "For someone who would cuss in class and was on the verge of being expelled, it was A Levels that showed me that in life you need work ethic."
He studied for an apprenticeship in
Leamington Spa
Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or simply Leamington (), is a spa town and civil parish in Warwickshire, England. Originally a small village called Leamington Priors, it grew into a spa town in the 18th century following ...
, Warwickshire, and worked in
quality assurance
Quality assurance (QA) is the term used in both manufacturing and service industries to describe the systematic efforts taken to ensure that the product(s) delivered to customer(s) meet with the contractual and other agreed upon performance, design ...
for two years at an oil refinery in
Southampton
Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
, Hampshire.
Music career
2014–2017: ''Dreamers Disease'' and ''Gang Signs & Prayer''
After garnering attention on the UK underground music scene via his ''Wicked Skengman'' series of freestyles over classic grime beats,
Stormzy released his debut EP ''Dreamers Disease'' independently in July 2014. On 22 October 2014, Stormzy won Best Grime Act at the
MOBO Awards
The MOBO Awards (Music of Black Origin, also known as the MOBOs) are an annual British music award presentation honouring achievements in " music of black origin", including hip hop, grime, UK Drill, R&B, soul, reggae, jazz, gospel, and Af ...
. Later that month he became the first unsigned rapper to appear on ''
Later... with Jools Holland'', performing the song "Not That Deep" from ''Dreamers Disease''.
In November 2014, Stormzy collaborated with rapper
Chip Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) is a type of immunoprecipitation experimental technique used to investigate the interaction between proteins and DNA in the cell. It aims to determine whether specific proteins are associated with specific genom ...
and Shalo on the track "I'm Fine", also appearing in a video for the song.
On 7 January 2015, Stormzy was number 3 in the "BBC Introducing top 5" on
Radio 1 Radio 1 or Radio One most commonly refers to:
*BBC Radio 1, a music radio station from the BBC
** BBC Radio 1Xtra, a digital radio station broadcasting black music
*CBC Radio One, a talk radio station operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporatio ...
.
In March 2015 he released the single "
Know Me From
"Know Me From" is a grime track by Stormzy, released independently on 8 March 2015. The song peaked at number 49 on the UK Singles Chart.
Background and release
The instrumental used for "Know Me From" is called "Ninja" by Zdot. This was also use ...
", which entered the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
at number 49. In September 2015, he released a final instalment to his "WickedSkengMan" freestyle series, "WickedSkengMan 4", onto
iTunes
iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...
, along with a studio version of his "Shut Up" freestyle over
XTC's ''Functions on the Low'' instrumental. The track debuted at number 18 on the UK chart dated 24 September, becoming Stormzy's first top 40 hit and the first ever freestyle to reach the top 40 in the United Kingdom.
On 12 December 2015, Stormzy performed "
Shut Up
Shut may refer to:
*Yana Shut (born 1997), Belarusian snooker and pool player.
* ''Shut'' (1988 film), directed by Andrei Andreyevich Eshpai.
* ''Shut'' (2009 film), starring Lee Baxter.
* ''Shut'' or ''šwt'', "shadow", an Ancient Egyptian conce ...
" during British heavyweight boxer
Anthony Joshua
Anthony Oluwafemi Olaseni Joshua (born 15 October 1989) is an English professional boxer. He is a two-time former unified world heavyweight champion, having held the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, and IBO titles twice between 2016 and 2021. At r ...
's ring-walk for his fight versus
Dillian Whyte
Dillian Whyte (; born 11 April 1988) is a British professional boxer. He has formerly competed as a kickboxer and mixed martial artist. He held the WBC interim heavyweight title twice, between 2019 and 2020, and again from 2021 to April 2022 ...
. Originally, "Shut Up", released as part of the "WickedSkengMan 4" single EP in September 2015, charted at number 59. Since the performance, it began climbing up the iTunes chart and into the top 40. As a result, Stormzy launched a
Christmas number 1
In the United Kingdom, Christmas number ones are singles that top the UK Singles Chart in the week in which Christmas Day falls. The singles have often been novelty songs, charity songs or songs with a Christmas theme. Historically, the volume ...
campaign to get the song to number 1.
It generated a large amount of support, which made it enter the top 10 of the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
on 18 December 2015 at number 8, a week prior to the Christmas number-1 week, succeeding the chart position of "WickedSkengMan 4".
2018–2021: Glastonbury and ''Heavy Is the Head''
In April 2016, Stormzy released the non-album song "Scary" before he went into hiatus.
After a year's hiatus from social media, Stormzy returned in early February 2017 via a series of billboard campaigns across London displaying the hashtag ''#GSAP 24.02''. The album title was announced to be ''
Gang Signs & Prayer''. The album was released on 24 February 2017 and debuted at number one on the
UK Albums Chart
The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
on 3 March 2017.
[Peaks in the United Kingdom:
* For all except noted:
* For "Scary":
* For "Hear Dis": ]
Stormzy's headline appearance on the Pyramid Stage at the
2019 Glastonbury Festival was widely praised.
The performance featured a speech by the politician
David Lammy
David Lindon Lammy (born 19 July 1972) is an English politician serving as Shadow Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs since 2021. A member of the Labour Party, he has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Tottenh ...
that discussed the proportion of black and minority ethnic people in the British criminal justice system
and, during "
Vossi Bop
"Vossi Bop" is a song by British rapper Stormzy. It was released as a single on 25 April 2019 through #Merky and Atlantic Records as the lead single from his second studio album, '' Heavy Is the Head''. The music video was also released the same d ...
", Stormzy encouraged the audience to join him in chanting "Fuck the Government and fuck Boris" - the latter a reference to former
London Mayor
The mayor of London is the chief executive of the Greater London Authority. The role was created in 2000 after the Greater London devolution referendum in 1998, and was the first directly elected mayor in the United Kingdom.
The current m ...
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...
's
Conservative Party leadership campaign.
The show included guest appearances by dance group Black Ballet and pop singer
Chris Martin
Christopher Anthony John Martin (born 2 March 1977) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. He is best known as the lead vocalist, pianist, rhythm guitarist and co-founder of the rock band Coldplay. Born in Exeter, Devon, he went to Univ ...
.
Stormzy wore a
Union Jack
The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...
stab vest
A stab vest or stab proof vest is a reinforced piece of body armor, worn under or over other items of clothing, which is designed to resist knife attacks to the chest, back and sides. Stab vests are different from bulletproof vests, most of wh ...
designed by the artist
Banksy
Banksy is a pseudonymous England-based street artist, political activist and film director whose real name and identity remain unconfirmed and the subject of speculation. Active since the 1990s, his satirical street art and subversive epigram ...
, which was widely perceived as a comment on the
rise in knife crime in London.
He has reached number one on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
four times; firstly as part of "Artists for Grenfell" on 23 June 2017 with "
Bridge Over Troubled Water", secondly with his own solo single "
Vossi Bop
"Vossi Bop" is a song by British rapper Stormzy. It was released as a single on 25 April 2019 through #Merky and Atlantic Records as the lead single from his second studio album, '' Heavy Is the Head''. The music video was also released the same d ...
", which debuted at number one upon its entry, ahead of "
Me!
"Me!" (stylized in all caps) is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift featuring American singer Brendon Urie of Panic! at the Disco. It was released on April 26, 2019, through Republic Records, as Swift's first single after ...
" by
Taylor Swift
Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bor ...
featuring
Brendon Urie
Brendon Boyd Urie (born April 12, 1987) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who is best known as the lead vocalist, primary songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist of Panic! at the Disco, of which he is the only remaining member.
In ...
by some 500 combined sales, thirdly with his collaboration with
Burna Boy
Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu (born 2 July 1991), known professionally as Burna Boy, is a Nigerian singer, songwriter and record producer. He rose to stardom in 2012 after releasing "Like to Party", the lead single from his debut studio album, '' L.I ...
and
Ed Sheeran
Edward Christopher Sheeran (; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently r ...
, "
Own It
"Own It" is a song by English rapper Stormzy featuring English singer Ed Sheeran and Nigerian singer Burna Boy, released on 22 November 2019 through #Merky and Atlantic Records as the fourth single from Stormzy's second studio album, '' Heavy ...
" and fourthly with as a featured artist on the
Ed Sheeran
Edward Christopher Sheeran (; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently r ...
single "
Take Me Back to London
"Take Me Back to London" is a song by British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran featuring British rapper Stormzy. It was released through Asylum and Atlantic Records as the final single from the former's compilation album '' No.6 Collaborations Proj ...
". Stormzy later released the singles "
Crown
A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...
", "
Sounds of the Skeng
"Sounds of the Skeng" is a song by English rapper Stormzy, released on 6 September 2019.
Promotion
Stormzy revealed the song on 29 August 2019, posting a picture with the caption "You lot think you're fucking funny yeah kool 🥊 6/9/19 #SoundsOfT ...
" and "
Wiley Flow
"Wiley Flow" is a song by English rapper Stormzy, released on 15 September 2019 through #Merky and Atlantic Records as the third single from his second studio album, '' Heavy Is the Head''. The song is a homage to British grime MC Wiley that int ...
", before announcing his second album, ''
Heavy Is the Head'', for release on 13 December 2019.
In the 2020 action-adventure game ''
Watch Dogs: Legion'', Stormzy appears as a fictionalized version of himself, offering a mission in which his character plays the track "Rainfall" from ''Heavy is the Head.'' The video for ''Rainfall'' appears in the mission, showing Stormzy's motion capture performance over locations, graphics, and the fictionalized future London setting of the game. Stormzy was recognised for both his contributions to music and his activism, landing him at number 5 in the Top 10 of the annual
Powerlist
The ''Powerlist'' is a list of the 100 most influential people of African or African Caribbean heritage in the United Kingdom. The list is updated annually and has been published in book format by Powerful Media since 2007. The ''Powerlist'' is ...
in 2020, with an estimated net worth of £20 million in 2020. ''Heavy is the Head'' was shortlisted for the
Mercury Prize
The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album released in the United Kingdom by a British or Irish act. It was created by Jon Webster and Robert Chandler in association with the B ...
2020. This was the second nomination in his career. In the ''
Powerlist 2021'' he ranked as the third most influential Black Briton, for his advocacy against racial injustice and philanthropy, pledging £10 million to charities
2022–present: ''This Is What I Mean''
Stormzy released the single "
Mel Made Me Do It
"Mel Made Me Do It" is a song by English rapper Stormzy, released as a single on 23 September 2022 through 0207 Def Jam and #Merky. It contains guest appearances from Jamaican musician Stylo G and English actress Michaela Coel. The song, Stormzy' ...
" on 23 September 2022, his first solo single since 2020. Its music video included a variety of cameos from
Usain Bolt
Usain St. Leo Bolt, , (; born 21 August 1986) is a retired Jamaican sprinter, widely considered to be the greatest sprinter of all time. He is the world record holder in the 100 metres, 200 metres, and 4 × 100 metres relay.
An eight- ...
and
Louis Theroux
Louis Sebastian Theroux (; born 20 May 1970) is a British-American documentarian, journalist, broadcaster, and author. He has received two British Academy Television Awards and a Royal Television Society Television Award.
After graduating fro ...
, among others. He returned to social media on 12 October 2022 to announce his third album ''
This Is What I Mean
''This Is What I Mean'' is the third studio album by British rapper Stormzy, released through #Merky and 0207 Def Jam on 25 November 2022. It follows Stormzy's 2019 album '' Heavy Is the Head'', and was preceded by the lead single "Hide & Seek" a ...
'', which was recorded on
Osea Island
Osea Island ( oe, Ōsgȳþes īeg, "Osyth's island"), formerly also Osey, is an inhabited island in the estuary of the River Blackwater, Essex, East England. It is approximately in size and is connected to the north bank of the river by a cau ...
in England. It was released on 25 November 2022.
The first single was titled "Hide & Seek" on 14 October 2022.
Style
Stormzy describes himself as "a child of grime" influenced by the likes of
Lethal Bizzle
Maxwell Owusu Ansah (born 14 September 1984), known by his stage name Lethal Bizzle, is a British rapper from Walthamstow, London, of Ghanaian origin. He emerged in 2002 as a grime MC as part of More Fire Crew, with their grime single "Oi!" ch ...
,
Bruza
Shaun Barker, known by the stage name Bruza, is a British grime MC and rapper from Walthamstow, East London.
Music career
He started his career in 1992 as a member of pop/R&B boy band Chaos who were discovered by Simon Cowell, later becom ...
,
D Double E
Darren Dixon (born 19 January 1980), known professionally as D Double E, is a British grime MC, DJ and record producer from Forest Gate, East London. He performs both as a solo artist and as a member of the grime duo Newham Generals.
Career
D ...
and Flirta D, but also cites
R&B singers such as
Frank Ocean
Christopher Francis "Frank" Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper. His works are noted by music critics for featuring avant-garde styles and introspective, elliptical lyrics. Ocean ...
and
Lauryn Hill
Lauryn Noelle Hill (born May 26, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. She is often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, as well as being one of the most influential musicians of her generation. ...
as influences on his sound.
Political activism
In May 2016, Stormzy endorsed
Labour Party leader
Jeremy Corbyn
Jeremy Bernard Corbyn (; born 26 May 1949) is a British politician who served as Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party from 2015 to 2020. On the political left of the Labour Party, Corbyn describes himself as a socialist ...
. In an interview with the newspaper ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', he spoke of his admiration for Corbyn's activism.
On 24 June 2017, Stormzy performed a chant of "Oh, Jeremy Corbyn" to the tune of
The White Stripes
The White Stripes were an American rock duo from Detroit formed in 1997. The group consisted of Jack White (songwriter, vocals, guitar, piano, and mandolin) and Meg White (drums and vocals). After releasing several singles and three albums with ...
' "
Seven Nation Army
"Seven Nation Army" is a song by American rock duo the White Stripes. It is the opening track on their fourth studio album, ''Elephant'' (2003). V2 Records released the song to American alternative radio on February 17, 2003, as the lead single f ...
" on the Other Stage at the
Glastonbury Festival
Glastonbury Festival (formally Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts and known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts that takes place in Pilton, Somerset, England. In addition to contemp ...
. He also performed a rap he had written for the victims of the
Grenfell Tower fire
On 14 June 2017, a high-rise fire broke out in the 24-storey Grenfell Tower block of flats in North Kensington, West London, at 00:54 BST and burned for 60 hours. 72 people died, two later in hospital, with more than 70 injured and 223 escapin ...
, telling the festivalgoers to demand that the authorities "tell the... truth" and for the "
Government
A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state.
In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...
to be held accountable". In September of that year, after being presented with the Solo Artist of the Year award by Corbyn at the ''
GQ'' Men of the Year Awards,
Stormzy called
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
Theresa May
Theresa Mary May, Lady May (; née Brasier; born 1 October 1956) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2016 to 2019. She previously served in David Cameron's cab ...
a "
paigon", a
Jamaican Patois
Jamaican Patois (; locally rendered Patwah and called Jamaican Creole by linguists) is an English-based creole language with West African influences, spoken primarily in Jamaica and among the Jamaican diaspora. A majority of the non-English wo ...
word used to describe an untrustworthy person.
On 21 February 2018, Stormzy performed a freestyle at the
Brit Awards
The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...
, calling out May for her inaction in the aftermath of the Grenfell Tower fire the previous year.
The following day,
10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street in London, also known colloquially in the United Kingdom as Number 10, is the official residence and executive office of the first lord of the treasury, usually, by convention, the prime minister of the United Kingdom. Along wi ...
issued a statement defending the Prime Minister.
In November 2019, along with other musicians, Stormzy endorsed Corbyn in the
2019 UK general election with a call to end austerity. He also said "people led change can be possible under a Jeremy Corbyn Labour government".
He described the Labour leader as "the first man in a position of power who is committed to giving the power back to the people" and branded
Boris Johnson
Alexander Boris de Pfeffel Johnson (; born 19 June 1964) is a British politician, writer and journalist who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2019 to 2022. He previously served as F ...
"a sinister man".
In the aftermath of the
George Floyd protests
The George Floyd protests were a series of protests and civil unrest against police brutality and racism that began in Minneapolis on May 26, 2020, and largely took place during 2020. The civil unrest and protests began as part of internati ...
, Stormzy issued a statement via his label, stating that he plans to donate £1 million a year for 10 years to charities, organisations and movements that are committed to fight
racial inequality
Social inequality occurs when resources in a given society are distributed unevenly, typically through norms of allocation, that engender specific patterns along lines of socially defined categories of persons. It posses and creates gender c ...
,
justice reform and
black empowerment in the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
.
In an interview with the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
, he said: "Black people have been playing on an uneven field for far too long and this pledge is a continuation in the fight to finally try and even it".