Discussing Stormzy's Positioning In UK Rap Through His Latest Releases

"There’s a difference between doing music at 22 and when you’re about to turn 30,” Stormzy recently said in an interview for the cover of Dazed Magazine’s summer issue. “It’s the kind of peace and stability and stillness you can only get from maturity. You lose all the nervous shivers and the anxiety; you shake it off because now you’re a grown man coming into your skin.”

And this stillness and introspectiveness is something we have grown to appreciate as we listened to Stormzy’s third studio album This is What I Mean when it dropped. We saw someone who has shaped and has been shaped by the Grime scene completely move away from it.

It was an experiment with different sounds and drew from a wide range of influences and sounds, despite it being a risk it wasn't the first time that Stormzy has written and performed soulful ballads, or crooned on R&B-tinged beats or even embraced the Gospel spirit. It was the first time however, he dropped an album without any typical or obvious Grime track that you would play at the back of your classroom.

The move lead to a mixed review of criticism and delight as Stormzy fully embraced intimacy and vulnerability, whilst other fans wanted street rap and aggressive delivery. A theme that was revised repeatedly by the South Londoner was the need for space.

That newfound artistic freedom found in his personal maturity has led to a unique album, however, the multi-award-winning artist and twice Mercure Prize nominee recently dropped successively over a two-week period, one after another.

On ‘Toxic Traits’ the South London rapper flows over an atmospheric instrumental, produced by Santan Dave. 808 drums and violin strings combine.

Stormzy's approach is causal and relaxed, subtly flexing his wealth and success before the accompanying video cuts to Fredo sitting down in a therapy session with TV figure Alison Hammond.

Hailing from West London rapper Fredo comes out of the collab further enhancing his reputation as he demonstrates his skillset to a wider audience.

The video also portrays cultural moments that have historical significance that details the black experience. These images include Muhammed Ali’s 1968 Esquire Magazine cover and Kehinde Wiley’s prominent painting, ‘A Ship Of Fools’.

Speaking on the visual, director Femi stated “After listening to the lyrics, I wanted to have fun with this video. I liked the idea of bringing a renaissance-style painting to life, whilst still feeling grounded in the world of Stormzy.

Whilst ‘Toxic Traits’ had people questioning Stomzy’s appeal to the younger generation as it didn’t debut in the number 1 spot, his second single ‘Longevity Flow’ was a timely reminder that Stomzy still has the ability to simultaneously occupy multiple spaces.

Taking it back to the essence of pure rap ‘Longevity’ feels different to ‘Toxic Traits’, there’s a sharpness to it curtsey from the looped electric guitar rift and the spiritual sample that Stormzy flows on.

There are no hooks, no chorus or melody. It’s real vintage rap and a rare occurrence to experience Stomzy in a space like this that is nostalgic to his freestyling days, drawing from the essence. It’s fun, playful and greazy.

He raps “I was the flavour of the month, now I’m flavour of the decade/getting in your head like a headache/ on your neck like a love bite/skatty like a pub fight.”

The video was a combination of footage shot across multiple London locations and by long-time Creative Director, Zebie and made up of achieve material taken over the course of last year and features the likes of Tom Cruise, Dave, and Lewis Hamilton to name a few.

If anything the double release proves that Stormzy is occupying a space that only a few artists exist in, and after giving his older fans what they want he's shown that he can cater to a wide audience without compromising the art.

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