CHLØE LØUISE 

Michael Omari, better known as his stage name Stormzy, has been an artist under the grime category since 2010. Grime is a genre of music emerged in London in the early 2000’s, drawing influence from dancehall, reggae and hip-hop. The unconventional rhythms and lyrics revolving around lifelike representations of urban life became the lifeblood of London’s youth culture, particularly for kids from black, working class backgrounds.

 

Describing himself as “a child of grime” Stormzy was part of the first generation to grow up with grime, influenced by the likes of Wiley and Skepta. Now at just 23, the Croydon MC drawn mainstream attention has he became the first grime artist to top the UK albums chart; on his own independent label.

 

Tracks such as “Know Me From” and the freestyle “Shut Up” helped establish Stormzy in the music world, along with his “Wicked Skengman series of freestyles over classic grime beats. However, it appears that with his debut album Gang Signs & Prayer, Stormzy has entailed the likes of God into his music, reciting inspiring messages to his listeners.

 

Gang Signs & Prayer (GSAP) was released February 2nd 2017 after a years break from social media. Stormzy returned to social media via a series of campaigns revealing the hashtag #GSAP 24.02, along with one sentence quotes from the lyrics of his songs and his full album cover, displayed on billboards across London. The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums chart just two weeks later.

 

Within the album, Stormzy reveals himself more than ever before. The juxtaposing images at the heart of the album title says its all, depicting the struggle of faith and life. ‘Gang’, focuses on the temptation to react to/on a situation, while ‘Prayer’ is his spiritual side, relying on God to deal with the situation rather than getting himself into gang related disputes. It is also clear that the dark album art references the religious image of The Last Supper. "It's like a battle with two demons inside of you. Am I gonna make the right decision? Am I gonna make the wrong decision?" 

 

Following the release of his album, Stormzy released a sharp and harrowing short film which conveyed a message to young people enabling them to see that they have control over their own destinies, despite external barriers to life. The rapper wanted to ‘part’ from the typical ‘good kid gone bad’ narrative, relying heavily on stereotypes without focusing on the deeper social aspects of life.

 

His introductory track ‘First Things First’ helps to set the tone of the album, covering many aspects of the rappers character in a compelling approach. Stormzy describes the complex nature and double life for many young British black men, with the lyric “we were doing road and doing church.”

 

Teaming up with East Londoners J Hus and Ghetts, the rebellious song on his album resembled his grime lifestyle, with the nostalgic ‘Bad Boys’, built around the unforgettable clash between Ghetts and Bashy. Stormzy continues to touch familiar territory with ‘Cold’ whilst delivering a powerful message to his young listeners; “All my young black kings rise up, man this is our year, and my young black queens right there.”

 

Post-album release, Stormzy announced how he was battling depression during his year away from the limelight. Many songs on his album, such as ‘Lay Me Bare’, ‘Blinded by Your Grace Pt.2’ and a song dedicated to his mother praying for him, ‘100 bags’. He openly demolishes the negative perceptions of mental illness throughout men in society, especially black men, speaking so frankly about his battle with his lyric “You was fighting with your girl, I was fighting my depression.”

 

Throughout ‘Blinded by Your Grace Pt.2’, Stormzy narrates his way through being grateful for God helping him over his depression, and thanking him for the way he is blinded ‘by his [Gods] grace’. He implies the ‘Gang Signs & Prayer’ message as he introduces himself in the song as “I’m Abigails yout [focusing on his gang-related background] but I’m Gods Son.”

 

Towards the end of the album, the artist produced two songs addressing his relationship with certain members of his family. On the positive aspect, ‘100 Bags’ focuses on the hardships that his mother and himself experienced throughout his upbringing, and her unconditional love. Whilst ‘Lay Me Bare’ symbolises the title, as Stormzy opens up about his fractured relationship with his father.

 

Overall, Gang Signs and Prayers is a beautifully structured album, and an all-round masterpiece, with the balance of prayer, rap and love. The rapper successfully breaks the stereotypes of youths growing up within London, displaying difficult upbringings and cultural backgrounds. The way in which he addresses mental illness in general, particularly amongst young black men, creates a positive message to his listeners, displaying a multi-dimensional black British man who goes against a simplified image that’s usually portrayed.

 

“No other artist has taken the traditional music business model of how to make, market, create, break, tour and monetise a new musical artists and flipped it on its head in the way Stormzy has in the last 24 months.”
 Pete Dalton, BBC Radio 1/1Xtra