Stormzy

Stormzy
Stormzy performing in 2019
Born
Michael Ebenezer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr.

(1993-07-26) 26 July 1993 (age 30)
London, England
Other namesWicked Skengman
The Problem
Stiff Chocolate[1]
Occupations
  • Rapper
  • singer
  • songwriter
WorksDiscography
AwardsFull list
Musical career
OriginNorbury, London, England[2]
Genres
Years active2010–present
Labels
Websitestormzy.com

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 beats.[4][5] Stormzy's song "Shut Up", which was initially released as a freestyle on YouTube, became popular and peaked at number eight on the UK Singles Chart after he launched a campaign to reach Christmas number one.[6]

Stormzy won Best Grime Act at the 2014 and 2015 MOBO Awards and was named as an artist to look out for in the BBC's Sound of 2015 list.[7][4] His debut album, Gang Signs & Prayer (2017), was the first grime album to reach number one on the UK Albums Chart and won British Album of the Year at the 2018 Brit Awards.[8] In 2019, Stormzy achieved his first UK number-one single with "Vossi Bop" and became the first black British rapper to headline the Glastonbury Festival; where he wore a Union Jack stab vest designed by Banksy, in light of the rise in knife crime in London.[9]

His second album, Heavy Is the Head, was released on 13 December 2019.[10] On 22 September 2022, Stormzy released the single "Mel Made Me Do It" accompanied by an 11-minute music video featuring popular artists, actors and sports figures such as Usain Bolt and José Mourinho.[11][12] His third album, This Is What I Mean, was released on Def Jam on 25 November 2022.[13]

  1. ^ "Stormzy has many god-given nicknames". Capital Xtra. Archived from the original on 29 March 2017. Retrieved 28 March 2017.
  2. ^ Reni Eddo-Lodge (10 October 2019). "'It's My Purpose to Shine a Light Where I Can.' How Rapper Stormzy Is Championing Black British Culture". Time. Archived from the original on 11 October 2019. Retrieved 11 October 2019.
  3. ^ McKenna, John. "What Is The Grace That Stormzy's Rapping About? - Articles - Catholic Charismatic Renewal". Ccr.org.uk. Archived from the original on 14 December 2019. Retrieved 20 December 2019.
  4. ^ a b "BBC Music – BBC Sound of, 2015 – Stormzy". BBC. Archived from the original on 4 December 2014. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference rwdinterview was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Beaumont-Thomas, Ben (14 December 2015). "Grime MC Stormzy launches campaign for Christmas No 1". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 3 February 2017. Retrieved 6 February 2017.
  7. ^ Ellis-Petersen, Hannah (23 October 2014). "Mobo awards 2014: Sam Smith takes home four prizes". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 6 February 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2016.
  8. ^ Hancox, Dan (23 February 2018). "What Stormzy's Big Win at the Brits Means for Grime in the U.K. (And What the Grammys Could Learn From It)". Billboard. Archived from the original on 25 December 2020. Retrieved 21 May 2020.
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Sky was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Hussey, Allison; Matthew Strauss (19 November 2019). "Stormzy Details New Album Heavy Is the Head". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 20 November 2019. Retrieved 20 November 2019.
  11. ^ "Stormzy returns with huge new single 'Mel Made Me Do It'". GRM Daily. 22 September 2022. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  12. ^ Stroud, James (22 September 2022). "Jose Mourinho makes shock appearance in Stormzy's new music video & it's absolutely incredible". GiveMeSport. Retrieved 22 September 2022.
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference nme1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).