WORDS AND IMAGES BY DESH KAPUR
‘As I Looked Around The Handheld Lights On Phones, Maybe The Odd Lighter, Illuminated The Arena And It Was Breath-Taking’
Stormzy Stormzy as I drove to Liverpool M&S Bank Arena, it kept rattling round my head. When it comes to British artists there is no bigger. When it comes to Grime, there is no bigger.
Stormzy, born Michael Ebenezer Kwadjo Omari Owuo, his star shines so brightly as he is rapidly becoming a cultural figurehead; a spokesperson for the UK’s disenfranchised youth.
The winner of 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. 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. In 2019, Stormzy achieved his first UK number-one single with “Vossi Bop” and his headline appearance at the 2019 Glastonbury Festival was widely praised. He wore a Union Jack stab vest designed by Banksy, to raise awareness of the rise in knife crime in London. His second album, Heavy Is the Head, was released on 13 December 2019 giving Stromzy is second UK number 1 album.
So here we were here to celebrate the release of “Heavy Is The Head” a show that was two years in the making. Suddenly there was a barrage of strobes, flashing lights as smoke filled the stage. I was looking for the main man, camera to my eye, but couldn’t spot him. By now I could hear his vocals kick in and he was still nowhere to be seen. I looked up and there he was, being lowered down on a window cleaners gurney, and the roars of recognition from an adoring crowd filled the stadium in unison. Thousands of phones were raised in the air. Now I am normally an advocate for NO phones at gigs – let’s all look up, live in the moment! But I have to say, thousands of phone lights lighting up the arena did look amazing.
The show opened up with three of his most in-your-face tracks ‘Big Michael’, ‘Audacity’ and ‘Know Me From’. Stormzy spat the lyrics with hard, fierce intensity… ‘That’s five thousand capacity, five thousand capacity, then spread that over the UK and get back to me’. By now, there were fireworks going off and the crowd was in a frenzy.
The stage set was amazing, a forked catwalk, video screens playing a salvo of symbolism-driven visuals, slave chains and thorny crown being the most prominent. Put together by the teams behind Beyoncé’s historic Coachella set and Stormzy’s 2019 Glastonbury performance, big and bold with a no-short-cuts-taken light show that reaffirms his status as the world’s biggest Grime MC.
After about half a dozen songs, the pace changed. It slowed, introducing a gospel-soul section and a full live band with backing singers.
And as the first notes of ‘Crown’ echoed through the arena, with the Shakespearian line, “Uneasy is the head that wears the crown”, from Henry the Fourth Part 2, a track that sees the rapper trying to come to terms with his place upon the throne. As I looked around the handheld lights on phones, maybe the odd lighter, illuminated the arena and it was breath-taking. Approx. 10,000 people singing along and all the hairs on the back of my neck were standing up. Incredible.
Throughout the gig, Stormzy expressed how grateful he was to his fans with the raising of his hands in the universal sign for Namaste – ‘The light in me honours the light in you’ – he thanked the audience for hanging on to their tickets for two years!!
So as the set kicked back into faster, harder and the place was a sea of dancing and moving bodies, I spotted Stromzy’s long time DJ and hype man, silhouetted up high behind him, big ups to DJ Tiiny.
The night ended with Stormzy’s first number one single ‘Vossi Bop’, everyone happy and exhausted. What a gig, what a man what a night!
Stormzy is a cultural force, a true cross-over star. You can see that by just looking around the arena, packed with fans of this charismatic artist; young and old, all equally blissed out. He slides between grime, R&B, gospel, hard rap and he can sing too. Even more than that there is a true humanity to his music. Amazing gig, by a true icon of this generation. Not too bad for a lad from London who is still only 28.
SET LIST
1/ BIG MICHAEL
2/ AUDACITY
3/ KNOW ME FROM
4/ COLD
5/ HANDSOME
6/ FIRST THINGS
7/ CROWN
8/ SUPERHEROES
9/ OWN IT
10/ DO BETTER
11/ REAL LIFE (burna Boy Cover)
12/ ONE SECOND
13/ CIGARETTES & CUSH
14/ RACHAEL’S LITTLE BROTHER
15/ LESSONS
16/ WILEY FLOW
17/ CLASH
18/ BIG FOR YOUR BOOTS
19/ SHUT UP
20/ BLINDED BY YOUR GRACE
21/ VOSSI BOP
FOLLOW STORMZY
My life is a soundtrack, i track my life through music, photography is my passion, my escape, my expression. Without both i have pieces missing, thankfully i’m blessed and get to combine both.
Born in Manchester, lived in Australia for 22 years where i was heavily involved in the Australian Music Industry, firstly in bands (Singer) and then managing bands (all original), I moved back to the UK, Wales specifically 10 years ago and married my childhood sweetheart and life is good.
