JORJA SMITH
The rising R&B singer talks self-love, Stormzy and Drake
BACK IN 2O16, DRAKE DM’D JORJA
SMITH ON INSTAGRAM, asking her to feature on his album More Life. Since then, she’s become the biggest thing in British music right now. She wrote her first song from her bedroom in her home town of Walsall. ‘It was about choosing the right path in life and being aware of the consequences – pretty deep for an 11-year-old,’ she laughs. Ten years on and her deep lyrics have led to critical acclaim. Her first SoundCloud upload, Blue Lights, went viral, winning over starry fans including Dizzee Rascal and Stormzy; her debut album
Lost & Found peaked at number three in the charts and she became the first unsigned artist to win the Brits Critics’ Choice Award earlier this year. She blends her old-soul voice with a mixture of hip-hop and R&B vibes in homage to her biggest influences: ‘People say I’m like the child of Amy Winehouse and Rihanna. I love my mum, but I certainly wouldn’t mind having those two as my mothers.’
1. HER MUSIC HAS A MESSAGE… ‘My songs are about social issues [her song Blue Lights was played at a Black Lives Matter march, and Beauty For Little Fools is about challenging current beauty standards]. When things are going on in the world, I think it’s important to touch on them, because as a musician, you can make people listen. As soon as people press play, you’ve got their attention.’
2. …AND HER INFLUENCES ARE ALWAYS
ON HER MIND ‘I have dreams about Amy Winehouse. I’ve always looked up to her as an artist. Growing up, I didn’t read the newspaper or watch the news, so my image of her was never tainted by the media. I had a dream where she messaged me to say, “Can I post the video of you and me on my Instagram?” I don’t know what the video was of, but [in the dream] I just replied, “Oh my God, yes!”’
3. SHE ENJOYS A
GOOD BOOK ‘I’m currently reading
Malcom X’s autobiography. I used to take a lot of inspiration from literature for my songs when I was at school. My song Beautiful Little Fools directly references The Great Gatsby, and I’ve missed picking up quotes and putting them into my songs like that.’
4. FINDING SELF-LOVE WAS A PROCESS
‘I love my curly hair, but it’s taken time. My mum is white, and she’d always tell me how beautiful my hair is, but I wanted it to be straight. She put up pictures of beautiful black women with afros in the bathroom next to the mirror, but I didn’t see any of that. And at school, I wanted to be skinny and not have lips, because all my friends were white and slim. I need to love myself more, but it’s difficult.’ 5. SHE RUNS EVERYTHING PAST HER DAD… ‘My dad used to be in a band, so I always keep him in the loop. He gives me ideas and even has credits on my songs. At the end of
Teenage Fantasy, when it says, “There’s no need to rush, take your time, life’s a big ol’ ride, sit back and enjoy the vibe” – that was my dad!’
6. …BUT THE BEST ADVICE SHE’S RECEIVED
CAME FROM GRIME’S FINEST ‘Stormzy gives the best advice. We wrote [our duet] Let Me
Down in 2O16 and he said, “As long as you love what you’re doing, that’s all that matters.” So that’s how I look at things now.’ Jorja Smith features on The ELLE LIST 2O18, produced in association with The Outnet
JORJA SMITH
ELLE LIST SHE MAY BE ONE of the BIGGEST NEW NAMES in MUSIC, BUT HER SOULFUL SOUND and DEEPLY PERSONAL LYRICS REVEAL A MATURITY BEYOND her 21 YEARS. OLIVE POMETSEY MEETS THE WOMAN BEHIND THAT VOICE