Calm Stormzy
NO DRAMA FOR STAR IN STUDIO
STORMZY has banned girls and booze from the recording studio and reckons he’s ended the cliche of reckless rappers.
In fact the star, back with ace new album, This Is What I Mean sometimes doesn’t even make music there.
Stormzy revealed: “I find with rappers, there’s a stigma that you’re in the studio with 10,000 girls and alcohol and all sorts.
“There’s a pole in the middle where people are pole dancing.
“But no, there’s just me my brother – who is also my cameraman – my engineers, producer, my cousin. Then we are just very like chill, fun and focused.”
Stormzy’s work day starts at “three or four o’clock” then he’s home by 10pm because he “needs to sleep”.
He explained: “I’ve been to people’s studios and like, ‘Whoa this is such a vibe.’ If you walked into mine, you might not even think we are musicians.
“We are just chilled. A lot of the time we aren’t making music – we just chat about music.
“We do a lot of talking. Before I start anything, I like to feel comfortable, so a lot of chatting for hours. We might even go home after that.”
Stormzy’s new LP is surprisingly mellow and soulful, allowing other voices to shine.
Speaking on BBC Radio 6 Music, he said: “This time round I wanted to make art from an intromaybe spective place, rather than consuming around me.
“This album is nothing to do with audience or external distractions. You need to be still and hear yourself think. Your Picassos or Basquiats – they made art from a place within and that dictated what went on in the world.”
The hip-hop star calls his headline Glastonbury performance his “defining moment”, adding: “After Glasto it allowed me to redefine ambition and what success is because I’d hit a pinnacle.
“If we are talking accolades, achievements, ‘kaboom’ – you’ve ticked it. After that what now? It made me rehone hunger and ambition.”