This morning I woke to the news that my country had elected a prime minister who called black people ‘piccaninnies’ with ‘watermelon smiles’ and confessed that the site of a ‘bunch of black kids’ made him ‘turn a hair’.
The atmosphere is bleak and emotions are running extremely high. This is why Stormzy’s Heavy Is The Head, coincidentally also released today, is one of the most important albums of this year.
Releasing an album in the same week as a general election is always risky, but as it happens, the timing could not have been better. This album will ring in the ears of black Brits for years to come as we use it for our protest songs.
From Love Island’s winner Amber Rose Gill to Little Mix’s Jade Thirlwall, celebrities from across the board came out during this election campaign to remind people to vote Labour. Despite the polls and the political chatter, on the ground, things felt hopeful for the left.
Stormzy himself has been particularly vocal about this election and about the atrocities committed by the government to Grenfell residents. Using his performance at Glastonbury to make a statement, Stormzy got nearly 100,000 people to sing ‘f*ck Boris’ in unison.
So it’s no surprise that this album is nothing short of political; it’s a manifesto in and of itself, speaking to the racism faced by black people.
Stormzy uses this album to speak to his own fears and anxieties for young black men and women globally. ‘Hoody up and send a prayer up to Trayvon’ Stormzy raps on Rainfall, reminding us of how interlinked the struggles are between African Americans and black Brits. On Superheros, he says: ‘Young black king, don’t die on me / You my brother, you my keeper, I need you to keep an eye on me.’
H.I.T.H also speaks so clearly to our joyful collective experience as black Brits. From the 00s R&B/rap group Big Brovaz’s lyrics to Mary Mary references, this album is like a love letter to black British culture.
It also has an explicit message of encouragement for young black Brits: to not be weathered by the state of the nation, but fight back instead and remember how powerful they really are. On opening track Big Michael, Stormzy cries to us: ‘Put your arms down, put your crown up / You come a long way from playin’ pound up / You either motivate or go round up’.
As black Brits our identities are politicised – and in a way, everything we do becomes a statement. ‘Mummy always said if there’s a cause then I should fight for it / So, yeah, I understand, but I don’t think that I’m alright with it’, Stormzy tells us on the title song, Crown.
He, too, battles with the idea of having to be an activist simply because of his identity. However, he re-affirms his commitment to ‘do anything to help’.
The album also recognises that the church is a pillar of hope in the black community. It is where we continue traditions, raise families, build communities and celebrate together in the face of an unwelcoming society.
Stormzy takes us to church on tracks like Rainfall, which samples Mary Mary’s 1999 hit song Shackles and reinforces the need for us to retreat back to our communal spaces and keep our sights fixed on the bigger picture.
His commitment to his faith in the face of so much social injustice is admirable and gives us all hope.
He also preaches the importance of taking care of ourselves – a message we could all do well to remember in the face of today’s news. On Don’t Forget to Breathe, Stormzy sings a lullaby about the importance of rest in the pursuit of resistance: ‘And when you’re down and up, just hold on, please… Don’t forget to breathe.’
The political outlook right now is bleak and many of us are wondering if the country that we live in, where we hold and cherish our fondest memories, actually cares about us, or wants us here.
But Stormzy reminds us of how much we have already accomplished despite the barriers in our way. He makes reference to his publishing house Merky Books and the black British takeover of Elle Magazine.
‘I’m from the place where Michael Dapaah made a smash hit / Where you can be a rapper if you rap sick / They’re screamin’, What a flippin’ time to be a black Brit!’ he raps confidently, reminding us that even when the world is against us, we are absolutely able to create the world we want to see.
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