NAMESBLISS

Officially active since 2018, the 28-year-old artist provides an important counterweight to the darker, more violent themes which entice many listeners towards UK rap and drill. Alongside a music career which is steadily gathering pace, he works in a leadership role at an East London creative college, mentoring vulnerable young people. His powerful November EP ‘Light Of Mine’ speaks to the mountains those young people are expected to overcome just to survive, and the overworked, undervalued professionals who support them on their ascent. Musically it draws on everything from drill, grime and UK garage to jazz, wrapping its key messages into some seriously banging sonics.