Next
Generation
Leaders
10 rising stars who are changing the world
in politics, sports, fashion and more
Michael Omari, 26,
better known as
Stormzy, has soared
to fame as Britain
begins to embrace
grime music with
open arms
PHOTOGRAPH BY
DA N WI LTONMidMorning in a leafy suburb on
the outskirts of southwest London, and
Stormzy is feeding Enzo. The 26-year-old
rapper bought the Rottweiler a year ago,
when soaring fame made personal secu-
rity a necessity that a very big dog could
address while also giving a new celebrity
a chance at staying grounded.
Michael Omari, better known as
Storm zy, is one of Britain’s most suc-
cessful musicians and an ambassador for
grime, a genre of music that emerged from
the streets of multicultural London in the
early 2000s and that is characterized by
frenetic urgency. In 2017, an academic
from the University of Westminster said it
was on track to be “as disruptive and pow-
erful as punk.” The genre’s most famous
songs hurtle by at 140 beats per minute,
as much electronic music as hip-hop.
Stormzy’s rise to fame has been almost
as lightning-fast. In the past two years he
has stacked up awards, enjoyed a No. 1
album, and in June became the first-ever
British rapper to headline Glastonbury,
one of the world’s largest music festivals.
His duet with Ed Sheeran, “Take Me Back
to London,” topped the British singles
charts for five weeks this autumn.
When we meet in his home, Stormzy is
initially a little distracted by Enzo, but he
relaxes once the interview gets going. He
seems in a philosophical mood. Of head-
lining Glastonbury, he says, “For the first
time ever in my life, maybe in my career,
I’ve achieved something and it’s given me
perfect peace.”
Stormzy grew up in Norbury in south-
west London. As a teenager, he absorbed
grime culture by watching Channel U—
the now defunct British satellite chan-
nel dedicated to U.K. hip-hop and
grime—and rapping with his friends.
He achieved exemplary exam grades inStormzy
Ambassador for grime
By Reni Eddo-Lodge/London