Following on from the successes of their 2021 programming, Soho House Group have announced the Spring line-up for their Soho Rising event format.
Supported by Bowers & Wilkins, the Soho Rising platform champions emerging talent by inviting upcoming artists to perform within the groupds House network.
Previous alumni include Clash favourites Arlo Parks, Holly Humberstone, Griff and Joy Crookes who performed for Soho Rising ahead of their respective BRIT and Mercury nominations landed.
“We made a very deliberate move three years ago to priortise emerging talent, as it positions us as a tastemaker, which aligns perfectly with our members. It also gives us longevity with the artist, so we can be a meaningful part of their journey for years to come.” Dom Chung, Head of Music at Soho House Group.
It’s that level of deliberation that makes for such a positive platform, the Spring line-up is bursting with emerging talent. Read more about the initiative over on the Soho House Group website here. Without further ado, pour yourself a Picante De La Case and let’s take a journey together through the soundscapes of Soho Rising’s Spring 2022 calendar of events…
Goya Gumbani, Friday 4th March @ White City House
New York born, London based rapper Goya Gumbani has been wandering for years, his trans-Atlantic travels accompanied by a search for his own sound.
New EP ‘Truth Be Sold’ marked the moment that Goya truly came into his own. Fusing left-field hip-hop elements with skittering electronics, his approach to the mic is both lucid and groundbreaking.
“It’s a kind of message that I’m taking back home to my foundations,” he explains. “Try to unlearn what isn’t important. Nothing that we’re taught from the jump is important, matters as much as time.”
A dazzling watch. Read CLASH’s recent interview here to dig deeper on the sound.
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Berwyn, Tuesday 29th March, 180 House
Once a star begins to form, it relies on a perfect balance of gravity, heat and pressure to survive. Fundamentally, the star will not materialise without the right amount of heat to trigger the essential reaction. It comes as no surprise then, that Berwyn has chosen to conceptualise the beginning of his music career with the solar system and its inhabitants.
Like the stars his grandmother taught him about when growing up, he’s blazed his way through the heat of turbulence and insecurity: the uncertain immigration status that dogged his childhood, and saw his dreams of attending university to study medicine cut short; the period of homelessness which followed, finding him writing songs for debut mixtape ‘DEMOTAPE / VEGA’ in his car, or his plan to relocate to Trinidad – where he was born – should his last-ditch music attempts fail.
Today, Berwyn has managed to not only survive, but thrive – but that notion of a solitary object in the night sky remains. “Even when I first titled ‘VEGA’, I always had the idea of a trilogy of tapes based around astrology in the back of my mind. It’s something I grew up with as my grandmother was really into horoscopes and astrology, and I always had a curious mind… so I just followed it!”
Read CLASH’s recent interview here to dig deeper on the sound.
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Priya Ragu, Thursday 31st March, Shoreditch House
Priya’s mixtape ‘damnshestamil’ was released earlier this month. After a year of working on it, it feels “amazing” to finally have it out for listeners to enjoy. “It is incredibly fulfilling to get my first project out into the world and to see everyone reacting to it in such a positive way. It’s taken a while to put it out there so it’s almost extra special,” Priya enthuses.
Priya Ragu’s sound is so distinct and unique that it has developed an entire genre of its own and it’s called ‘raguwavy’. “‘Raguwavy’ is all about the fusion of the different influences me and Japhna [Priya’s brother and producer] grew up with. This includes Tamil folk, R&B, hip-hop and other sounds that don’t even really fit into a genre.”
Her heart and soul goes into her work so sharing it with fans is undeniably a highlight of the creative process. “It’s like giving a piece of myself to the world through my music. I think that my fans really understand my music and perceive it the way that I feel it. It’s so special to be able to connect with people in this way,” she says.
Read CLASH’s recent interview here to dig deeper on the sound.
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Jords, Friday 1st April, White City House
Jords brings his heart-rending, silky smooth hybrid of hip-hop and R&B to the stage.
An artist who has garnered astonishingly widespread acclaim from the likes of Annie Mac, DJ Target, CLASH and more over the years with his earnest poetry.
His new music continues to blend slow-jams and old school beats, while also nodding to his love of soul-filled dance music.
Jords’ ambitious live set unfurls with BVs, live horns, and a full band nothing is spared, before the wordsmith bounds onstage to a hero’s welcome.
The front of the crowd is usually packed with friends and long-time supporters, while a hearty throng at the back surrounds the London artist’s mother – expect a home-town show in every respect.
Read our recent features here to dig deeper on the sound.
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Willow Kayne, Thursday 7th April, Shoreditch House
Willow is a Gen Z talent like no other, linking together huge opposing forces, creating her own potent brand of rebel-pop. Blazing her very own trail, upending convention through melding together differing sounds. The lush, 90s inspired soundscapes of recent singles lean on nostalgic impulses, but her punk-like disregard for convention is sheer pop futurism.
The alt-pop trailblazer released new EP ‘Playground Antics’ on February 1st. Working continuously on new material, the projects brings us a release with real breadth. She comments… “This first project has been in the works for almost a year now, and the name ‘Playground Antics’ seemed to be the perfect fit. The project revolves around my life in the past year, and the social changes that have taken place in it.”
“When I began pursuing music as a career, I started noticing how some peoples’ behaviour around me had changed, and was reminiscent of the bickering that would take place in the playground. It’s a little nod to my childhood, looking at the underwhelming adult world through the perspective of a young Willow. I CAN’T WAIT FOR YOU GUYS TO HEAR IT ALLLLL. My first EP, who would have thought huh?”
Revisit CLASH’s recent features here to dig deeper on the sound.
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Rachel Chinouriri, Thursday 14th April, Soho Farmhouse
Each new song from Rachel seems to inhabit a world of its own, sculpting a unique sonic palette to reflect her emotions.
Her recent single ‘All I Ever Asked’ dips into soft-rock territory, reminiscent of those early 80s Fleetwood Mac bangers viewed from a 2k22 perspective. A skewed take on the format, the glossy melodies are kept a little bit raw in the production, while her heavenly vocal touches on the sublime. A song about empathy, ‘All I Ever Asked’ is about asserting your self-worth, and learning to take that from the world.
Rachel comments… “All I Ever Asked’ was inspired by a breakup my friend was going through and it made me reflect on a similar situation I was going through too. The feeling of asking someone you love to respect you in the simplest form and realising it’s the bare minimum. It’s also about realising your own worth and not settling for someone who cannot be what you need.”
Revisit CLASH’s recent features here to dig deeper on the sound.
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Lex Amor, Thursday 5th May, Shoreditch House
Next up, North London based rapper, producer, DJ and radio presenter Lex Amor, is set to stun.
Lex seems to experience life on a very intimate level. An artist whose work is both intricate and direct, her creative dynamic fuses together disparate underground strands to find soulful expression.
Following her incredible debut mixtape Government Tropicana, the rising emcee has continued to cement her space as one of the UK’s leading new gen rappers.
Garnering widespread attention with her poetic bars and sharp delivery layered upon melodic hip-hop beats.
Revisit CLASH’s recent features here to dig deeper on the sound.
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Gabriels, Thursday 10th May, 180 House
LA soul outfit Gabriels debut EP became a word-of-mouth sensation, propelled by the extraordinary single ‘Love And Hate In A Different Time’.
The band touched down in London late last year for a string of completely sold out shows that pushed Gabriels to another level.
Previewing new material, singer Jacob Lusk’s incredible voice indicates that there’s much, much more to come.
New EP ‘Bloodline’ was released on December 3rd, and the title track is soothing and unsettling in equal measure, it’s a gorgeous listen.
Revist CLASH’s recent features here to dig deeper on the sound.
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Crystale, Thursday 12th May, Little Beach House Brighton
Crystal Murray has the world at her feet. She effortlessly melds together neo-soul, electronics, and jazz to produce something fantastically enticing.
Still only 20 years old, it sometimes feels as though Crystal Murray’s experiences – and her assured touch – vastly out-weigh her age.
Debut EP ‘I Was Wrong’ followed a series of storming singles, each one feeling like a true aesthetic statement.
Musically it’s a mesh of contradictions, melding together Chicago house production with some Herbie Hancock style fusion notes on synth.
Crystal’s vocal pull everything together, with Crystal’s emphatic delivery recalling Erykah Badu or Macy Gray.
A Parisian force, her new single ‘Other Men’ was prised from incoming EP ‘Twisted Bases’ and provides a sensual piece of fragmented neo-soul, coming to represent Crystal at her most alluring.
Revisit CLASH’s recent features here to dig deeper on the sound.
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Enny, Thursday 24th May, 180 House
Enny found that life was closing in on her, but she learned to cut her ties and move forwards. A true UK rap force, she has bulldozed the competition, a spirit moving to the force of her own ambitions.
Enny is taking the UK rap scene on the ride it hasn’t seen in a long time. Coupling a blueprint of flows similar to Missy Elliot while carrying the legacy of Black British rap legends such as Estelle, Enny is the latest torchbearer to walk the aisle of truth-talking rap. In a world spoiled with the filter of insecurity, misogynoir, and culture vultures, some stay true to themselves and make music for those similar; in brief, Enny is a breath of fresh air. Displaying unfiltered truths, coupled with Nigerian pride and Black British lingo, Enny feels like the childhood friend whose words conjure the nostalgia of innocence.
Manoeuvring her way through the awkward and complicated stages of her 20s, Enny – who only just turned 26-years old last year – feels like she has finally caught her life by the reins. When Clash sits down to chat with Enny, she laughs at how she struggles to come to terms with her actual age and jokes that she identifies as 25. “Before, I felt like identifying as 22, but right now, I’m 25. I think they’re both kinds of synonymous. I think the biggest struggle is accepting myself; at the same time, the biggest win is accepting myself,” she admits during our intimate conversation. “Like, the weighing out of the present. So everything’s external, but the most important thing in my view is getting your own internal shit together. I think that is the most important thing in life.”
Revisit CLASH’s recent features here to dig deeper on the sound.
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