024: "I'm Destiny's Child, Everyday I Survive..."
Hustla Baby, a true champion identity
Friends,
As the year draws to an end, I’d like to thank you all for your subscriptions, support and for sharing my work. I’ve had some good numbers come in on my pieces and it’s been very humbling, especially as I had a period of inactivity from summer to autumn.
Have a fantastic festive period and new year. I look forward to continuing with you all in 2023.
But anyway, let’s get back to business…
The UK music scene was always big here at home. Culturally, our mindset was one of resistance to following or reacting off American trends. Sure, influences and ideas were felt, but on this side of the pond, we looked up to and placed high value on our own, whilst acknowledging that our friends across the Atlantic’s superior ability to dominate worldwide markets more frequently was never due to lack of quality on our end.
Examples can be seen with Garage, Funky House, Britpop, Dubstep or Drum & Bass. Significant followings, built on niche movements and sounds, that ultimately were unable to tap into the mainstream on larger scales, hence their ceilings for growth. Grime however seems to have bucked that trend. It may not be as widely circulated now, or met with the same euphoria as the early 2000s, where bluetooth/infared transfers of pirate radio bangers were traded and passed on like Pokemon cards on steroids, but the artform itself is still going strong, with it’s influence and relevance living and breathing to this very day. It’s grandchild is currently flourishing as an overlap between itself, Afrobeats, Bashment and Rap/Hip-hop; the modern Afroswing sound in UK music has reverberated on our charts for a few years now. Nobody is a better custodian for this period of British music history than J Hus.
J Hus has broken the simulation and risen above the matrix. He stands toe-to-toe with any heavyweight in the arena. His quality of output is exceptional. But his formula is intriguing. He’s been able to achieve this without having to play the same games as his competitors. He doesn’t spend too much time on social media, he’s seldom involved in (regular) promotional work, and with one or two exceptions, he doesn’t drop teasers or throwaways in between or outside of his two studio albums.
His fans continue to demand more. His albums were released over two years apart. While there were small hints and suggestions that he might make it a trifecta at various points since “Big Conspiracy” dropped in early 2020, we go into the third year of what seems to be another hiatus. A period in jail contributed to the downtime, but since the success of his debut “Common Sense”, Hus hasn’t plugged the gap between releases like listeners want or expect. Of course, when you release projects of the calibre he has, you can expect wettened appetites to thirst for more.
But beyond his ability to find the right patterns for his flows, harmonise accordingly alongside distinct, melodic instrumentals and spark our thoughts with his narrations, it was (and is) Hus’s comfort in his own identity that is the key to his success. It’s one thing to be good, but to be good and be yourself is the difference maker in all of this. Whether he stumbled across this formula by calculation, coincidence or even something that just organically blossomed and came naturally to him, J Hus put the most obvious weapon at his disposal into play; his Gambian and African lineage,.
“How you gonna run the world? You can't even run your life,
I'm Destiny's Child, every day I survive,
No time to plan, I had to improvise,
If you was real, you would recognize…”
If the UK wants to feel the vibes, soul and spirit of African-inspired music to be present in our scene, then the best, most authentic way to package and deliver this union is to pump your chest out and show the strength of character that embodies all of these superlatives in your art. Why provide crumbs and nuggets of flavour when you can serve an entire entrée? This is exactly what separated Hus from the crowd, and although it may come across as an obvious strategy, to double down and bet on yourself as an individual in an industry where everybody wants to exert their influence on your precious work, is a seismic feat of success and character. Hustla clearly has a mammoth sense of pride in himself and his ancestry. Best of all, this firm, noble and uncompromisable position directly contributed to his success.
Its the twang of his accent that’s synonymous in his delivery - from bars and punchlines, to phrases to hooks. It’s how he lets the autotune add an extra layer of musical patterns to propel his sounds into a cosmic supernova. Its the marriage of London slangs; each word rooted in varying native lingos formed in the capital’s fusion of cultures. J Hus seamlessly delivers his identity and lifestyle to listeners with full force and without any cherry picking. His musical relationship with producer Jae5 in particular comes cross as telepathic, in tune with one another as they seek to be inspired by what they’ve learnt from and by their home regions, topped up with a healthy sprinkle of quintessential London flavour. It’s music, and logic, that transcends, with the ability to be be loved and appreciated in any domain, any region. We’re just lucky its at our very own doorstep and draw inspiration from.
Do yourself justice, utilise your mind.
WhosAria
A Word On The Song/Artist
J Hus is a modern day superstar and an artist that the UK needs to cherish here, now and in future. “Common Sense” rightfully caused shockwaves upon it’s release, but for me, “Big Conspiracy” showed a different side and new level to Hus’ talents and artistry. It showed that he’s certainly no gimmick, hot trend or one-album wonder. There are lethal weapons in his arsenal that will forge a strong career and highly coveted catalogue of exquisite music. He’s got the star power, a certain pull and an arrogance that you need in order to let your work do the talking. He showed he can get busy on verses that are more in depth and complex on it’s subject matter, to go alongside his more flamboyant, easy on the ear, era-defining anthems that made the world notice him prior to his sophomore release. I, amongst many, await with anticipation and fascination as to what he will serve up in his next instalment, whenever that will be.