Next Wave #657: Jammz

From the pirates to the main stage...

The MOBO awards announced their shortlist last week, with the Best Grime list consisting of JME, Skepta, Stormzy, Lethal Bizzle and Bugzy Malone – but in terms of recent momentum there’s one MC who’s currently putting them all to shame.

East London MC and producer Jammz has had a great 2015, emerging from relative obscurity to become the underground’s hottest property thanks to a combination of quality releases, plenty of bookings and a tireless dedication to appearing on radio sets. “My first proper booking with an agent was this summer,” he recalls, “so in the space of a few months I’ve gone from just going to radio to getting emails saying I need to be in this country on this date and someone will pick me up – it’s mad!” It’s fair to say Jammz has kept himself busy; this summer he performed in Croatia and Amsterdam, he recently got back from Portugal where he performed at Festival Zona Nao Vigiada with Newham Generals and Logan Sama, as we spoke he was on his way to Manchester and this week he’s set to perform at Newcastle’s World Headquarters and Fabric in London in the space of two days.

While many MCs in the past have struggled to capture an authentic energy and vibe in a live sphere, Jammz has had no problem making the transition, which he puts down to countless hours spent at pirate radio sets across London. “The more hours you put in on pirate radio the more experienced and comfortable you get,” he notes, “sometimes so many MCs come to pirate radio that it’s like spitting in a rave, and you’ve got to be ready for any situation”.

One of the highlights of 2015 for Jammz was the release of London Living, a collaboration with legendary DJ and producer Plastician. The track came about when Jammz saw Plastician having a discussion on Twitter about new MCs being afraid to make leftfield music and volunteered his services, since then the tune has gone on to be one of the biggest underground tracks of the year. “After we played it on Rinse it started to get picked up,” he tells me, “[Plastician] put the radio rip on his soundcloud and within a couple days it hit 20k”.

There’s plenty more to come, as Jammz seeks to continue the momentum he’s gathered over the last year, including a single with grime producer Trends and the video for Final Warning both arriving before the end of the year, and an EP released on his own label in early 2016. As well as all of this, he will of course continue to smash pirate radio sets on a regular basis. In his own words: “radio will never die!”

Words: Paul Gibbins
Photo Credit: Vicki Grout

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