Decoded is back with episode 4. Filmed in-studio, we invite a CLASH co-signed artist into the confessional booth, dissecting their creative process through a thoughtful interrogation of influences, themes and iconography. Previously we probed releases by KAM-BU, George Riley and Hak Baker.
Our attention turns to East London rapper Jeshi and his debut album ‘Universal Credit’, a meditative exploration on youth and the demonisation of the working class. ‘Universal Credit’ is a searing account of what it means to be young, gifted but broke. From the narcotic expression of millennial daze on ‘Sick’ to the lasting legacy of being Fatherless on ‘Two Mums’, to the Obongjayar-assisted feel-good trip of ‘Protein’, Jeshi approaches hard-hitting themes with textural precision whilst allowing room for the promise of redemption.
In conversation, Jeshi explains why he reclaimed a phrase that has been harnessed by establishment media as a derivative smear, the importance of world-building through immersive sound design and the message of aspiration he wants to communicate to anyone that might need it.
Tune into the conversation below…
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