“I Have Become Stronger, As I’ve Taken My Pain” Berwyn Interviewed

Mercury nominee on government red tape, embracing experience, and his next step...

Clash recently sat down with Berwyn for an in-person interview ahead of his appearance at the Dr. Martens x SBTV event Bootroom sessions. At the event, he served as a panellist alongside Amaria BB and directors Meeks & Frost. Despite facing challenges with the British government denying him permanent resident status, the Mercury Award-nominated artist remains resilient. His struggles have served as inspiration for his deeply authentic and heartfelt lyrics, showcasing his innate musical talent. 

Anticipating the release of his debut album, Berwyn promises a genre-defying sound that encapsulates his diverse musical style, and emotive lyrics that speak of these struggles. The recently relaunched Dr. Martens Boot Room serves as a creative hub, historically promoting grassroots talent. With SBTV’s rich history of fostering emerging artists and introducing fresh voices into the mainstream, the collaboration between the two platforms appears to be a natural fit. For the launch series, the Boot Room live sessions feature Amaria BB, Deyaz and BERWYN, debuting on SBTV’s iconic YouTube channel, the platform where so many artists had their breakthrough moments.

Would you say this album is different from your previous releases? 

I would say it’s definitely going to sound more like an album and less like a mixtape. My style has already been so varied, so because of that it has stayed the same. 

What was the music like in your upbringing and how do they influence your current sound?

I definitely had a very musical upbringing. I’m from Trinidad and my dad used to be a DJ, so I guess it rubbed off on me. I was constantly around music, and music was constantly playing, and then I came to England with my Trinidadian family, and we continued our ‘Trinidadianess’. 

Trinidadianess is carefree, but it bases itself in a bad place. There is a lack of opportunity over there, and as a result there is a lack of productivity, but a nice bi-product of a lack of productivity is that there is a sense of relaxedness, and time to be happy and do what you want to do as much as you can. I think that is really a staple of my country – that carefreeness, that enjoyment of precious time. It’s a huge part of who we are. 

In your song ‘3450’ you speak of a very personal experience – do you think this authenticity comes with being Trinidadian?

Definitely, it’s more of a European thing to not wear your heart on your sleeve so often. A part of me does that, and a part of me wears my heart on my sleeve at all times. It’s definitely a part of it. We’re fun-loud too – that means an inability to be quiet.

You grew up in Romford after you moved to England – how would you describe the culture there? 

Romford culture is like the opposite of Trinidad culture. London culture generally is so hyper-productive, so busy, so you could say shallow and lacks depth as well. With hyper-productivity there is always a shallowness there man. But I think Romford is a bit different to that general London culture, it’s just outside of the city – people talk to each other, people smile at each other, it’s nicer. 

I don’t still live there, but my family and friends are there. Sometimes I forget the differences between it and central. You walk around in Shoreditch, for example, dressed a certain way, and you feel normal, you could even feel underdressed, but then you go to Romford and you realise that in a short train journey the culture changes. 

You’ve faced a multitude of challenges through your upbringing that have made you stronger and more resilient. Do you think you would be the same kind of artist you are today without those challenges and setbacks?

No, definitely not. I think pain is the definition of every human being, and every human being is the definition of the pain they go through. I have become stronger, as I’ve taken my pain – as has everyone else in Camden, and everyone else in London, so on and such forth. So yeah, I definitely think I am the definition of my pain and my progress. And I’m cool with that. 

You talk about my upbringing – I used to think about what it would be like if I was white, if I had money. I don’t know about the what ifs, there are bare. I could have been a little shit, I could have been super intelligent. I take pleasure in not knowing and not caring about that, you feel me?

When recording in the studio, do you often create new music with the intention of relaying the messages of how you overcame these challenges in life?

I’ve found myself in a place where I’m thinking a lot more before I talk. I speak to a lot of my colleagues, and they’re experiencing the same thing, so there must be something in it. I try not to be too conscious in anything that I do, I just do things. It’s difficult though.

One of your biggest tracks is of course ‘Path To Satisfaction’, for you, what does satisfaction look like on your own individual path?

That changes all the time as I get older. I’m a boring guy, innit. But I’m okay with that. I like to make sure everything is stable. I come from a place of mass instability, and so I spend every single day trying to achieve stability in every shape or form. And that might come across mundane or monotonous, but it’s actually the only thing I want, is stability. It comes with maturity. I guess I’m just growing up now.

People have previously stated that you have defied the odds to get to where you are now, how does it feel hearing this?

It feels rewarding to hear that I’ve defied odds. It makes me feel proud of myself.

When talking about your immigration status you previously said “I was nobody, I wasn’t allowed to be” – how do you feel this made you stronger as a person when finally overcoming an institution that was purposefully trying to hold you back?

Shoutout to me – today I got my next three years acceptance. It’s been helpful and unhelpful. I’ve been fighting an institution, this thing that doesn’t have a face or a name, and I will never get to sit down and talk to it. It’s a problematic, toxic concept and culture. That being said, I’ve definitely learnt and grown from all of my pain, including that one. I’ve learnt to view myself through the most realistic lens possible, after being labelled. It kind of forces you into this place of self reflection. I’m grateful for that reflection, and for that growth. There’s not too much I’m grateful for, all shit aside. They made life long, fuck them.

What is next for Berwyn and with the year almost coming to an end now, what do you hope to achieve going into the new one?

I definitely want to do some travelling, I haven’t been able to take a holiday for the last few months. I forgot what that felt like. I want to sit down and chill out more. I definitely want to get this music done, that’s top. I haven’t thought about anything else except for getting the album done and going to see my dad in Trinidad. I haven’t got any plans for that. I don’t know where I want to travel – but wherever is friendly towards black people, that list isn’t very long. I like history, so I want to go somewhere where I can check out some empires and that. 

On the back of that response, I have to ask you the burning question. How often do you think of the Roman Empire then? 

My girlfriend asked me about this. Once a day. Every single day. I wouldn’t stay in my room thinking about it, but like I look around and it comes to me. Like look at the bricks in this room – the idea of bricks being laid on top of eachother, it’s a symbol of sophistication. Just looking at those bricks would make me think about it. As soon as you leave the house, there are so many trigger points. And also, I really love history. I’m a big historian. It’s not just the Roman Empire I think of, it’s the Mesopotamia Empire, and all the other empires. 

If you had an empire, what would you call it? 

I don’t think I want an empire. Hmm. This is a big question. I think I’d just call it Berwyn land, there is no truer name than that. It’s my fathers name and my name. I was going to make my stage name ‘baby’, but my boys told me no. That was long before Dababy, just saying.

Stay in touch with BERWYN on social media.

Words: Lucia Botfield