At festivals, Stormzy is accustomed to captivating the audience; his headline performance at Glastonbury in 2019 was one example. a complete success.
But his most recent festival appearance presented a slightly different opportunity.
Rapper and singer Heavy is the Head was speaking about his publishing imprint, Merky Books, at the renowned literary festival in Hay-on-Wye, Wales.
Rumors circulated about the last-minute change to the star's performance time, which was moved from Saturday to Sunday.
I was told several times that he wasn't there because he wanted to watch the FA Cup Final on Saturday, which featured his beloved Manchester United (if he did, he probably wished he hadn't), or because he was busy partying with Beyoncé, who was in London for a tour.
More information regarding the Hay Festival is as follows:.
But it turned out that he was attending Burna Boy's concert at the London Stadium.
Stormzy spoke during his rescheduled Hay appearance to commemorate the five years since the founding of Merky Books, a publishing house that seeks to nurture and produce diverse storytellers.
Merky Books, please. There are so many people who enable me to flourish, but nobody seems to notice them," he said.
I'm extremely fortunate. The team I work with is incredible. So I just have to send a text whenever I have an idea, like Merky Books. I suggested that we start a book company one day, and lo and behold, here we are. ".
When he began reading a particular novel at school, according to Stormzy, he had a revelation about discovering his own authentic voice.
Finding your voice is important when writing both music and literature. and the style of writing. A comma and are used in certain ways when writing in school when you're young. You enter all these words and all the artistic movements.
"But that is not the issue. It is all about telling a tale. In school, there was a fantastic book called Vernon God Little that I found to be absolutely amazing. It was written using the character's writing style. A full stop is used after two words. It was at that point that I realized all the writing's smoke and mirrors was Shakespearean-style eloquence.
"That's not the point. Your honesty is sufficient. You've said enough. Your voice alone suffices. ".
The celebrity emphasized how crucial it was that Merky, which has books by Derek Owusu and Malorie Blackman, publishes works in all genres.
"Black people are not monolithic; we have many different facets, which is why I wanted all these different memoirs, poems, works of fiction, and non-fiction. I grew up in that location. People tend to assume that because you're a young black boy and rap, that's what you do.
It says, "And no. There are times when I'm incredibly enraged. there are times when I feel on top of the world. We have many facets, even with literature. ".
This summer, Merky will venture into a new genre when it releases The Situationship, the debut rom-com written by Taylor-Dior Rumble.
She told BBC News: "Being published by a diverse publisher like Merky Books is important to me because throughout the entire process, I didn't feel like I was explaining my characters to my team or their world, and I didn't feel the need or pressure to edit my story for the white gaze.
"It was so cathartic talking through those points with an editor who already gets where I'm coming from. My book touches on impostor syndrome and the microaggressions black women face in the workplace.
"I'm incredibly inspired by how much of Stormzy's work, outside of making music, focuses on giving back to the community and assisting others in achieving greatness. ".
The author himself hopes that his collaboration with Penguin Random House UK, which is his imprint, will continue to expand and inspire.
"My actual dream is to be 80 years old, no one cares about Stormzy any more, and he's just chilling with his dogs, when I see someone and they say, 'Yo, I'm a published author, I sold so many books on Merky,' and I start to laugh. Also, I have nothing to do with it.
There is no vanity involved. Black authors can only come, develop, and flourish thanks to this engine.
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