Stormzy (real name Michael Omari) is a grime artist from London, United Kingdom. His rise has been meteoric, going from niche YouTube interest to sold out stadium tour in just a matter of years. He was born and raised in South London. From a poor, single parent household Stormzy, or Big Mike as he is sometimes referred, makes regular reference to the hardship he and his mom faced growing up. Stormzy’s mom is a big influence on, and subject of, his music (she co-stars in the video for Know Me From, you can’t miss her she’s the one mom dancing) as he believes it is she who has got him where he is today.

But where exactly is that?

Stormzy’s Net Worth

Stormzy’s net worth is estimated by Spears as over at over £1.5 million ($2 million). In early 2017 he was named as one of Forbes’ hip hop cash princes

He’s doing so well in fact that he’s moved from his rough neighborhood - I’m from there so I’m allowed to say that - Croydon into a nice apartment in affluent Chelsea, West London.

In predictable but rather depressing news, his door was kicked in by the police shortly afterwards. Omari claims the reason for the invasion is the police believed he was burgling his own property:  

Woke up to Feds destroying my front door coz apparently I'm a burglar who burgles his own home. @metpoliceuk need your bank details still pic.twitter.com/fGH1fsePHv

— #GSAP (@Stormzy1) February 14, 2017

Bleak.

Stormzy’s Career Takes Off With Track Shut Up

The song that made it all happen.

Shut Up is at heart a diss [insult] track, taking aim at his haters and detractors. Released originally on YouTube, he makes multiple references to his burgeoning career, discussing his large crowds at Wireless Festival, his growing Twitter following, his MOBO award win and his sharing a stage with Kanye West and 30 other of the UK’s brightest young stars at the BRIT Award ceremony.

It was so successful that he took it to the studio and released it as a single. It reached number eight in the UK pop charts, unheard of for a grime track. Particularly so a song with no chorus or attempt at conventional song structure.

The backing track is a highly influential production by a DJ called XTC as part of the Ruff Sqwad collective, released in the early days of grime called Functions on the Low.

Stormzy’s Debut Album Goes Straight To Number 1

Omari released his debut album, Gang Signs & Prayer, in February 2017. It was released independently through his own label #Merky Recordings and went straight to number one. It broke records for becoming the first grime album to take the number one spot. It also broke British streaming records for first-week streams, racking up 13.9 million streams and stealing the record from October's Very Own;  Drake himself and his album Views.

The album confounded many with its varied style, combining gospel sounds with more straightforward grime beats. There’s also a tenderness to the album that was a shock to many, with some of the more heartfelt moments discussing his love of God, his mom and smoking weed with his girlfriend. Stormzy even sings on the album; basically unheard of from a grime artist.

Following the release of his album, Stormzy has been touring extensively. He’s in the midst of an international tour. But he still managed to find time to attend the Radio 1 Big Weekend in Hull over the late May bank holiday. You can watch his set on the BBC website.

Stormzy Album’s Lead Single, Big For Your Boots

On the lead single for the album, Big For Your Boots, Stormzy is up to his usual caustic best. Fast verses overlay even faster beats.

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The track spends 3 minutes and 59 seconds essentially explaining that the listener is now too old for Twitter and that Stormzy is liable to use his big, size 12 feet to give us a right good kicking any moment now. All from the comfort of his local fried chicken shop.

Little known trivia: the lady he shares the screen with in the video is his actual girlfriend, Maya Jama, a successful DJ on underground London radio station Rinse FM. 

Check out the bonus track, Stormzy - Scary

Released almost exactly one year before the album release, Stormzy’s song Scary announces the new album coming up and also that Omari is going away for a bit to work on it.

The video is dark, intimidating and moody and is obviously trying to portray Stormzy as a gangster. This is something he has struggled with throughout his career. Grime heavyweights see his nosebleed inducing upward trajectory and there are suggestions that he has got lucky and not put in the legwork it usually takes to get in his position. Basically, it’s all come too easily for him. He was the right man, in the right place, at the right time.

You can find Stormzy’s album on all good streaming services. Check it out.

 Like Grime? You may also want to check out Skepta, AJ Tracey and Wiley