This Is What I Mean

This Is What I Mean — Stormzy
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Stormzy went quiet for almost three years. No social media, no singles, no noise. When he came back in 2022 with his third album it was immediately clear why — this wasn’t something you rush. Recorded on Osea Island, a secluded stretch of land off the Essex coast, the album was built during a series of music camps where Stormzy gathered world-class producers, writers, and artists in one place and let the music find its own shape. The result is the most intentional thing he’s ever put out.

This is not the Stormzy of Heavy Is the Head or Gang Signs & Prayer. The grime energy is dialled back almost entirely in favour of something slower, more searching — soul, gospel, R&B woven together with features from Sampha, Jacob Collier, Amaarae, Ayra Starr, and Black Sherif. The album moves through heartbreak, faith, and identity with the kind of patience that most artists at his level of fame don’t allow themselves. Hide & Seek, Firebabe, and the closing track Give It To The Water are among the finest things he’s recorded.

It debuted at number one in the UK — his third consecutive chart-topping album — and was nominated for Album of the Year at the Brit Awards. Critics were largely split, which is usually a sign that an artist made something that mattered. The people who connected with it connected deeply. The people who wanted the bangers missed the point.

We carry this one because it’s proof that an artist can evolve without explanation. Stormzy didn’t ask for permission to make something quiet. He just made it.