Skepta’s Inaugural Big Smoke Festival Left Fans With An Unforgettable Experience
On July 6th, last Saturday, Skepta held the first-ever Big Smoke festival at Crystal Palace Park, on the Big Smoke Más Tiempo stage. The rapper claimed that this was the first of many festivals, and it was organized to honor grime, the music he grew up listening to, as well as to offer underground rappers a voice and a platform. In a short clip on the Festival Republic YouTube channel, the rapper states, “I feel like we remember a time when we were reaching out to people on bigger platforms and just getting nothing. It feels good to be the ear that people want to be heard by. I always keep my arm at reach.” And this is what makes the Big Smoke Festival different from every other festival.
Live performances during the festival included The Streets, Mahalia, JME, Lancey, K-Trap, Odumodublvck, R2R Moe, Chip, Yg Marley, and a number of North London rappers. The Big Smoke stage also featured the Más Tiempo tent—his tech-house project with Jammer—which provided the audience with a club culture option, making for a more inclusive experience. The expanding crowd was ecstatic as they witnessed amazing sets from a range of DJs, including DJs Ossie, Kittie Amor, and Uncle Waffles, that incorporated house and African-inspired electronic music.
Odumodublvck took the stage to sing a song off his critically acclaimed album “Eziokwu,” titled “Blood on the Dance Floor.” The track featuring Wale and Bloody Samaritan ranked No. 1 on Turntable’s Official Nigeria Top 100 for four weeks. Fortunately, the audience matched his enthusiasm as he performed in the rain.
As soon as Skepta hits the stage, he transports the audience to his 2012 mixtape “Blacklisted” with the song “Same Shit, Different Day.” He sets the Big Smoke stage with a composed manner that is greeted by a fierce crowd. As he performed “Praise the Lord (da shine)” on the now dimly lit stage, the crowd showed no sign of slowing down. However, after the show and while he made his way backstage to his car, Skepta reiterated via Link Up TV that Saturday’s Big Smoke festival was the first of many to help voiceless artists.