Strandz Tickets

A soft touch when it comes to romance, horoscopes, and noughties hip-hop, South London rapper Strandz felt he was destined for great things from an early age. In truth, the well-travelled artist has been studying his craft for years before he got his shot in the TikTok spotlight. 

Born in Germany, Strandz relocated to Nigeria, where the young rapper learned English, before moving to a “rough area” of South London. Writing his first track at the age of just six, he knew where he wanted to take his life, yet had no path paved for him. Whilst his penchant for golden-era hip-hop embeds his sound in yesteryear, Strandz’s humility and industry harks back to when artists genuinely hustled to get their foot in the door.

Enriched by a life in transit before settling into a city of opportunity, Strandz admitted to having “no links”. So, he taught himself piano to nail an audition to Brit School, as well as finding jobs in several studios at the age of fourteen, just so he could network. 

Consistently learning and absorbing, Strandz’s musical influences broadened from his parent’s CD collection in 50 Cent, Fat Joe, Jhené Aiko, Fela Kuti and even Feist, to literary readings in Napoleon Hill and Rosa Lee Beeland’s 1937 self-improvement text, Think and Grow Rich, which helped fortified his steely mindset. Juggling his studies with a burning desire to pursue music, Strandz aced his exams. Yet music still came first. 

Determined to experiment with his sound before leaving Brit School, Strandz released his debut single ‘Paper’ in 2017. Admitting that he was still discovering what he wanted sonically out of his music, it wasn’t until he began collaborating with Blue Boy that his East Coast-infused rap began to take shape, typified with 2020’s ‘Boy in the Hood’. 

Even though he was getting noticed by various corners of the media, Strandz didn’t bend to expectation, remaining firm in his romantic style of rap. It’s a theme that he’s maintained in his music – with his girlfriend Lola inspiring much of his work – bucking the trend by writing about love, defiant in the face of being labelled ‘soft’ by his peers. “She’s helped me navigate and adapt to the music industry and vice versa. Even if I didn’t do music, we would’ve done whatever I ended up doing together, supporting each other,” Strandz said of Lola in a recent interview.

A series of smooth singles followed suit, ‘Don’t Let Them See You Cry’, ‘4 THE MONEY’ and ‘Us Against The World’, though it was a remix featuring Digga D which would see Strandz blow up on TikTok. The Smokey Robinson-sampling track entered the top ten of the UK charts, and established the travelled rapper as one to watch closely. Continuing his hot streak, Strandz released ‘J’Adore’, ‘Feeling Alive’ and ‘An Idea Was Born’ throughout the remainder of 2023.

With 2024 shaping up to be a major breakthrough year for Strandz, he dropped the self-produced single ‘No Peace, No Time’ ahead of shows at Birmingham’s O2 Institute, Parklife Festival, and Wireless Festival in the summer.