Jordan Stephens Gets Candid On Politics, Nostalgia And His New Music [Interview]

Jordan Stephens is simply a jack of all trades and it seems that no area of creativity is off-limits. With talents varying from acting, presenting, writing, and being a musician of course, he constantly leaves his fans wanting more and has done nothing but keep impressing us since his days in Rizzle Kick’s.

Jordan didn’t always want to pursue a career in the creative industry, from an early age he expressed how passionate he was about football and archaeology. ‘When I was younger, I wanted to be an archaeologist because I loved exploring and finding new things. When I reached the age of 14, I was deeply passionate about football and wanted to pursue it professionally. However, both my parents being musicians throughout my upbringing had an impact in my life and future career aspirations’. Being from a musical household it was only a matter of time before Jordan decided this was the career he’d embark on for the rest of his life, ‘My mum and dad were both musicians and singer-songwriter’s, my dad also played multiple instruments too, the talent in my house was crazy. Seeing my parents embrace music in so many ways, inspired me to express my emotions through music as I got older and became more aware of things. Some of my earliest demo’s consisted of school gossip and diss tracks about my form tutors.'

It's clear music and songwriting has always been close to Jordan and it was only a matter of time before Jordan put that energy into action, after creating a demo song Jordan did whatever it would take to prove his star quality and simply get his name out there, ‘Knowing I had nothing to lose, I would regularly enter music competition’s, with some of them brought success but they were often surprised to see a little black boy rapping from Brighton, instead of the conventional boy bands - especially as rap wasn’t that popular when I was growing up’. Off the back of winning this competition and a cash prize of £500, Jordan bought a beat to add to his demo and with this, ‘Down With The Trumpets’ was born. Having written it at just 15 years of age, Jordan's song went on to peak at number 8 in the UK Singles Chart and garner 26 million views on YouTube. Not bad for the second single from Rizzle Kicks' debut album 'Stereotypical'.

‘I was very ambitious as a kid and had this blind belief that I could get me and my mum out of the situation we were in, at this point I was more determined than ever!’. Being a resident of both Neasden and Brighton, resulted in Jordan being exposed to a variety of sounds. ‘In the youth centres I often attended, people would recreate cypher that was off the back of the Grime that was coming out of London at the time’. Getting himself involved in youth cypher allowed Jordan to become very experimental with his music, ‘I would rap and write about anything that inspired me, I love the idea of concept tunes and made that a constant theme within my music’. While figuring this out, Jordan thought it was only right he called on his talented friend Harley to lay down some melodic vocals, with the backing of their friends Jordan and Harley decided to join forces, many thought a rapper/singer duo wouldn’t work.

Nevertheless, it wasn’t just the Grime sounds that were coming out of London that truly influenced Jordan. ‘Missy Elliot and Lauryn Hill definitely played a big part in my life, I would listen to them constantly while I was growing up’, however it wasn’t just the female rapper’s that Jordan had on repeat as he credited the likes of Nirvana and other grunge artists. ‘I cannot emphasise this enough, my mum genuinely could have worked in A&R, her musical ear is crazy, my mum literally introduced me to Dizzee Rascal’, the concept of music seems as if it simply brought Jordan and his mum closer throughout his life. ‘My mum had a very eclectic taste, which was passed down to me, artists like Macy Gray, Soundgarden and Radiohead are just a few names that were played at home’. Along with being ‘besotted’ by Missy Elliot, Jordan thoroughly enjoyed the sounds of Dr Dre, Eminem and Sisqo. Constantly surrounding himself with music the talented musician also credits the Brighton Music scene in shaping him, ‘At the time Brighton had one of the biggest Hip Hop festivals, which showcased conscious Hip Hop music that focussed on combining metaphors, similes and rhyming words.

Jordan wasn't only influenced by his mum, living in Brighton and having a love for American Hip Hop but his dad as well. ‘Originating from Guyana, I’d look up to my dad as this incredible black man with dreadlocks who could play the guitar. According to Sound Magazine my Dad was the first black punk, this is something I also mention on my album.' Prior to breaking out as a solo artist, Jordan was actually in a band with his friend and his Dad, together they created a grunge/funk album, ‘After slowly becoming restricted as an artist while I was in Rizzle Kicks, I decided to revert back to my organic roots when it came to making music, after that I created another rap album, unfortunately, it’s still unreleased as there was a lot happening in my personal life’. The last 2-3 years have been pivotal in forming his sound.

Fast forward to the current day, Jordan Stephens has graced us with a collaboration with Tottenham based songstress, Miraa May for track ‘Big Bad Mood’. The initial partnership between the two talented musicians was down to a mutual radio plugger that brought the two together, ‘There was no expectation when we came together, she came down to the studio and immediately her energy and passion was felt’. When hearing the beat for the first time, Jordan had a vision of either singing or rapping over it, Jordan’s thoughts then went beyond the music as he started to think of ways he could incorporate illegal activity, politics and government corruption into one song, ‘I started to think of concepts and wanted to combine them into the track, I thought why as a society should we abide by laws that aren’t even followed by the people that make them’. Between Jordan and Miraa there was a light bulb moment, ‘seeing the way the government constantly restricts and contradicts, I thought the idea of robbing a bank seemed quite fitting’. To match the upbeat tempo sound of the track, the video is filled with rebellion and fun, while Jordan raps in a deserted car park, a female protagonist is seen grafting. ‘We fix the systems, you hate’ which further supports the narrative of the track. Although Miraa May isn’t featured in the video, her sweet vocals are heard throughout. The track serves as a poignant reminder of the current political climate.

Jordan’s upcoming album, ‘Let Me Die Inside You’ has multiple meanings to him but can also be open to interpretation, ‘there’s a French saying called "la petite mort" which translates to "the brief loss or weakening of consciousness", in modern terms it’s a reference to the sensation of post-orgasm having the same feeling as dying’. Jordan explained his fascination for the pain/pleasure concepts that come with life, alternatively the title can also be a reference to the breaking up or losing friends, partners or even looking back at our old selves, ‘I don’t think we die once in this life, with the multitude of experience that comes with life I believe we die more than once during our lifetimes. ‘Let Me Die Inside You’ is a project Jordan has worked extremely hard on, with a handful of features including ‘Big Bad Mood’, the album represents a variation of sounds from Indie to House, ‘Let Me Die Inside You’ will have something to satisfy all audiences, ‘there are 14 versions of me there and I really hope the fans appreciate them all’.

While discussing Jordan’s latest project, we got into the conversation of dream collaborations, ‘If I could work with anyone it would be Anderson Paak. I truly admire his craft and love his track ‘Glowed Up’ with Kaytranada. Additionally, I’d really like to work with Lianne La Havas who has an amazing voice’.

A recurring topic in Jordan’s music is mental health among men, ‘People often comment on how open I am, but it’s the way I am’. Jordan’s openness is felt throughout his music and can serve as an example to other people grappling with the same issues, for example, his struggles with ADHD.

If you’ve heard Jordan’s music then you’ll definitely be familiar with his acting and presenting roles, most recently Jordan starred as lead host on ITV 2 panel show, ‘Don’t Hate The Playerz’ alongside fellow panellist Maya Jama and Lady Leshurr. As a skilled actor, he has had roles in the Star Wars spin-off Rogue One, a 2019 comedy-drama ‘Tucked’ and most recently in the Netflix series ‘Feel Good’. Jordan is deeply passionate about an abundance of things from politics to music. ‘I do enjoy trying new things and I’ve recently found a love for long-form writing, books and scripts, in the future I’d like to focus on becoming a better writer in all forms’. There is a lot we can expect from Jordan in the future, but one thing for certain is that he is a strong advocate for being true to himself, which means he won’t be saying yes to anything he doesn't truly believe in, whether it's TV, film or music.