LITTLE SIMZ, LOTUS

From her early mixtapes and teenage freestyles to the Mercury-winning Sometimes I Might Be Introvert, Little Simz has always carved her own path. She avoided trends, favored complexity over simplicity, and stayed true to her voice. But at 31, the North London artist hit a wall. The spark that once drove her had faded, and for the first time, she questioned whether she had anything left to say. Self-doubt crept in, quietly and gradually, and left her uncertain. 

That loss of momentum was tied to the breakdown of her relationship with longtime producer and childhood friend Inflo. What had once been a close, creative partnership turned into silence, and eventually, legal conflict. The damage wasn’t just professional. It was personal, and it left Simz shaken. 

Still, she returned to the one place that had always made sense to her, the studio 

Simz’s sound has always blended blended elements of nu-soul, orchestral jazz, and alternative hip-hop. On Lotus, her sixth album, that foundation remains, but her voice feels sharper, more open, and more vulnerable. This record didn’t come from confidence. It came from fracture. 

“This album is the most exposed I’ve ever felt,” she said. “Literally, here’s my diary.” Unlike earlier records that carried a sense of control, Lotus feels like release. The songs don’t cover the wounds, they show them. But there’s strength in that. She may have been hurt, but she isn’t hiding. The album leans into contrast and contradiction, and in that space, something honest takes shape. 

Named after the flower that grows in muddy waters, Lotus is an album about rebirth. Its strength lies not just in its candor or rage, but in Simz’s quiet decision to stay, to create, and to grow through loss. It’s a risk born of hope, and what she offers now isn’t just personal. It’s powerful. 

GREENTEA PENG, TELL DEM IT'S SUNNY

Greentea Peng is the kind of artist that grabs my attention. Self-describing as a psychedelic R&B artist, her genre-fluid experimentation with neo-soul and alternative R&B and fusion of spiritual consciousness and street realism makes her stand apart from easy categorization. 

Tell Dem It’s Sunny, her third studio album, Peng, whose real name is Aria Wells, turns inward. Where 2021’s Man Made responded to lockdown with outward protest, this record reflects on motherhood, mental health, and a growing skepticism toward mainstream ideas of healing. Despite its title, the album leans grey in both tone and sound. The phrase “Tell Dem It’s Sunny” began as irony but became a reminder of inner light. Moving away from the flower-child image often attached to her, Peng focuses on what she calls “the politics of the personal”—emotional unrest, identity, and staying grounded in a chaotic world. 

Musically, the album follows Peng’s intuitive process. Dub, soul, and psych elements drift through the tracks, with songs like “TARDIS” emerging through what she describes as channelling. The sound is loose and unpolished, with a great groove that’s more concerned with feeling than perfection. 

Reflection on parenthood, inner conflict, and staying present in a restless world, Tell Dem It’s Sunny is full of hope. For Peng, hope isn’t a pose—it’s something practiced. And she practices it here with feeling and great strength.

Sad Night Dynamite, Sad Night Dynamite

I have always been a bit enamored with artists who can mash-up samples and music genres successfully to create something new and moving. They're a bit like music magicians with me asking 'how did they do that?" Enter Sad Night Dynamite. 

Childhood friends Archie Blagden and Josh Greacen love film scores and film makers like Quentin Tarantino who play with contrasts between beauty and violence. They also 'adore' bands like The Clash, Stone Roses, Portishead, I Monster and MIA. So why not throw all of this together and see what happens? So they did. The result is Sad Night Dynamite, the duo's debut mixedtape.

Described as a nightmarish trip through hip-hop, dub, Britpop, punk, electronica, and beyond, Bladgden and Greacen have created a fully realized other-world. It's one that 'tries to pull you out of real life and take you somewhere else.' Ever evolving and changing, but always 'dark and sexy' the duo's music is a thrill to listen to. And while it doesn't take itself too seriously they say, it has heart which is ultimately what they hoped to achieve.