This morning my first op-ed for PR Week was published. What started as a innocuous comment on a post about the latest single from Stormzy turned into an opportunity to present in one of the biggest publications in my industry. Ironically that’s a testament to what Stormzy’s first single in three years, Mel Made Me Do It, represents?
Like everyone else I was so excited to watch the 10 minute video and was thrilled by the multiple layers that filled your spirit. In the article I focus on the commercial aspects: who is Mel was the question on everyone’s lips despite the fact she is a sure bet in getting your products to sell out instantly, the brand associations and how Stormzy not only promoted his own brand but also elevated a number of smaller independent brands who not only had the opportunity to have their business associated with a star that transcends his genre but acted as brand ambassadors for MMMDI by posting their own stories on social media. Finally I looked at how Stormzy juxtapositions emerging talent with industry heavy weights, giving everyone an equal footing and allowing audiences to discover new talent.
What I didn’t get to focus on was Stormzy’s elevation of his community and that’s what I want to get into here. Embedded into the fabric of his business, he’s always fostered a position of team first. This is publicly evident in his book Rise Up: The Merky Story where each member of his team tells their own story. I’d like to think they were given their own publishing contracts too meaning that he made sure that all his team got a piece of the pie. It’s clear that Stormzy’s business strategy is that everyone in the unit should build not only with #Merky but independently. MMMDI is a musical manifestation of that principle.
From naming his single after his stylist’s hashtag to featuring presenter ZeeZee Millz to highlighting his personal chef, Stormzy was opening doors not just everyone but for Black women. It’s something that I often complain is missing in the wider world but I have begun to notice a trend of Black men being intentionally vocal about the successes of the women around them.
So let’s move on to the standout moment in the video that felt like a rallying cry to the Black communities and a huge educational piece for those who may not have been clear on the contributions of Black people to British culture across music, sport, literature and more. The spoken word piece written by fellow musician Wretch 32 and read by actress and producer Michaela Coel speaks to Black excellence, highlighting notable figures including Ian Wright, Jazzy B of Soul II Soul, the late Jamal Edwards represented by his family and one of the Black communities most successful female writers, Malorie Blackman.
It speaks to our successes and pours life into us, giving flowers to us all. With clever word play celebrating those who appear in the video. With bars like
I need to remind you this is not a phase…this is phase one. Almost lights camera action after take one. This isn’t divide and conquer this is provide and prosper. This isn’t divide and rebuild this is I love my culture more than I hate parts of my history.
If that whole part didn’t make you scream out loud with pride I don’t know what would. There’s a consistent narrative in older tiers of the Black communities that we work in silos, never together. Michael Ebenazer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr. is here to break the cycle and inspire generations to not only see their future but recognise those that have already Personally I would play that piece every morning as it essentially tells us to remember who the f*** we are in the grand scheme of all of the things around us and…we’re stars. Plain and simple.
MMMDI is just the gift that keeps on giving even beyond it’s immediate circle, this whole piece started off with what it’s done for me but what the most important take away is the message. We are here to take up space. To continue the legacy of those who came before us. To build upon the foundations and continue to elevate not just ourselves but the others around us. Whilst I’m sure this is something we do every day in our own corners of the world, I needed to hear and see this because there’s comfort in knowing you’re not the only one.
Michael left me inspired, I can’t wait to see what we’re all going to do together.
