Abloh also designed the rapper’s custom Louis Vuitton tracksuit.
Headie One delivered a powerful performance at the Brit Awards last night (11 May). The north London rapper took to the stage to perform a medley of songs from his 2020 debut album Edna, fusing high fashion with a nod to his Ghanaian heritage. He also took a stance against the negative narratives surrounding drill.
Headie opened with the AJ Tracey-featuring Ain’t It Different, with Tracey joining him on stage for a socially-conscious rendition of the Fred again.. and Todda T-producer track. The original version features also Stormzy. In his absence, Headie and Tracey went back-to-back during Stormzy’s verse and discussed timely topics such as key workers (“Team work keeps the dream working / It’s only right we show love to the key workers”), Marcus Rashford and his philanthropic efforts (“The government is saying eat out to help out but won’t help out Rashford when he’s feeding the youths”) and systemic racism in the UK (“Two Black Brits stand here at the BRITS but still we ain’t seen as British”).
Headie performed inside a Virgil Abloh-designed box. The set featured smeared newspaper clippings highlighted in the colours of the Ghana flag. He wore a custom Louis Vuitton tracksuit which was also designed by Abloh, who’s been the men’s artistic director at the luxury fashion house since 2018.
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“Supporting next generation’s talent is a part of my ethos,” said Abloh in a statement. “Watching Headie One build his career in music while being a voice of evolution makes his art practice important in contemporary art.”
Headie was nominated for British Solo Male Artist but lost to former Crack Magazine cover star J Hus.
Watch Headie One’s performance below. Revisit his Edna track by track feature.
