Sam Wise is doing it his way

Sam Wise is instantly recognisable. His wide grin is on full display as he shares a laugh with his publicists at Nando’s in Brixton – but I’m too far away to catch the conversation, and more importantly, the joke. Once seated at the table, Wise unzips his Perry Ellis jacket – the second thing you notice, after the grin, is his exuberant dress sense. He tells me his style is futuristic and “ahead of the curve”. It won’t be the last time that the 22-year-old will acknowledge his sense of difference in our interview.

Raised in Kennington, south London, as one of six siblings, Sam Wise is no stranger to operating in a tightknit clan. As an artist, he came to prominence as part of House of Pharaohs, the London-based rap collective who’ve made a name for themselves by doing things their own way. Comprised of six rappers – Wise, Danny, Kev, Bandanna,  Blaze and AJ, as well as in-house fashion designers, managers and dancers – retaining creative control has been their MO from the very beginning. According to Wise, the crew came together when original members Bandanna, Blaze, AJ and Wise – some of whom are former Brit School students – were in secondary school. “Bandanna and Blaze were already doing music. One day I just opened my door and there were guys everywhere. That’s when we formed.”

Wise remembers attending a house party, not long after they established the collective, dressed in “skinny jeans and bandanas” – something which prompted awe and intrigue from other partygoers. It was an early sign of the group’s sense of extravagance, a quality which they would cultivate through their music and visuals. For evidence, you only have to look to their 2014 video debut, Roll It Up. From then on the group spent time together, in studios, or members’ houses, fuelling each other’s development in a supportive and open environment. “Every single one of us was free, on our own shit. Back then, not everyone was as fluid as we were,” he remembers. “We were quite the spectacle.”

The hard work slowly, but surely, began to pay off. They started gaining traction outside of their inner circle and pirate radio stations like Pulse88. In 2017, their loungey trap cut Rwm [Run With Me], from the Real Faces EP, was picked up by Frank Ocean who played it on his high profile Blonded Radio show, boosting their hype even further. Wise attributes their success to the nurturing habitat that the group has created. “It’s a blessing having your individuality as a member of a group, but still having the space and support of your brothers. It’s an understanding. We come together as a group, but when we need to take a step back, we focus on ourselves and our crafts.”

This comment makes sense; running parallel to the group’s grassroots rise was the growth of Sam Wise the solo artist. He set his stall out clearly with Lizzie – a sleepy piece of lo-fi hiphop that has notched up 1.2 million plays on Spotify. His face lights up at the mention. “Lizzie!” he exclaims, “shoutout 4STRINGSZ.” He’s referring to the south London producer, electric violinist and composer responsible for Lizzie’s distinct sound. “We were in a studio here in Brixton, ironically, and I said [to 4STRINGSZ], ‘This is it, exactly the energy I want to capture in my music!’ I instantly started writing and formed the hook very quickly.” The producer earmarked the track at Wise’s request, and Wise began writing the rest of the song on the DLR that same evening. “This was one of those tracks that had a solid hook and I knew that all the pieces fit together, so I had to continue.” He was nearing Canary Wharf when he finished the rest of the lyrics.

If Lizzie distinguished Sam Wise as an artist in his own right, then 2019 EP Sorry You Were Saying strengthened his aptitude for collaboration. The project includes standout joint effort Follow the Leader, a lingering trap song shared with drill artist Blanco, who, like Wise, also grew up around Kennington. Across the chorus, the pair trade verses about the daily struggles of growing up in the area. “Gun smoke, heater/ Head loss, amnesia/ Think about it, it’s deeper,” raps Wise, while Blanco’s affecting rhymes on the effects of gang violence and government indifference are delivered with the calm precision of a rap elder. “Blanco has a real ability, there’s real thought behind what he does. We’re addressing that we’re from the same ends, seeing this war with gangs going on and telling the story from different perspectives,” he says, with a marked poignancy in his voice.

The London Borough of Lambeth, where Kennington is situated, has among the highest rates of gun and knife crime in the capital. It’s an issue that has affected the black working class communities of the capital in particular, dominating the cultural conversation for years. Fingers point to an amalgamation of root causes: government failure, the closure of a vast majority of youth clubs, austerity indebted police cuts. In 2018, UK drill – a derivation of the pioneering Chicago genre – also came under fire, when Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick named the style of music as a factor in the rise of knife crime in London. Reflecting on this, Wise addresses the longstanding debate about whether drill is interlinked with violence – but not without hesitation. “I didn’t wanna act like a bad man here or give off a ‘let’s ban drill’ vibe either. I just wanted Follow the Leader to be me and Blanco.”

It’s clear from our conversation that Wise considers the impact of his words, and the same attitude runs through his creative output. He’s quick to attribute Missy Elliott and Busta Rhymes as quintessential influences, pointing to the hyperactive Ella Violetta-directed video for Towndown, lead single from Sorry You Were Saying. “My environment pushes me to push boundaries. People think that you have to be a certain type of person. But I want to challenge the status quo.” There’s a childlike glint in Wise’s eye when he says this. He also reveals that one of his long term goals is to become more in touch with his emotions. “I’m a curious person by nature,” he admits, flashing that grin again. “I like to know things. I’m getting back into reading and also retraining my body. Ultimately, I’m trying to explore.”

Photography: Michelle Helena Janssen
Styling: Ade Udoma
Grooming: Karla Q Leon
Video: Ben Brook