Loyle Carner’s latest album “hugo” is all about building hope in the backdrop of pain. Pain in our
families, within ourselves and in the world at large. Over diverse instrumentation the south
London rapper pens a personal and political manifesto.
With urgency born out of navigating the turmoil of young fatherhood, mixed racial identity and
the fallout of a summer of international protests against racial injustice, Loyle Carner engages
with a process of self-examination about his place in the world – as a mixed race Black man, an
artist, as a father, as a son.
The album’s sonic landscape is shaped by the use of live instrumentation and the production of
the renowned producer Kwes. At its root the record wrestles with the central question that
defines much of the latest production of British rap’s golden generation.
I’m young, Black, affluent and have a platform – but where do I go next?
Loyle Carner describes “hugo” as being an attempt to “for better or worse” for his career say
things which he feels like he may “never have the chance to say again”.
The album opener and first single “Hate” is angry, feverish and direct. It begins with a distorted
vocal sample and heavy drumming, followed by Carner’s thundering “let me tell you what I
hate!”. The song is emotionally intense and serves as a snapshot of his internal battles,
Inextricably linked with a key message the MC had in mind when writing the album, Loyle
Carner describes the realisation that “hate is based on fear which” morphs into ''the things you
don’t talk about. Which then becomes the things that hurt you inside”.
The album then progresses onto “Nobody Knows”, a track which reflects on what it is like to be
a Black man who’s mixed race identity means you face the racism of anti-Blackness but live
without the solidarity, embrace and love of Black community, as summed up up the line “I told
the black man he didn’t understand I reached the white man he wouldn’t take my hand”. The
rapper describes Malcolm X’s iconic “roots of the tree” speech that encouraged African
Americans to reconnect with their African roots as the inspiration for the lines “You can’t hate the
roots of a tree, and not hate the tree. So how can I hate my father without hating me?”
Georgetown, with a vibrant tempo and instrumentation, sees Carner meditate on how his mixed
race identity has shaped his life experiences and journey as a musician. The inclusion of a
sample of the poem “Half-caste” by the mixed race Guyanese poet John Agard is part of Loyle
Carner’s observation that “in popular culture the nuance of mixed race experience is erased” ‚
using this album as a way to counteract that. Blackness is a key part of this album; against the
backdrop of the 2020 protests he describes “opening up conversations'’ he was previously “too
scared to have” with his “black peers'' about the mixed race experience, resulting in him “feeling
truly black for the first time”.
The sombere downbeat “Homerton”, featuring Olivia Dean and JNR Williams, plays a key role in
the narrative of the album that sees a shift away from the internal focus to a more widescreen
reflection. Foreshadowing the prominent theme of fatherhood that dominates the rest of the
album, Carner actively considers, as he experiences being a father, the kind of legacy he will
leave.
This album is a sharp departure from Loyle’s previous work and he says the experience of
lockdown played a part in this. He recounts the “hedonistic side of career being stripped away.
There were no shows, no backstage, no festivals, no photoshoots”. This, he says, brought a
new sense of clarity. He remembers being surprised that despite there not being guarantee of
“ever being able to play it in front of someone”, by continuing to write there was a sense of
artistic freedom and “lifted pressure”. This undoubtedly informs the commentary on heavy
themes. The harrowing “Blood On My Nikes”, featuring Wesley Joseph, opens with crashing
drums and a haunting synth line. The song, drawn from an experience when the MC was
“barely sixteen”, is a snapshot of the murder of a young person. Years after this incident Carner
reflects on how he wishes “he could have felt my son on his lap and seen life’s for the living to
be done with the trap”. But sympathetically he mediates on the forces of economic inequality
that push young men into criminality stating “No tomorrow if your life’s feeling borrowed he
needs the money right now fuck the sorrow”. The song closes with an extract from then 15 year
old Youth MP Athian Akec. The album continues with “Plastic” where the MC takes aim at
materialism, racial prejudice and the vapidity of society’s obsession with image.
“hugo” then turns inward, focusing on Carner’s experience of becoming a father in the context of
growing up without contact with his biological father. With the song “Polyfilla”, against the
backdrop of a warm melodic beat, Carner explores his desire to “break the chains in the cycle”
of dysfunctional Black fatherhood. He comments on the narrative of fatherhood in the genre
saying “hip hop is still young” “the next step in the story has to be what if we actually turn and
look at the man who looks like us but was raised 30 or 40 years ago in the same UK but even
more ignorant”. He says a key part of the process was realising that his father “grew up in a
world where nobody showed him how to love or nurture”. The follow up track “A Lasting Place”
is an exploration of the MC’s failure and inability to be perfect in this mission. The album closer
is a powerful statement of love and forgiveness; with his signature lyrical dexterity, Carner
declares his relentless commitment to his son and sees forgiving his father as a key part of this.
The song closes with an emotional ending of Carner telling his dad “still I’m lucky yo that we
talk”.
Loyle Carner has a message for the young Black men listening. Aware of our pain and fear, the
MC gives us the heavy task of, despite knowing that we could face police harassment or
violence at the hands of someone who looks like you, or misrepresentation in the media, for us
to wake up each day and to be ambitious. Ambitious in building strong personal relationships.
Ambitious in our pursuit of our goals. Ambitious in never refusing to back down against injustice.
Rejecting the title of leader, Loyle Carner sees himself “as holding up a mirror”. That clearly
translates into the album’s universal messages.