There’s no denying that Nadia Rose has an electric energy. From working full time at a bookies, “writing bars on the betting slips”, she dropped out of university and decided to put all her eggs in one basket – the music industry – despite what she was told. At the suggestion that she was making a disgraceful mistake, she said to herself “No, no, no. I’ve got this. We’ve got this”. Needless to say, the gamble paid off.
In interviews, she often thanks her family for introducing her to music from such a young age. “My father is a DJ and MC, and I grew up listening to all of his records,” she explains. “He had these massive speakers in the living room, every day they were just there, Capleton, Sizzla…”. Even when she couldn’t make out what was being said, she fell in love. “It sounds loud”, she explains, “it sounds hard”. In addition to her immersion from an early age, music clearly runs in the family — her cousin is none other than grime MC Stormzy.
We all relate to each other; it’s something we (womxn) all understand like we have this unspoken, womxn word. It’s really quite beautiful.
Nadia Rose
Nadia certainly hasn’t relied on this to propel her – she has carved out her own distinct voice and worked hard to make it heard. Whenever she heard about a local studio she’d turn up and record a track – they came out “terrible”, she says, but she loved every moment. Having now built up a platform, her and her all-female identifying “Skwod“ use it to demonstrate that female musicians rightly deserve a seat at the table. While discussing the power of sisterhood with us on her tour bus, she says: “We all relate to each other; it’s something we (womxn) all understand like we have this unspoken, womxn word. It’s really quite beautiful.”
With her fierce attitude, on-point political opinions and cutting humour, Nadia reminds us that that the only way to be you, is to do you.
Sound by @Almacbeats
Nadia wears PUMA DEFY throughout. Stay tuned for the next episode where Nadia delves deeper into her positioning as a woman within the music industry.