Heavy is the Head

Heavy is the Head absolutely hits it out of the park. It’s the same winning mix of grime bangers and radio friendly singing as last time, but, crucially, it’s better at making sure they work together on the same project. 16 tracks might seem like a lot, but when almost every one is a classic, it’s so hard to care.

On Heavy Is the Head, that throne is never taken lightly. Instead, Stormzy delivers one of the most introspective and prayerful works of the year, solidifying his elite status in hip-hop.

More enjoyable overall than Gang Signs, Heavy Is the Head is a well-rounded mix of toughness and sentimentality, and another rightful triumph.

Save a few saggy, meh0ish collaborations mining genres, this sparky yet spiritual blend of bum-rushing hard bangers and deep soul dives further underscores his three-dimensional star quality. [Feb 2020, p.86]

Yet another display of his banter and brains. [Feb 2020, p.106]

Stormzy came out swinging for his second album – it’s big, it’s broad and it is mostly brilliant.

The spaciousness, punch and depth of these productions is telling, but it is a mark of the album’s artistic integrity that Stormzy manages to transcend genre (again) without sacrificing his core griminess, or losing too much in the way of accent, word choice, content or theme.

The result wittily, emotionally and triumphantly affirms his position at the head of the British rap pack. Like many of our most fascinating pop stars, from John Lennon to Robbie Williams, Stormzy lies on a knife-edge between ego and insecurity, self-confidence and self-doubt.

A powerful collection. And if Heavy Is The Head is one thing, it’s aware of its own worth.

The labyrinthine complexities of human nature are explored here in all their grit and glory, but it’s the combination of Stormzy’s charm and his knack for storytelling that allows ‘H.I.T.H’ to glimmer with a universal appeal that will please both his mainstream audience and grime fans of old; an almost impossible task that he’s amazingly pulled off.

it consistently hits a sweet spot. It is packed with memorable hooks – singles Vossi Bop and Wiley Freestyle are by some distance the least obviously commercial things here – but never sounds obvious or craven in its desire for chart success.

Not only is it a drastic step up from an impressive debut, but it shows an artist keen to test himself emotionally, as well as artistically.

A solid album but also not a surprising one. To boot, the main thing that grounds this album with a sense of time and place is the political side of it.

Stormzy sounds more natural than most in his oscillation between the streetwise rude boy and the silky lover man. ... There are a few clunkers on this overstuffed album.

The versatility on show gives a sheen of adventurousness that isn’t quite backed up by the beat selections—the majority of which feel like safe choices for an artist otherwise known for his accelerated ambitions.