The summer heralding sound of afroswing has warmed up the past half decade worth of shoobs in the UK and beyond, via melodic tracks like Dave and Burna Boy’s “Location”, J Hus’ anthemic, garage tinged “Did You See” and NSG and Tion Wayne’s ultra sleek club tune “Options”. The man behind those tracks is British Ghanaian producer JAE5 the scene’s genre shifting pioneer. The east Londoner’s evolutionary blend of rap production, layered minimalism and afro-beat instrumentation has locked off house parties, wound down car windows and gelled several generations worth of rooms together, nabbing mainstream award wins (Best Producer MOBOs 2020 & 2021), nominations (Best Contemporary Song Ivor Novello 2020; plus multiple BRIT and Mercury nods) and platinum records along the way.

JAE5 is technically minded but his knack for intuitively knowing what to leave in, what to leave out, and how to fuse everything into one intergenerational, cross genre sound is unparalleled. He makes music that feels real. Having released some of the biggest songs in modern British history and having galvanised us with his sound, there’s plenty of music waiting in the wings and more singles coming. With all the accolades under his belt, it’s now his turn to lead.