Stormzy collaborated with a BSL interpreter to make his music more accessible (Credit: YouTube/Rockstar Energy)
A rapper, a chart-topper and most notably an innovator – Stormzy is well-known for being a trailblazer in the music industry.
Calling for change through evocative lyricism, the 30-year-old musician recently set his sights on smashing through a stereotype that until now, had been falling on deaf ears.
Adopting the help of British Sign Language interpreter (BSL) Chris Fonseca, the star put on an accessible extravaganza that opened the floodgates to the idea of widely interpreted Grime songs.
The much-loved artist enlisted partners in Rockstar Energy Drink and put on a revolutionary performance that included his fan-favourite hits Hide & Seek, This is What I Mean, Big for Your Boots, Crown and Vossi Bop.
Each tune was adapted for an electrifying BSL-interpreted edition choreographed by Chris – a talented deaf performer – and offered deaf fans the chance to indulge in a genre they knew and loved like never before.
Chris exclusively chatted with Metro.co.uk and opened up about his important collaboration with Croydon native, Stormzy.
Chris provided the BSL interpreted version of the star’s hits (Picture: RockstarEnergy)
He revealed: ‘I think for me, this is what I hope to be the first of many. I think it’s important to reach out to other companies, other artists and have them look at what Stormzy’s done and see that yes, this is possible.
‘I think we tried to remove the stereotypes and the assumptions that deaf people do not enjoy music – deaf people can’t hear, they don’t like music. It’s a complete trope. It’s not true.
‘And this is why we were trying to break down these barriers and remove these stereotypes. Deaf people love music. I love music, it’s one of my biggest passions. Music is life to me.
‘So I think working with this collaboration, having a platform where we are trying to show and represent in the mainstream where we’re saying, “Look, this should be happening”, and hopefully this will change the narrative and reach other artists and other people see what he’s done and what we’ve done.’
The interpreter and performer continued outlining how he felt Stormzy’s work could kick-start a change in the way the deaf community and music interacted.
He explained why it was so important to add BSL into the industry (Picture: RockstarEnergy)
‘It might be a slow change but we need more’, he urged but went on to say, ‘We need more in this country and with Stormzy’s backing and his endorsement, it’s been amazing.
‘Stormzy really is such a high-profile artist who’s lobbied for change in so many areas. He’s a very humble person who’s given a lot back and he’s always believed in people and people’s talent.
‘And I think he’s seen this as a good opportunity and it’s everybody coming together to support each other, to expand.
‘It’s about allyship and working together to make change happen and hopefully what you can see is a step towards change where we can work together more in the future.’
Stormzy said of his involvement in the recording of the digital Press Play concert experience: ‘Collaborating with Rockstar to bring this performance to life has been an incredible journey. It has been a project that has pushed boundaries since the start.
‘I hope it ignites the same energy and excitement in my fans as it did in me.’
In the aftermath of the performance, Chris explained just how difficult it was to choreograph such a feat and why such enhancements were so urgently needed in the industry.
Chris shared that he felt this was the first step towards change (Picture: @itschrisfonseca)
Stormzy put on a series of digital concerts with the energy drink (Picture: FilmMagic)
The London-based choreographer shared: ‘We were given five songs from Stormzy and we had to make sure that they were really representative of their own individual makeup through the musicality, through the pace and picking out some of his mannerisms.
‘He’s a big presence. He’s always rolling. He’s moving and picking up on those little mannerisms and taking that and cooking with that and adding the BSL interpretation to make sure that we represent Stormzy and his performing style, but also ensuring it’s accessible.
‘It’s not just about standing there with a really blank face and providing a really robotic translation. You have to represent the artist, which is really key.
‘It’s important to focus on the translation first and foremost, adding your own personal style – my own little bit of sauce – mixing that in and making it stand out and be unique, but still being representative of the song itself.
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‘That’s what’s important, getting all of those elements together in the pot and cooking.’
The Rockstar Press Play performance by Stormzy is available to stream on Spotify, or via YouTube where music fans can experience the BSL interpretation.
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‘He’s a very humble person who’s given a lot back and he’s always believed in people and people’s talent’.