2025: Putting Yourself Out There
After all, how will anyone know what you do?
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*DISCLAIMER
While I’m writing about a few of my struggles and successes of the past year, there are significantly greater disfunctionalities in the world and inherently more profound issues with our society we must do better to try to address. I just aim to bring you up to speed and shed some more light on how things have been from my musical and creative point of view this year. Love
A Promise
I had an internal conversation with myself towards the back end of 2024.
I had just parted ways with perhaps one of the most toxic and soul destroying jobs I’ve ever had, witnessed the passing away of two people within my circle and confronted the potential future of being self-employed with no safety net. I was in a bit of a hole at the time.
I’m entirely certain I had no idea what was to come when I had this conversation with myself around this time last year, but I knew something had to change from within to see the results I’ve been wanting to see all my life.
Without getting too too deep, my conversation revolved around mortality and the idea that life can quickly change in an instant, as I had seen at the end of 2024 last year. I had thought about (time and time again) the idea that tomorrow is not promised and that there is no no right or perfect time to start.
Looking from the outside in, I realised I had been making myself small, fitting in and dumbing myself down for most of my life. Why this has been the case is still a mystery to me and still something I’m working at finding the root cause of.
With the current socio-economic status of the world, global conflict, living in a divided country and with fear and hatred on the rise, I decided this had to change. In essence, I wanted to be the change I wanted to see in the world.
So I made a promise to myself that in 2025, I would put my foot on the proverbial neck of the forthcoming year and go all out to shine as brightly as possible because what did I have to loose? The world felt a bit broken at the time, I had been to too many funerals, witnessed communities grieve and suffered too much to keep stalling on sharing things with the world.
I’d like to believe I’ve kept that promise as the end of 2025 draws closer.
New Connections
Before 2025 had even begun, I finished 2024 how I meant to go on in 2025.
I began putting myself in spaces, circles, rooms and networks that I previously would never have done before, all with very mixed results. I signed up for creative networking events, went to back to back gigs, live music events, exhibitions and galleries. I figured if I had some free time I would fill it with something worthwhile.
As my fellow introverts out there will know, this is a sticky one and a big challenge which might seem like the right thing to do on the surface but it sometimes comes at a cost of your own energy and social battery. I’ve talked about this before in previous posts and still hits hard to this day.
However, with the added flexibility of freelance work, I was able to make time and save my energy for these more extroverted social events which was key. It basically meant I could fully capitalise on connecting with people and show up as my true self, not a masked and fatigued version trying to hold it all together, as it had been for much of last year.
One of the main blessings I’ve had this year was connecting with Kwame and furthering my musical connection with Esther. The avenues that have unlocked by just going to parties and connecting with people, who would have thought (!). I can’t even really put into words but working with these two has been a beautiful thing this year.
From The Music Suite events, to I’m Soul Into You, to Unitas Sonas and G-Shock Radio. I have connected with my now brothers DJ Vy and Brother James which has further extended my connected musical family, plus allowed me to meet so many others as a result.
There really seems to be a beautiful soulful scene forming, where selectors, DJs, producers and ravers connect over a shared love of the same type of music. And even if the genres pitch, sway and change, the trust is there because it comes from a familiar place anyway.
It’s really these new connections that have unlocked something inside me. I have known those mentioned above for around a year (some much less) but feel like I’ve known them for several years.
I then wonder if its all just a case of putting yourself out there, showing up as your true self in order to meet your tribe. Is it that easy? It seemed like it was!
Soul Therapy
How can I speak about 2025 without mentioning the launch of a project which I feel has been years in the making. With Esther this year, we have put on two events at The BBE Store completely from scratch following our own intuition and vision.
I have said it before but its worth reiterating: Putting on and promoting events is not for the weak!
In a seemingly dwindling night life scene in London, plagued by inflating rent costs, money hungry developers, below par night life experiences and broken ticketing we took on a big task but believed that what we had to offer with Soul Therapy, would help remedy this.
Our first event on a Thursday night in June was nothing short of spiritual, exceeding expectation and the follow up in November further exceeded our expectation with the room full to burst by the end of the night. I have to say a huge huge thank you to my now brothers Bussa, Lwanga and Cheza for holding it down over the course of the past year.
I can’t even describe how excited I am for the future of Soul Therapy and the prospect of future events at bigger venues, with bigger crowds and bigger line ups.
Of course, it’s not all about things being bigger though, we want to maintain the feeling and the vibe we began with without sacrificing our identity.
Some personal highlights of the year in no particular order include:
DJing in New York City and meeting fans from across the US
Getting a monthly show on Voices Radio
Seeing some of my design work at an international convention with Smartspaces
A Cafe 1001 set
Launching Soul Therapy w/ Esther
Making it to a year fully freelancing
Meeting and speaking with Atjazz, Omar and Sean McCabe
DJing for the first time on Brixton Radio and G-Shock Radio
Running a PB In the London 10K
Time away in Lisbon
Securing representation by The Music Suite
Making new music
DJing for Blank Street, Victoria Arduino and R.A.D. Global
Substack reaching 450+ subscribers
DJing at Brixton Hootenanny for the first time
Looking back at the list, and there’s a lot that hasn’t even made it on there and that’s fine because not everything needs to be covered or talked about.
Some of my biggest wins this year have no tangible outcome or reward. Instead, they come in the quiet and solace of my own mindset and how I go into each day. The small habits and patterns of behaviour that improve your life.
What many might term simple things like speaking into a microphone during a radio show was completely alien to me. I still struggle to hear myself speak but its getting better. Other things like being prepared musically, having an organised library, equipment, backups etc have all become routine.
There's still a lot more I want to achieve and as cliche as it might sound, I feel like I’m only just getting properly started. There’s still a lot of things I’m uncomfortable with, avoid doing and need to learn about. It’s these aspects of life I’m interested in developing in 2026.
Gratitude
Thank you to everyone that has held space this year. To those that have believed in my work whether its in a creative or musical sense. To those that have booked me and trusted me to curate sounds and tell stories through music, I’m properly grateful. To those that trust in the vision and support me even when I struggle to face the world, I appreciate you!
I feel I’ve accomplished a lot this year, taking some great strides but it has not for one second been possible without the help of some very key people who know who they are. It takes a team always.
So in the end, I go back to the promise I made at the very start of the year.
Did I know what was going to unfold in 2025? No
Did I question everything and look for answers I couldn’t yet see? Yes
Did I feel like I wasn’t ready for what was ahead? Yes
Did I doubt myself? Yes
I think the real challenge and indeed victory in all of this lies in proceeding to do all of the above despite what your logic is telling you. Kind of like charging through the fire and flames, leaning into some fear, accepting and acknowledging that their might be some discomfort.
Then, when you look back, your achievements and challenges overcome are all the more sweeter. It comes with great difficulty but its in this space where I feel like the real progression is made.
In a completely non-toxic, hustle bro way, I do feel like a very different person than I was this time last year and that for me, is a sweet triumph.
See you in 2026
Love
Beautiful! A year to be proud of, with all the years before it laying you up for all that’s yet to come 🚀
beautifully put bro!