Che Lingo
Che Lingo
Che Lingo is a rapper from South London who has explored the deeper, more heartfelt side of United Kingdom. rap, aiming to bring emotional intelligence to his lyrics and beats. He started out at 16 experimenting in his local youth club studio, where he developed his own style. Eventually, he took to open-mike nights, where his manager spotted him and offered to work with him on his 21st birthday. His debut EP, Charisma, landed in 2018, preceding a mini-album -- and mission statement of sorts -- titled Sensitive, which saw release the following year. He signed recently signed a deal with Idris Elba's 7Wallace roster in 2020.[1][2][3]
Early Life
Che's mum gave birth to him at the age of 17, which makes him her first child.
His dad has always be absent from the start.
Che was later brought up by his nan because his mom was involved in illegal activity and raising him was hard for her.
The estate he lived on as a child, in Battersea, was a tough place for a young boy
“The community was good, but it wasn’t a good place.
Sometimes you couldn’t walk through the estate,” he remembers.
But Che kept himself to himself: “I grew up in the hood, but I wasn’t raised by it.
I was growing quite soft — my nan spoiled me and sheltered me quite a lot.”
Still, as a teenager, he found himself troubled by adolescent feelings of anger and confusion at his family situation.
This only deepened when he had to leave his nan’s house to return to live with his mum at 15, and eventually had to be taken in by social services, and placed in a flat in Kingsbury at 17.
Music became his way forward and he always turn up at the two or three youth clubs in South London that he frequented, with pages and pages of lyrics in hand, recording and rehearsing his way through his darkest days.
“Throughout all that time, I was in the studio.
No matter what happened, no matter where I was, no matter how good or bad my situation was — there were literally times when I had to sleep outside — I would always find time to get to the studio.
It was just paramount to my whole life.
It was like second nature.”
Che’s earliest musical influence was grime.
He credits Chip and Wiley with teaching him about cadence and personality in MCing and also claimed to have learned everything about diction and multi-syllabic rhyming from P Money, Ghetts, and Dot Rotten. That sound is still audible in his bars today, but as an artist Che weaves his rapid-fire lyricism with beats that draw on the soulful hip-hop and R&B he also loves. It’s a sound that straddles the United States. and the United Kingdom., with a distinctly London punch.
“I want the lyrical content,” he explains, “but I also want the soul and the body.”
After leaving college, Che decided to focused fully on music rather than taking up a place to study graphic design at University.
He threw himself even more into his studio sessions and performances, appearing on open mic bills around London. He became a regular favorite at Hip-Hop Nation, a night that also kickstarted the careers of Nadia Rose and Ms. Banks, and where he met his management in the crowd. [4]
Career
In 2013, he dropped his debut mixtape Trillingo, which included the single “Level Up.” He directed a colourful video for the track himself in Battersea Park, beginning his career-long obsession with managing every aspect of his own creative vision. The passion he has led him to direct his own videos, write his own press releases, design his own imagery, and generally have a seat at the table when it comes to all creative decisions. His need for total creative control formed a theme on the 2015 mixtape The Risk Is Proof, which tackled the ultimate risk — and the ultimate satisfaction — that comes with being an independent DIY artist. By the time he released his plush, video game-influenced EP Better Versions in early 2017, Che was feeling reflective about how his 3D approach to his career had helped him continually push himself as an artist. With dense beats from producer Kutflow embellished with ice-cold synths, the EP was also an opportunity for Che to give a nod to his grime heritage.
Later in 2017, singles “Zuko” and “Black Girl Magic” proved that the South London lyricist isn’t finished levelling up yet. The empowering, downtempo jam “Black Girl Magic” in particular is his best-performing single to date, with almost half a million YouTube plays for the sumptuously shot video, and support from Complex and BBC Radio 1. The song, he explains, is an anthem inspired by his mum, nan, and little sister. The songs formed part of the EP, Charisma, he released in 2018
“I just wanted something that they could all feel happy about.
I heard some statistics, that black women are the most unappreciated human on earth, and that just resonated with me so much.”
Lingo has the sort of integrity that, it appears from his songs, he feels has been lacking in music lately, although his music suggests the versatility of more established artists like Dave and Kojey Radical. On his 2019 track Big Doubts, he raps how people “just want trash rap nowadays”. But he can do sentimental R&B, too – his EP last year was called Sensitive and included the crushed-out single Circles, in which he sings about how “emojis don’t replace emotions” over a beat recalling Cameo’s Candy.[4][3]
Che Lingo Signs With Idris Elba's 7Wallace Label
It's of no surprise to see Che Lingo boost his career with his new deal with 7Wallace after a successful released of projects of smooth sounds as in 2018's Charisma and 2019's Sensitive.
It's clear that Che Lingo brings something special to the table and seeing him announced that he's been signed to Idris Elba's 7Wallace label was a great feet for the rapper.[1]
"Meeting Idris was an honour," says Lingo.
"A black British man that integrally grinded his way to being one of the most loved actors of our time.
It boggles my mind that someone who can be so outwardly great is so inwardly humble, grounded and driven."