Stormzy doesn’t believe he would be the artist he is today without working with Fraser T Smith.
The Grime megastar has hailed his “beautiful partnership” with the Grammy-winning studio wizard – who is also behind hits for the likes of Adele, Rita Ora and Sam Smith – and admitted that without his encouragement he wouldn’t have been able to “realise” his “true ability”.
The ‘Vossi Bop’ hitmaker – whose acclaimed 2017 album ‘Gang Signs and Prayer’ was produced by Fraser – said: “Working with this guy is beautiful, honestly beautiful. If you guys see us in the studio it’s a beautiful, beautiful partnership. He’s allowed me to realise my true ability, my true talents – he’s pushed me. I always say if it wasn’t for Fraser, I don’t think I ever would have been able to realise the artist that I could truly be. “
The 27-year-old rapper was speaking in a new documentary about the producer, which has been released following the launch of Amazon Music UK’s new ‘Produced By’ series, which saw Fraser team up with rising stars Avelino, Mysie, Joy Crookes and Easy Life on new tracks.
‘Anywhere’ hitmaker Rita also applauded Fraser for treating every artist the same no matter what stage in their career they are at.
The 30-year-old pop star added how working with the Ivor Novello-winner on 2012’s ‘Shine Ya Light’ from her debut album ‘Ora’ “was just pure, organic, natural vibes. He really is a special person. He’s got a lot of time for people, whether they’re brand new or whether they’ve been in the industry for a long while, he treats everyone the same.”
The documentary includes a look back on the early days of Fraser’s career, from being Craig David’s guitarist, to writing hit records with Adele, Tinchy Stryder, Stormzy and more.
Garage King Craig, 39, said: “For me, what makes Fraser so special is that he listens, no matter what walk of life you’re coming from or what story you’re about to tell. He’ll allow the creativity of the artist to shine through and then elaborate on it.”
On his Amazon Music ‘Produced By’ series Fraser said: “The Amazon Originals EP has been, hand on heart, an amazing experience. Myself and every artist involved has launched themselves creatively into this project and I think we’ve made an EP that stands up against any of the EPs I’ve ever made. I wanted it to be a celebration of new artists that are really coming to the fore in 2021. These four artists represent what’s so exciting about this year in music and I think to have captured a snapshot of their genius on record and to be able to put that together has been an absolute blessing.”
Watch ‘Produced By’ Fraser T Smith in the Amazon Music app or on Amazon Music’s YouTube channel now.