Jesse Greenway, known by the stage name Jeshi, is a musical artist based in London.[1] His music predominantly covers working class disenfranchisement under austerity in Britain through personal storytelling and powerful social commentary. [2]
Personal life
Jeshi was born to a working-class family in Walthamstow, East London.[3] He was raised predominantly by his mother and grandmother, describing his father as "absent", something shared by many of those around him.[4] Despite not having a particularly musical upbringing, he recounted spending "hours glued to the TV watching MTV" and Channel U (UK).[5] He has depicted his influences as broad, ranging from The Streets and Dizzee Rascal to Toro y Moi as well as trip hop bands such as Massive Attack and Portishead.[6] In a discussion with Don Letts for The Face, Jeshi described experiencing Stop and Search growing up.[7] He has also stated that he was physically assaulted in front of his family at the age of 15; he describes undergoing this experience, and choosing not to retaliate afterward, as a pivotal moment in his life.[4]
Career
Jeshi began making grime tracks with friends in the late 2000s, utilising the free music technology available to him at the time at school.[4] He released his debut EP Pussy Palace in 2016. Much of his early work was "super DIY... Recorded at home, in friend's bedrooms, kitchens... anywhere".[6] He followed up on this with a second EP titled The Worlds Spinning Too Fast which featured production from Mura Masa. He then took a hiatus from releasing any solo material however appeared on a feature track titled I Don't Owe U NYthing with Vegyn and Summer with Brit Awards Rising Star winner Celeste.
In 2020, Jeshi released his EP Bad Taste, which featured collaborations with Fredwave, John Glacier and a second collaboration with Celeste titled 30,000 FEET. The EP's lead single Coming Down features a sample from British electronic group Jungle. [8][9][10][4] Jeshi's second collaboration with Vegyn "I See You Sometimes" was featured in Chanel's 2021 Cruise Show.[11]
Jeshi released his debut studio album, Universal Credit, in May 2022.[12] The album is titled in reference to the universal credit policy, a Conservative Party-led overhaul of the British benefits system. The universal credit policy has been criticised for exacerbating inequality.[13][14] The album was described by reviewers as political, with subject matter ranging from partying to suicide and council housing maintenance.[10] Jeshi has described his choice of title as a way to "give power to words that often carry a negative weight for a lot of people".[15] The album's cover art depicts Jeshi receiving an oversized cheque for £324.84, a direct reference to the amount of money given to him monthly while being on Universal Credit and writing the album at the time.[16][17]