Name: Ebenezer

Where He’s From: North London

When He Started: 2013

Genre: Rap/R&B

File Next To: Hak Baker, Sampha, Roy Woods, Loyle Carner

Sounds Like: “Nocturnal R&B and hip-hop, with splashes of flavour from all genres.”

First Music That Inspired Him: “Nas’ Illmatic and Kanye West’s College Dropout.”

When an artist claims to be a triple threat, there is usually one craft that they do better than the other. In the case of Ebenezer, however, it’s hard to figure out if he’s a better rapper, singer-songwriter or producer, as he uses each skill to an equally high standard, never leaning on one too much or neglecting another. The fact that he’s worked with high-calibre artists such as Rejjie Snow, Ty Dolla $ign, Stefflon Don, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie and Craig David—in varying roles—only speaks further volumes regarding his talents. “Five years ago,” he says, “I started writing and producing for other artists and, at first, I was shit [laughs] but with practice and non-stop work, I think I’ve finally reached a level that I can be proud of.”

What makes Ebenezer’s journey even more inspiring is that he reached this level through his love of the craft. Coming from humble beginnings in Tottenham, he taught himself how to produce in his house—which was crammed full of family, where four people had to sleep on one bed and where he sometimes had to eat cereal with water—later naturally developing his singing ability on tracks. The music playing in his house consisted of R&B from his sister, hip-hop from his brother, and gospel from his mother. Adept at making contemporary R&B, he can just as easily switch things up and deliver a harder-than-nails rap verse that can match some of your favourite spitters.

The thing that makes Ebenezer stand out the most, though, is the honesty in his lyrics that keep you coming back for multiple listens. He sings about family, religion, and his innermost thoughts in ways that you can truly feel and interpret in parallel to your own life. That’s not to say he can’t be fun and superficial either, because his honesty extends to those areas too when the need demands it. Ebenezer’s stock is undoubtedly rising after every release; his proudest achievement, he says, was “writing and producing a song on an album that went number one: Craig David’s Following My Intuition.” After putting out not one, but two projects last year, now is probably the best time to get on board with his music as he looks set to ramp up the levels even more in 2019.