Name: Zino Vinci

Where He’s From: Newham, East London

When He Started: “The first time I recorded a song was in 2015. I did it at a friend’s house, and it was a short, 15-second verse on a posse cut which is terrible listening back now [laughs]. It’s still somewhere on SoundCloud. It was around 2021 when I released my Baby Blue EP—I made a conscious decision to start taking music seriously by that point.”

Genre: Alternative British Rap

File Next To: Rushy, SamRecks, Len

Sounds Like: “My sound is very unique. Sonically, it has a lot of inspiration from the UK and America but, subject matter-wise, I’m always gonna make music from a UK perspective. I guess it’s very specific to me; if you meet me in real life, you will understand the music as well.”

First Music That Inspired Him: “When I was in school, my friend showed me this video of a guy eating a bug. I went home thinking, ‘What the hell was that about?’ I thought it was the craziest thing ever! It was ‘Yonkers’ by Tyler, The Creator, and ever since I heard that song, I thought: ‘I’m gonna start writing music as well.’ The combination of the visuals and the music was so abstract and surreal.” Alongside ‘Yonkers’, Zino is inspired by Kendrick Lamar’s “The Heart Pt.3”, stating it’s his “favourite track in the whole world and dropped at a point where Kendrick used to do little check-ins and give updates about his current state of mind, especially because he was getting more famous and people were calling him the new Tupac, which came with a lot of pressure. I thought the instrumental was beautiful and the way he used his features on that song was amazing as well—very specific, and only when necessary. I’d also say my favourite Kendrick project is To Pimp A Butterfly. It came out at an important time and it was really relatable, especially being a Black person myself.”

For the past 18 months, East London-born Zino Vinci has been making inroads in the UK rap scene, carving out his own lane and impressing fans and critics alike with projects such as Filthy & Disgusting and TFL Blues, with fan-favourite cuts like “CEO Of The Friendship Group”, “Filth” and “Tamagotchi Crocs” highlighting his penchant for lyrical and visual storytelling. “A lot of different artists and genres were being played in my house growing up,” Zino tells TRENCH, “from my parents listening to gospel and jazz to my sister listening to grime and R&B. I was also watching a lot of cartoons and wrestling during this time, so I listened to a lot of theme songs.” Zino often references his love for comic books, action figure customisation, WWE and what he describes as “general nerdiness” in his music, interests that were embraced early on and continue to influence his detailed verses and eye-catching music videos.

As a rapper who utilises his voice like an instrument, the Newham native credits Kendrick Lamar as the most influential artist in his life: “I just like how he sounds, and how he uses his voice in different ways, floating on songs,” he explains. “I’ve been listening to Kendrick from when he was really young, all the way up to the present day, and you can hear the evolution of his sound because, when he was much younger, it sounded like he studied Lil Wayne which then slowly evolved into what we know as Kendrick today. I’m just a big hip-hop nerd, and I would say my greatest strength as an artist is that I’ve got a really interesting flow; I can be super-fluid and pull from a lot of places. I can also sing. I’m not saying I’m the only rapper that can sing, but I feel like my approach is like a breath of fresh air in my environment.”

Being a rapper comes with its difficulties and challenges. For each artist it can vary, but for Zino, he says “the most challenging thing can sometimes be subject matter. When you’re writing lyrics, you might be thinking, ‘I’ve already written something about this.’ But then you look at other people’s artistry: some will be known for their heartbreak songs and others for making feel-good songs. So, as a rapper who grew up listening to Kendrick, Tyler and Childish Gambino—who all talk about a plethora of things—I feel like I should live a bit more and write about an array of subjects, instead of boxing myself in. I’m still figuring things out.”

This year, Zino Vinci has performed in cities such as Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Paris, connecting with people through the energy of live music. He will also be opening up the main stage at the upcoming Reading & Leeds Festival. “I’m excited about that one, but it is a bit daunting,” he shares. “I feel like it’s nothing I haven’t done before though, so I’m looking forward to it. It should be fun. I’m just gonna give the best performance and have a good time doing it.”

After a successful year and selling out his first headline show, Zino recounts some of his most memorable achievements, which include “receiving the WWE 2K game” and a pair of creps for free. It’s the little things in life, right? “As crazy as it sounds, WWE 2K was, like, one of the biggest things in my life because it meant so much to me growing up and had such an impact on my music—it was really a full circle moment,” he says. “Something else that was big to me was when I received a pair of BAPE STAs. When I got my first paycheck, I spent it on a BAPE hoodie; I love BAPE, so the fact that I’m on their radar is so sick to me. Getting 1,000 streams was a big achievement too; it took me a year to get my first 1,000 streams, so I understand the importance of it.”

Zino Vinci is currently working on his upcoming project, which is expected to be as thought-out and imaginative as his last. “Late Bloomer will be coming out later this year and I cannot wait to show people the visual side of it,” he says. “It’s going to be really soon as well, which I’m excited about because I’m used to just writing everything by myself which could get a bit lonely but having features on this project means that there will be different perspectives from different artists with different ideas and different experiences.”

The future is bright for Zino, and the universe he’s building complements his music perfectly. “The end goal will always be to have an impact,” he adds. “I want to be nominated for awards and to be an artist who is always in conversations. I just want it to be a thing where it’s a common consensus that Zino Vinci is a really good artist that you should be listening to.”