Steel Banglez has done it all—he went from DJing and broadcasting on pirate radio to producing for the likes of D Double E, Wiley and Krept and Konan, to name a few, contributed one of the biggest hits of the Afroswing era with Fashion Week and collaborated with over 40 artists, including Giggs and Chip, to create his debut studio album in 2023. He holds multiple platinum records and chart-topping success to his name and the most blinding jewellery to prove it. Being a British-born, East London-raised son to Panjabi Sikh immigrant parents—a poet and an Indian classical music teacher—he grew up in the most beautiful melting pot of cultures as he’s surrounded by his Indian heritage as well as those with Jamaican, Ghanaian and Nigerian roots in Forest Hill. His upbringing is both sonically and authentically reflected in his work, as his music spans genres like Hip-Hop, R&B, Dancehall and Grime, all while tapping into Panjabi and other South Asian sounds and lyrics. Banglez has always displayed pride in the multicultural environment that he grew up in and found a balance in having both communities accept him as their own because of how he approaches both cultures with the highest respect.

Black and South Asian Britons have always shared a special relationship with each other. Neither of our communities were welcome in this country when we respectively came over. We picked up manual labour and public healthcare jobs that others didn’t want to do and were still called leeches. Slum housing was as commonplace as racism. Despite our seemingly continuous hardships, this country has immensely benefited from the cultural currency we’ve bestowed upon it through our food, music, art, literature, fashion, film, and television. Additionally, we take immense pride in our individual heritages and cultures and host extravagant carnivals and melas to showcase and educate the public on our histories. Our purchasing power, entrepreneurial spirit, and hustle mentality have had a massive economic impact on the UK, and Banglez has always recognised this joint influence, both in how he lives his life and in the work he’s produced with Burna Boy, J Hus or Sidhu Moose Wala.

He takes all of his career wins and the personal and wider contexts of his life into the studio and focuses on building a legacy. After having all the success one could ever dream of, Banglez now faces his most difficult challenge yet: creating meaningful work that can last the test of time. One Day, It Will All Make Sense is his answer to that. This 6-track, 20-minute EP is a reflection of the incredible blend between Banglez and his East London surroundings, as well as what he feels the future of the Black and Brown sound could be by making these two worlds collide and collaborate in a beautiful way. I was fortunate enough to attend an exclusive first listen playback session in Spatial Audio at Dolby Studios in London, two weeks before release day. Fans and industry supporters, including DJ Semtex, DJ Limelight, Navinder Nangla, and Juss Nandhra, among others, gathered to listen to Banglez discuss his latest project with Apple Music 1 Radio Presenter, DJ and Producer, Naina Sethi. Listening to him speak with such fondness about his upbringing and the clash of cultures he grew up in, the humility in his voice when he spoke about the caliber of artists he collaborated with on this project, and the significance of his community to him was simply endearing.

The project starts off with an international link-up that sets the tone for the rest of the EP: NEVER LET YOU GO with AP Dhillon and Omah Lay could not sound more perfect. Banglez did a stellar job on the production of this pop/R&B-leaning song, with a swooning piano intro and a bass line that makes you feel like you’re floating. With additional co-production from DJ and producer Marshmellow and songwriting from Shinda Kahlon, this laid-back and groovy track is a solid opener and is sure to be at the top of many people’s playlists. MOHOBBAT continues the grand piano sound and leads us into an Amapiano-inspired ballad with hailed Indian Punjabi playback singer Afsana Khan, songwriting partner Nirmaan and Nigerian superstar Lojay. Rightly the first single off of the EP, it’s an addictive, two-stepping song about the consequences you feel and face for falling so deeply in love. Lojay lends his signature tone and lyrical delivery midway through the song, on his verse, that lifts up the energy and assists Khan with an alley-oop to end on a high note.

We move on to a more upbeat song featuring Stefflon Don and Ikka on ONLY ONE—they effortlessly glide over this chill dancehall beat. Ikka brings the cool factor with a bilingual, desi hip-hop feel and makes your head bop to the song even more. The chorus exudes a universal anthem sound, which isn’t surprising considering Fred Again’s co-production. (He also worked with Stefflon Don on 16 Shots). I can envision this song being synced somewhere near the end credits of a Fast & Furious movie. FLOWERS is the song I could play for hours on end. In fact, I have. Talwiinder’s echoey chorus, accompanied by a gentle, electric guitar-led melody, creates this melancholic atmosphere throughout the song that makes it the perfect thing to drive to at night, especially when you’re in your feelings. The Panjabi lyrics are emotional and hauntingly poetic, while Pheelz brings a pining in his voice that is tonally faultless.

We crescendo to the song of the project—TIMES is a Gospel/Hip-Hop/R&B song, with Tamil lyrics sung by Sid Sriram and a rap verse from Mass Appeal label co-founder and a Mount Rushmore of Hip-Hop-level giant, Nasir Jones. As Nikita Chauhan so poetically captioned in an Instagram post, a Forest Green link up via Chennai and Queens, New York. Insane. Shout out to Aarti Popat who brought Banglez’ attention to Sid; the story goes that he needed someone on this track and she recommended Sriram. After watching his NPR Tiny Desk performance, he went to see him live at the iconic EartH in Dalston and heard a unique pain in his voice that was different than his recordings. He immediately knew he wanted to translate that raw emotion into this song. Sid wrote out his entire part in a single studio session and laid it all down. Nas heard it and delivered a verse in two days and just like his fourteenth studio album, it was ‘magic’. TIMES is an emotionally charged song that speaks to a struggle and an inner resilience that so many people of colour can relate to. Not only did it speak to the hard times Banglez was going through when making this record but it speaks to our ancestors and their pain and sufferings. It speaks to anybody that might be going through troubling times and just need motivation to keep going. Nas offers an introspective verse in which he reflects on the passage of time, the challenges he’s faced, and the life lessons he’s acquired. He concludes his verse with a call to action in the form of a poignant line: “We been in a tight spot, fight to live.” Sriram cries out the words “Kan thiranthaene” (கண் திறந்தேன் நான்), which translates to ‘I opened my eyes’ in Tamil—a line delivered with such vulnerability, which, in the context of the song, is enough to make a grown man’s eyes all glossy. In contrast to the translation, I can’t help but close my eyes and manifest better times when he sings the bridge; I get goosebumps every time. He signals to us that there is a light at the end of the tunnel, that better times will come. In his own words, “This song feels like the rays of sunlight that cut through clouds when a storm is passing.” The best part is that you don’t need to know Tamil to allow it to make you feel a way. Without the mention of Him or Her, God is everywhere in this song; faith is borderless, it has no language.

He travels the world and back with this project but finally comes home to London and brings UK R&B rising star Shaé Universe into the studio to help end the project with singing on the title track—ONE DAY IT WILL ALL MAKE SENSE. Shaé, being a pastor’s kid, preaches poetic by lending her calming, velvety voice to the song in a hopeful, prayer-like tone. Idris Elba, in the middle of his busy shooting schedule, takes a few minutes’ break in his trailer to record a heartfelt and inspiring voice note of a poem he wrote on his phone, that Banglez uses to end the EP. The majority of the album is in a minor key, which lends to the melancholy that flows through the project. However, as we follow him on this journey of heartbreak, we end on a positive note by being told that our pain has context; that things don’t happen to us but that they happen for us.

Steel Banglez has truly outdone himself in bringing these two musical worlds together on this exceptional project. Each song on this EP has been crafted with a profound sense of love and care, showcasing his remarkable collaborative spirit throughout his work. A masterful blend of cultures and genres with a medley of diverse artists, Banglez went above and beyond with this project to highlight his community and the dynamic sounds and voices that come from all corners of the diaspora, which is a bold move to make but a testament to his artistic integrity. This isn’t a gimmick, it’s a standard for him. Great artists are not afraid to take risks like this. While we’ve seen collaborations between Western artists like Akon, Ed Sheeran, Lil Wayne, Kylie Minogue, and Snoop Dogg and South Asian singers in the past, this project stands out as a potential catalyst for more authentic collaborations between the African and South Asian communities, outside of creating quick edits of Afrobeats songs and Punjabi vocals for TikTok and SoundCloud (of which I am partially guilty too). I also believe that if we allow this EP time to mature, it has the potential to become a landmark release in the broader discourse of British South Asian music and I cannot wait to see what the ripple effects of this project and the profound impact it will have on the UK music scene will be.

Just like Idris says, “It will all make sense, as long as you’re there to see it through.”

ONE DAY IT WILL ALL MAKE SENSE is now available to buy and stream everywhere.