J Hus’s 2016 outing Common Sense was pivotal in evolving contemporary British urban music, bringing African R&B influences into London’s admixture of grime and dancehall. After a second stint in prison (for carrying a knife), Hus re-emerges a more thoughtful figure on his second album. He’s still hiding from “the feds” on Helicopter, still “reckless, reckless”. But the way in which he switches fluidly between loverman sing-song and staccato rap glorifies his former lifestyle a little less and ponders the wider picture a little more.
“How you gonna run the world? You can’t even run your life?” Hus muses on Fight for Your Right; it’s unclear whether he’s sneering at rivals or berating himself. “I’m on the roadside, but I’m playing chess,” he offers on No Denying. Tunes like Cucumber (“I gave her the coo-cumba!”), by contrast, are slick with body fluids.
While Big Conspiracy’s two guest spots – Grammy-winning dancehall MC Koffee and Nigerian Afrobeats star Burna Boy – capture two artists at the top of their respective games, what really impresses on repeat listens is producer Jae5’s unshowy productions. Full of unexpectedly bittersweet horns and electric guitar, his mellow confidence here eschews clutter and bombast.
