Award-winning Leeds rapper Graft said he will change his last name after tracing his ancestry on BBC’s We Are England.
Graft, whose real name is Jovanni Sterling, appeared on the programme which aired last night (Monday) alongside his mum.
The episode explored topics such as growing up, his journey in the music industry and the reason why the 22-year-old had wanted to find out more about his ancestry.
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“I feel grateful to be from the UK but it doesn’t feel like home,” Graft told viewers. “I love having Caribbean heritage but I want to find out about my African ancestry.”
Graft, who won The Rap Show UK in 2020, took a DNA kit as well as his parents in the hopes it would fulfil his “sense of purpose” and identity.
The MOBO-award winner said he knew about his Caribbean heritage, which he is proud of but had always been interested in finding out more about his African heritage.
His maternal grandparents moved to Leeds in the 1950s from St Kitts and were faced with racism at the time. His dad from Jamaica moved to the city when he was around 10-years-old.
The issue of his surname 'Sterling’ was brought up which he states “was given to my ancestors in the most abrupt manner.”
The results revealed that Graft’s maternal side was traced back to Guinea Bissau to the Balanta people and Senegal, his paternal side was traced to the Makina people from Gabon.
After finding out, he said he would do more research following the results and would pick a new surname that resonates with him.
He continued: “My surname is nice but I’m not a descendant of a white Scottish slave master.
“My surname is not representative of who I am, it’s the surname given to my ancestors in the most abrupt manner and it frustrates me thinking about it.
“The surname I have comes from somebody that enslaved my family.”
After reading the results, he said: “Now I know the exact tribes it's really going to change the music or the message that I put into the music because right now my music I have a lot of Caribbean influence in it even in the way I rap the sounds and the way I perform. Once I get to know more of my African side I will also incorporate that into my music as well.”
His mum added: “Recognising who you are after not knowing for so many years is fantastic.
“When they talk about tribes that resist and warriors you see we have the traits
“Now I know my identity whereas before I didn’t, we know the Caribbean side but you don’t really know your truth.”
