Stormzy has spoken of his pride over the achievements of England star Marcus Rashford. The 25-year-old has become as well known for his activism off the pitch as his goalscoring on it.
Manchester United forward Rashford pushed for low-income families to be provided with free school meals outside term time and for the rate of Universal Credit to be raised. He has also helped get book donations to under-privileged children.
Rashford has faced criticism from some who feel his off-field activities hinder his form on the pitch. But he was back to his best in an England shirt on Tuesday as he scored twice in the win over Wales at the World Cup.
Stormzy told BBC Breakfast: “I think, even for someone like Marcus, I’m sure he gets a lot of ‘Just shut up and kick your football’, and I’m proud of him for what he does – he stands his ground and does what he needs to do.
“He’s probably very confused (at the backlash)… and that’s happened to me a couple of times in my career, so I’m just proud of him. I (would just) encourage him to carry on.”
He praised Rashford for his role in Tuesday's win, which helped England qualify for the last 16 of the World Cup, and said he was also happy with Ghana’s efforts. Stormzy also spoke about his third studio album, This Is What I Mean, which came out on Friday, and revealed that he used to feel a “bit tense” when promoting records.
He said: “This time I’m like, I’m just really proud… So there’s no pressure in that.” He added that the new album has so “much feeling, freedom and soul” that it will “touch people in the heart”.
He said that making the record on the secluded Osea Island in Essex was a “beautiful experience”. He added: “I think what I managed to do was kind of create a culture with all the musicians of, like, no ego and just, like, let’s just make beautiful music, and let’s just throw ideas at each other, so, yeah… and then off the back of that we made this beautiful album.”
The album is described as a “heartfelt” collection and explores personal topics including forgiving his absent father and his feelings of paranoia, depression and self-doubt. It comes three years after his 2019 album and is already going head to head with Sir Cliff Richard’s new festive record for this week’s top spot in the Official Albums Chart.
Stormzy said: “(Sir Cliff’s) got a great Christmas song, that’s a legend.”
