Stormzy has reflected on a year that he said tested him ’emotionally, professionally and creatively,’ admitting backlash to his highly-publicised deal with McDonalds forced him to ‘restructure his life.’
The rapper, 32, was accused of ‘selling out’ by his fans are signing the deal with the fast food chain, after the brand faced ongoing calls for boycotts over its links to Israel.
At the time, Stormzy denied he was ‘compromising his beliefs’ by appearing in the campaign, after fans claimed he had previously deleted posts from his Instagram showing his support for Palestine in 2023.
But ahead of the New Year, the rapper penned a lengthy post sharing with his followers how he’d been ‘dying a slow death’ at the start of the year, and has since undergone huge shifts in his life.
Admitting he became ‘crippled with sadness’ over the summer, the musician shared that he took an intentional break from social media, even though it’s an issue that caused ‘major and annoying’ discussions behind the scenes.
Ending his ‘long-winded’ update, Stormzy confirmed that he had still be working on his new music throughout the year and hoped to release is fourth album in 2026.
Stormzy has reflected on a year that he said tested him ’emotionally, professionally and creatively,’ admitting backlash to his deal with McDonalds forced him to ‘restructure his life’
The rapper was accused of ‘selling out’ by his fans are signing the deal with the fast food chain, after the brand faced ongoing calls for boycotts over its links to Israel
In his post, Stormzy began: ‘OK, I’m ready. There’s poetry in all this chaos so lemme embrace it.
‘Towards the end of 2024, my life took a few unexpected twists and turns and I was forced to pivot. These same events also robbed me of the wide-eye innocent I once navigated the world with.
‘Kinda like how you used to believe that Disneyland was powered by rainbows and fairy dust, and then one day you see a headless Mickey Mouse arguing on the phone and smoking a cigarette.
‘This made me more resilient and put the final nail in the coffin of my desire to be understood – a part of that, tbf was already dying a slow death.’
Detailing his decision to accept the McDonald’s deal, he wrote: ‘So fast forward to the beginning of 2025 where I decide to do a McDonald’s deal – a decision that led a lot of you reading this to question both my character and my integrity.
‘See now… the younger me and I guess the ”version” of me you guys are more familiar with would have desperately wanted everyone to understand my reasons for doing it.
‘The Mike from yesteryears would have been compelled to quickly explain himself, and let you know that there is no world in which he would ever trade his humanity for cash. Whereas the newer Stormz couldn’t give a single f**k to explain that fact.
‘F**k what you think and suck my d**k, I don’t need to explain anything to anybody.
Ahead of the New Year, Stormzy penned a lengthy post sharing with his followers how he’d been ‘dying a slow death’ and has since undergone huge shifts in his life
‘(I believe that neither of these extremes are helpful and I guess there’s a middle ground I’d like to find but I’ll get to that later).
‘So 2024 has already kicked my a*s and I was not gonna let 2025 have me on the backfoot, so I came out the first quarter with one hand down my trousers and my middle finger up.
‘I kept it moving, I stayed working, I began to create and was back and forth between London and LA. Then towards the end of the summer I found myself crippled by sadness and I was struggling again.
‘I had to rebuild my team and restructure my life and tbh without Jesus’ divine covering over me and the support of my bestfriend I would have been absolutely cooked.
‘The world that I had come to know and love would never be the same again, and the grief and heartbreak of it all was tough.
‘I had to grow up and I was being challenged in ways that were making me extremely uncomfortable – the kind of discomfort that let me know God must be preparing me for the future. I just had no idea what for.
‘The demands of this new season challenged every part of my being. I was tested physically, spiritually, professionally and creatively. I had no choice but to reassess every detail of my life.
‘A season of this nature is even more unsettling for me because I have always been extremely clear in my purpose and even clearer of the direction that The Holy Spirit wants me to move in.
‘This year felt like I was in the wilderness, but if you’re a believer then you know that the wilderness is one of the most deliberate places God can choose to put you in – for this is where He often chooses to reveal himself.’
Stormzy then continued: ‘So yes it’s been painful and at times I hate it, but as the year ends and I reflect I can say that I am so so so so grateful for it.
‘I have fallen and slipped so many times – but I have also blossomed and risen to the occasion. I’m mad proud of myself and by the grace of God I will step even further into my destiny.
‘I’ve gained a lot of clarity around who I am as a man and who I am as an artist, and in 2026 I want to honour that clarity with execution. This is probably a good time to bring up my relationship with my career, my supporters and with social media etc.
‘I’ve tried to be clear about this over the years but as a lot of you may know I hate being online. I find it unbearable. I don’t like most things about the internet and in an ideal world I would have no social media.
‘When I was younger I bloody loved it here and I loved having the freedom to express myself and interact with you guys… but it just doesn’t feel the same. It’s been tricky finding the balance because what was once authentic to me no longer feels in sync with the person I’ve become.
‘I genuinely used to love posting, tweeting, and recording myself doing stupid s**t with my friends, but I think I’ve just changed, which is fine lol.
‘And the same joy that I once got from all of that, I now get from living in the moment and finding peace away from my phone and just tryna be more present – but this can sometimes feel like a disservice to the people who f**k with me and would genuinely like to see more of me.
‘It’s been a major (and absolutely annoying) point of discussion for the past few years internally with my team but I do understand it and I’m gonna try and figure out a happy medium.
‘Maybe I’ll download Snapchat again or start writing on Substack of just figure out a way to be more present I dunno.
‘Because I really do love you guys with all my heart and I feel the distance – even though I know it’s necessary and important for selfish reasons, I also sometimes think it’s unfair to the people who genuinely f**k with me.
‘And it feels even more unfair to the people who have watched me grow from the early parts of my career. But yeah… just letting you know that I’m thinking of you and I hope to figure it out.’
The rapper went on to write: ‘So there’s a long-winded and hopefully a not too dramatic update of my life.
‘I’ve left out some bits but I hope to share it in some music. I am, of course, in the studio creating what will be my 4th album. I am getting myself together and tryna do better. I am gifted and I am brilliant and I am capable. I am also human and I let myself down more than I’d like to admit.
‘I still have big dreams. I still find the most joy in being generous. I am flawed and I am sincere. I can never be a sellout because I am triple-certified. And I’m a real n*****.
‘And I do the Lord’s work so continue to talk on my name so loosely and recklessly and I promise you the kingdom of heaven knows exactly the kind of work I mash.
‘I am really proud of myself. I am grateful for my bestfriend April who if I start talking about I’ll shed a thug tear. I am grateful for my cousin and my right hand man Jermain, Twin, El, Flipz, Rach, Jackie, AK, Kieran, Janice, Emily, Chef Vic.
‘I am eternally grateful to the people who no longer work with me but were God-sent protectors and guided me and helped me in ways I can only be thankful for.
‘I am tired and rejuvenated at the same damn time. I am sorry to God for abusing his grace and His mercy. I am phenomenal MC and an exceptional artist.
‘I am Big Mike, not the lil one. I am a waffler who should wrap this up.’
Ending his post, Stormzy told his followers: ‘Final thing I wanna get off my chest before I enter the New Year. Wiley I mad love you man. Proper. Everytime I see you I think that’s my guy man and you always was. DC3 is the truth. I know you lot see the new hairline, owwww.
‘Still buzzing I got to meet Will and Jack from Fallow that was emotional.’
Paying tribute to his beloved Rottweiler, who died in November, Stormzy said: ‘RIP Enzo my f*****g son I love you my boy.
‘Mandem, when you’re scrolling through Insta reels and you start saying AI jawns you MUST close the app. Love you all. 2026, we go again. OK, I’m ready.’
Earlier this year, Stormzy declared he’s off the market and ready to marry after sharing the surprise news he’s dating a new mystery partner.
The grime superstar made the admission in his brand new track Sorry Rach! which he released on Wednesday.
In the song, the lyrics share that Stormzy is ready to start a family with his new partner, before noting she is eerily similar to his exes Maya and Victoria Monet.
Earlier this year, Stormzy declared he’s off the market and ready to marry after sharing the surprise news he’s dating a new mystery partner
Stormzy rapped: ‘I told the boys I think I met my wife. Baby if you have my baby then you’re set for life.’
He went onto added: ‘I think I’ve got a type, she’s like the two before.’
Following his split from Maya Jama in July 2024, Stormzy was pictured kissing US singer Victoria Monet in October of that year.
Stormzy was accused of ‘selling out’ after starring in a major campaign for McDonald’s in February, despite the brand’s backlash over links to Israel.
Fans had noticed an Instagram post in which Stormzy publicly supported Palestine in 2023 no longer appears on his feed, prompting speculation – without proof – that he deleted it before signing the lucrative deal.
Following the backlash, Stormzy took to his Instagram Stories on Friday to set the record straight as he denied allegations he deleted the post for the partnership.
He clarified that he did not in fact delete the post but archived it along with many others on his page and insisted he doesn’t work with brands who tell him what to do.
‘Hey guys, I wanted to address some twisted narrative that has been circulating online this past week,’ he penned.
‘Firstly, I didn’t archive the post where I came out in support of Palestine for any reason outside of me archiving loads of IG posts last year.
‘In that post, I spoke about #FreePalestine, oppression and injustice and my stance on this has not changed.
‘The brands I work with can’t tell me what to do and don’t tell me what to do otherwise I wouldn’t work with them.
‘I do my own research on all brands I work with, gather my own information, form my own opinion and come to my own conclusion before doing business.’
Stormzy, whose full name is Michael Ebenazer Kwadjo Omari Owuo Jr, said he felt the need to put out a statement because people were ‘hurt’ by the news circulating.
He went on: ‘I’m writing this because I know there are people out there who have supported me and rooted for me who are genuinely confused and hurt by what they think has happened and I want to give those people clarity so I hope this helps.
‘I understand it must feel disappointing and disheartening when it seems like someone you’ve championed has compromised their beliefs for commercial gain but this isn’t the case here.
‘Social media and the internet quickly pass judgment without full context. While I want to continue to be open and honest, I prefer not to respond immediately to every misunderstanding or clear up every false narrative that surrounds my name. Lots of love, Stormz.’
