It’s August bank holiday weekend in London. You know what that means. Most of the city will be heading west and taking to the streets of Notting Hill for carnival fun times. Anticipating a big one, we called on DJ, 1Xtra presenter, platform-provider and artist on the rise Kenny Allstar to make a mix to get everyone in the mood.
“Leading up to this year’s Notting Hill Carnival I’ve been in such a reflective state,” Kenny told i-D over email. “I remember summers growing up when my mum would play these tunes from the late 80s/90s dancehall and reggae era. I wanted to encapsulate that vibe through this mix. Carnival is one of the most important times in my life and this music inspired the come up immensely.”
Catch Kenny at one of the many sets he’s playing at stages and parties across the city this weekend: GRM Daily’s carnival warm-up at KOKO tonight, Toddla T and Boiler Room on Sunday 26th and Ministry of Sound on Monday 27th.
Not able to make carnival this year? Get stuck into Tracksuit Love (currently sitting at over a million views in just one month), Kenny’s track with Headie One, taken from his forthcoming release Block Diaries. With the album, he plans to pull together key young talents from the worlds of UK drill, Afro-swing and UK trap. “Those are the three corners I wanted to focus on — the sound of young London.” Can’t wait.