“What is your definition of home?” Wretch 32 asks Apple Music. “Is it where you come from, where you belong or something deeper than that?” When it came to creating his seventh album, HOME?, celebrated London rapper Wretch 32 decided to turn inwards and tackle those deep questions. Inspired by his family’s history of migration from Jamaica to the UK as part of the Windrush generation and equally enraged by the British Government’s treatment of that generation during the Windrush scandal, Wretch took to the studio to express the musical milestones that make up his myriad understandings of home. The result is 15 expansive tracks that traverse everything from the laid-back Afrobeats of “Like Home” to reggae on “Bridge Is Burning”, the soulful backing of “Windrush” and R&B romance of “Little Things”. Features, meanwhile, come from grime contemporaries like Kano and Ghetts, as well as international stars Skip Marley, Teni and Protoje. “I wanted to make sure that everything sounded and felt like the same textures of music I had growing up in my house,” Wretch says. “That’s all the music that got me to where I am today—it’s the sound of home.” Read on for his in-depth thoughts on the album, track by track. “Transitional Chapter” “Drum ’n’ bass is an integral part of my upbringing and heritage in the UK, so it was an honour to get Goldie’s blessing to re-sing this iconic sample from ‘Inner City Life’ as a way to start the record. I like an intro on an album that feels like a first scene in a film—it’s a space where I can speak about what the album is going to be and where I’m at.” “Seven Seater” (feat. Ghetts & Mercston) “When I made this instrumental with my live band we called it ‘Beast Mode’ because it was so venomous it reminded me of the pirate radio days where people would freestyle over a similar energy. It made me reach out to my brethren Mercston and Ghetts, and Mercs created this amazing intro and outro while, with Ghetts, we went in and out line for line, which feels nostalgic but it’s over a sound you’re not used to us being on.” “Like Home” (feat. Teni) “When I used to be at home as a kid listening to music, it always felt so good, and that’s the feeling I could capture most closely with the Afrobeats instrumental on this track. Whenever I listen to Afrobeats, it brings me back to a vibe of R&B, reggae or rap songs with singers on the chorus—it evokes so many fusions. Everyone who listens to this one says it makes them feel good too!” “Nesta Marley” (feat. Skip Marley) “At this point in the album, it felt important to segue to the Caribbean and, when we did, I knew I had to include extracts from the legend himself, Robert Nesta Marley, as well as featuring his grandson Skip. It feels like the most colourful tune on the album, something listeners might not be used to hearing me on.” “Bridge Is Burning” (feat. Protoje) “By track five we’ve already transitioned through so many cultures. For this one, I was thinking about being in the hills in Jamaica when a rasta passes away and they play the Nyabinghi drums at the funeral. It feels spiritual and I wanted to evoke that same sensation, so I knew we needed someone from that background to feature. I’m a massive fan of Protoje, and he slotted in perfectly.” “Me & Mine” (feat. WSTRN) “The record gets quite deep so before we go there, this is a track to keep the mood bright, bringing the worlds of Afro and rap together. Growing up, my dad would play his music in the front room, my mum in her room, my sisters in theirs and me in mine, with every space being like another room in a nightclub. Each song on the album similarly takes you into those different places.” “Home Sweet Home” (feat. Kano) “Now we get deeper. The idea for this song came about when I was talking to my exec producer about how, when I lived in a run-down estate in Tottenham, we knew all our neighbours and shared things even though it could be dangerous there—whereas, when I moved to a plush estate in Barnet, you’d be lucky if someone held the door for you. I wanted to explore this idea of community and I knew Kano would be perfect for it. I reached out, and he executed incredibly.” “Home Is Where the Heart Is Interlude” “I love an interlude on an album as it gives me the chance to sound different and use skits or play with my voice. This is an interlude where we piece together everything that’s happened before we transition into something different.” “Black and British” (feat. Little Simz & Benjamin A.D) “‘Black and British’ is what it says on the tin—it’s a track speaking about my life and upbringing, the trials and tribulations of how I got to where I am. I knew I needed a female perspective on being Black and British also, since everything needs a woman’s touch, and there was no one else I’d trust more than Simz. It’s a track that ultimately set the tone for the whole album.” “Windrush” (feat. Cashh & tendai) “The Windrush scandal and the injustice of how the British Government treated the Windrush generation was the initial inspiration for the whole album. I wanted to imagine what the journey to the UK might have been like from different perspectives and Cashh was integral to this because he’s a young person who’s been deported from the UK to Jamaica and has then managed to come back. He has experience and depth and he gave so much in his verse.” “Little Things” (feat. Angel) “I have one of these types of song on every project, like ‘6 Words’ [from 2016’s Growing Over Life] or ‘Don’t Go’ [on 2011’s Black and White], since I’m always trying to make that song you could play as your first dance at your wedding. It has a touch of reggae and dub to it and is a track built off sentiment. Angel nailed the chorus feature on this, and it’s one I know my parents will love too!” “Peace & Love” (feat. Skrapz) “Peace and love is the ultimate goal—if you have that, you’re free. When I was writing this, I was thinking about what peace and love might sound like on an instrumental. Once we had this backing, I wanted to get Skrapz involved, partly because you’d never normally hear him on something like this. I love doing that with a feature and getting people to step out of their comfort zone.” “God’s Work” (feat. AV Allure) “When I first heard this instrumental, it felt so alarming and so urgent and intriguing. I love when I can list off words like that right after listening to an instrumental. The track is ultimately about how I live off faith and I’m still yearning to be better after all that I’ve been through.” “Close to Home / Nino SLG Interlude” “I’ve had my eye on Nino SLG for a while, as he partly reminds me of a younger version of myself. Like with Skrapz, I wanted to get him out of his comfort zone and get him sounding different on this track. It also features a clip of a video recording of my christening, which ended up in a documentary about the 1985 riots on the Tottenham Broadwater Farm estate. My father and uncle were activists, and I’m trying to tap into that energy on the album also.” “Feels” (feat. Tiggs Da Author) “This is one of those tunes where you can’t help but get in your feelings, and so it felt like a great way to end because the last verse is where I’m just saying everything I feel, summarising the whole story of the project—this huge journey through cultures and lives we’ve just been on.”