’23 Splendour Spotlight: Loyle Carner

If ‘You Don’t Know’ Loyle Carner, there’s ‘Still’ time to tie up ‘Loose Ends’ and dive into his discography before his SITG set!

You might have seen the name ‘Loyle Carner’ on the Splendour lineup. Or you might be wondering who on Earth that is. 

Well, today you’re in luck, because I’ll be covering everything you need to know before his set.

South Londoner Ben Coyle-Larner’s dyslexia and ADHD were the powers that gifted him with his well-established stage name. Starting out 10 years ago, Carner set out on a mission to do something that was almost taboo in the world of hip-hop – explore vulnerability. This mission is often embedded not only in the lyrics he writes, but also mirrored by the mellow sonics that often course through his albums. 

He first gained recognition with his debut album Yesterday’s Gone in 2017 – which features fellow South Londoner Tom Misch on the track ‘Damselfly’. That was actually the first song of Carner’s that I heard. It was recommended to me by a friend. I think what really drew me in was how it refreshingly contrasted a lot of mainstream hip hop that relies on heavy, trappy beats and played out lyrics. Instead, Carner cleverly plays with his words. Throughout his albums he doesn’t shy away from topics like racism and men expressing their emotions. He taps into his own experiences with family, grief and navigating growing up mixed-race.

Yesterday’s Gone (2017) was then followed up with Not Waving, But Drowning in 2019 and his latest release, hugo (2022) last year. Well chosen feature artists continue to appear throughout these works, such as Jorja Smith, Olivia Dean and Jordan Rakei. 

Like these contemporaries, Loyle Carner is another talent coming out of the UK and now, onto Australian stages. 

So, to prep for this visit, I suggest you run along to Genius and start practising the lyrics to his songs!

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