Stormzy has explained his abrupt disappearance from social media after deleting his Instagram and Twitter accounts two years ago.
The South London rapper explained he made his departure in February 2020 in a bid to overcome his ego. However, he also revealed that while it was a “weird feeling” initially, he now feels “normal,” as a result.
Stormzy recalled performing on tour in Denmark in March 2020, shortly after deactivating his social media. “We done the show and I came off stage,” he said as per LadBible. “I remember one of my first feelings was getting the clip of us to put on social media but I didn’t have social media. I remember it being a weird feeling,” he added before admitting he would normally rush to share the moment.
Stormzy Addresses Overcoming Ego
“That’s ego, that’s ego,” Stormzy recalled thinking at the time. That’s probably validation.” He revealed it was “a big turning point,” for him “in terms of what ego is and how you gotta kill ego.”
He added, “there is an ego in man I need to kill because look how blessed we are.”
However, the “Vossi Bop” hitmaker also shared another reason for the move, the need to distance himself from “noise” and help him feel “normal.”
“Whether that be noise on the internet, whether that be noise in reality, whether that be noise in events. I’ll just make active decisions to not be around noise. Because I feel that noise doesn’t allow me to be normal,” he explained.
Stormzy also believes “there’s a degree of separation that’s needed,” as a human being. He concluded, “There’s a man in there who needs to remain before the artist.”
Meanwhile, earlier this month, Stormzy was celebrated for his philanthropic contributions. He collected an honorary degree from Exeter University in recognition of his work to promote education, and fight racial inequality.