Hull’s Lockdown collective in documentary film

Oraka says it was a “great feeling” to be approached by researchers from ad agency Karmarama to take part in the documentary study Finding the Fabric of Britain. “We thought it was a fantastic opportunity and felt priviliged that our work had somehow been stumbled across by a production company in London,” he says.

The collective were among 50 groups who took part in the study that challenges the notion that UK society is becoming less tolerant, more tribal, lonelier and less mentally and physically healthy.

Oraka, 32, welcomes the coverage for the Humber grime and hip-hop community, which is founded on DIY principles. “You’ve got to remember where I’m from was very much known for guitar-centric music, The Beautiful South and Mick Ronson and things like that,” he points out. “We’re not really known for UK black music, so it was a good opportunity to tell our story and be able to give other people opportunities.

“We did a showcase in Hull where a lot of the up-and- coming MCs got to perform in front of a big film crew, which they had never done before. Things like that have been really helpful to boost our community in Hull.”

The rapper senses that “the Hull community has really pulled together” during the coronavirus crisis. “The venue that we took Karmarama to (The New Adelphi) is legendary (locally), but it’s not really funded by anything. People have been chipping in money for fundraisers because that venue is so iconic, everyone’s played there, so no one wants to see it go under.

“And in terms of us, we’ve sold a lot of merchandise, people were buying it and supporting the cause.”

Oraka and Danville met through the Warren Youth Project for people aged 16 to 25. “I released a mixtape in 2011 and James became a fan of me,” Oraka explains. “He started volunteering at the Warren Youth Project in Hull, and from there we started making music together.”

In the film, Oraka suggests people questioned why he started rapping because “it wasn’t something that people in Hull did”. “It was looked upon as a bit of joke,” he says. “There were bits and bobs of people rapping but no one was taking it seriously as me and having the dream that I had, and putting in the work that I was putting in.”

Building an audience “took a while”, but his persistence paid off. Now he has become a role model for others. “I’ve created my own scene and made sure that I’ve become more popular,” he says. “If there’s no lane for yourself you’ve got to create a lane.”

The film can be viewed at https://www.karmarama.com/thinking/fabric-of-britain/