Speech Debelle, the British rapper and songwriter, attracted widespread recognition through her deeply introspective verses and intricate rhythmic delivery, supported by richly arranged, frequently acoustic productions drawing on jazz, folk, reggae, and classical sources. Her debut full-length, Speech Therapy, received the Mercury Prize in 2009, after which she issued the broader and more ambitious Freedom of Speech in 2012. Although she has concentrated heavily on social activism and culinary work in the years since, she has periodically returned to recording, self-releasing the 2017 project Tantil Before I Breathe and the atmospheric, electronic Sunday Dinner on a Monday in 2023, the latter shaped by explorations of her familial roots.
Corynne Elliot grew up in a Jamaican household in South London. As a young person she wrote poetry, later taking up rapping in her teens once she became dissatisfied with her singing voice. Hardships such as family difficulties and a period of homelessness lasting several years made writing an increasingly vital outlet for emotional expression, and the resulting material found its way into her music. After signing with Big Dada, a label connected to Ninja Tune, she gained the space to shape her artistic direction. Speech Therapy, credited to Speech Debelle and released in 2009, was tracked largely in Melbourne, Australia, with co-production from Lotek and Plutonic Lab plus guest spots from Micachu and Roots Manuva. Its lush, jazzy instrumentation and confessional writing set it apart from prevailing releases, earning strong critical praise and ultimately securing the Mercury Prize ahead of higher-profile nominees including Bat for Lashes and Florence and the Machine. Commercial sales nevertheless remained modest, prompting the MC to voice dissatisfaction with her label. She still contributed “Sun Will Rise” with Bonobo to Ninja Tune’s 20th-anniversary box set in 2010 and teamed with producer Kwes. for Freedom of Speech, issued by Big Dada in 2012.
Since her first album, Debelle has devoted considerable energy to social causes, among them speaking at political conferences, a photography initiative highlighting climate change, and voter-education efforts. In 2012 she hosted the BBC documentary Hidden Homeless and organized displays of prisoner-created art at London’s Southbank Centre. She also pursued her interest in cooking, reaching the semifinal round of Celebrity MasterChef and hosting the food podcast The Work Brunch. Tantil Before I Breathe, her independently released third album, appeared in 2017 alongside a cookbook and memoir. Two singles, “Away from Here” and “Atlantis,” surfaced on Monday Sessions in 2022, followed in early 2023 by the bass-heavy “101010.” Sunday Dinner on a Monday, an exploration of family, friends, lineage, and ancestral DNA, was released that June.
