After years of garnering acclaim across the underground and mainstream for a singular, boundary-pushing stream of consciousness sound, London based rapper, producer and poet John Glacier’s debut album, Like A Ribbon, will finally be released via Young (The xx/FKA twigs/Sampha etc.) on February 14th 2025. A dreamlike portrayal of the journey from a simple existence growing up in Hackney, to projecting stories to the world while aiming to maintain a semblance of normalcy in what is a very extraordinary life, Like A Ribbon fuses rap, electronic music, post-punk and so much more across 11 wildly diverse tracks, already spawning singles ‘Money Shows’ (ft. Eartheater), ‘Steady As I Am’, ‘Cows Come Home’, and ‘Found’. Today sees the final taste of the album’s eclectic fusion of sounds before its release in the form of new single ‘Ocean Stepping’, which features forward-thinking soul luminary Sampha.
Opening to chiming keys and textures courtesy of producer Kwes Darko, the track carries a deceptively uptempo rhythm, with John displaying her own unique flow; ruminating on living in her own world without a care for other people’s opinions for her. As the track builds to a lush, expansive crescendo, Sampha offers his own gorgeously freeform verse – adding a vocal tone that fuses perfectly with the track’s sonic tapestry to give it an almost soundscape-esque atmosphere. ‘Ocean Stepping’ is a beautifully uplifting cut from Glacier about staying true to yourself and your own reality without letting others bring you into theirs.
The track comes complete with an impactful visual from famed director Gabriel Moses, shot as part of his Brothers Keeper zine with i-D. The video finds John performing in solitude, lost in the music set to a muted, yet wholly engrossing colour palette envisioned by Moses.
On the video, Gabriel Moses says: “John is just herself. That’s what’s always drawn me to her – she’s an individual and brings that essence to the work. When you operate like that, to me that’s what makes an artist captivating.”
A highly feted vocalist whose work was subject to huge demand even before her debut project SHILOH: Lost For Words was released, John Glacier has pushed the boundaries of what defines UK rap with a diaristic approach that shines a light on the mundanities of everyday life and the complexities of human emotion, all through her own unique phrasing and perspectives. This sensibility, alongside her own externally perpetuated mythology, has also provided allure for the fashion world, with John becoming one of the faces of and providing bespoke poetry for Daniel Lee‘s iconic debut campaign for Burberry, as well finding fans in the likes of Bottega Veneta, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, J.W. Anderson and so many more. Her debut album Like A Ribbon gives John Glacier the platform to explore the outer reaches of her immersive sound, traversing her own psyche in a way that’s both abstracted and wholly relatable. Her poetic style takes centre stage on the LP, defining modern life as a young woman growing up in Hackney; tied to the place she was born while existing on a whole other plane.
Praise For John Glacier:
“mingling catharsis and mystery… a major new voice” – The Guardian
“There’s a sense that Glacier won’t remain a hidden treasure for much longer.” – Crack
“John Glacier’s confessional dictaphone raps sound like intimate notes to self, intended for one listener only.” – Pitchfork
“The rapper with renegade blood whose bars contain multitudes – past, present and future” – DAZED
“John Glacier’s ‘Like A Ribbon’ is extraordinary” – CLASH
John Glacier
Like A Ribbon
(Young)
Released 14th February 2025
Buy/Stream Ocean Steppin’ HERE
Pre-order Like A Ribbon HERE
- Satellites
- Don’t Cover Me
- Money Shows (feat. Eartheater)
- Emotions
- Nevasure
- Steady As I Am
- Found
- Home
- Ocean Stepping (feat. Sampha)
- Dancing In The Rain
- Heaven’s Sent
LP + CD tracklist:
- Satellites
- Don’t Cover Me
- Money Shows (feat. Eartheater)
- Emotions
- Nevasure
- Steady As I Am
- Grands!
- Cows Come Home
- Whole Or None
- Poster
- Found
- Home
- Ocean Stepping (feat. Sampha)
- Dancing In The Rain
- Heaven’s Sent
John Glacier: Instagram
