At 22, Harrison Armstrong aka Aitch has already achieved quite a lot in the music world. In 2018, the Manchester rapper went viral on YouTube with his song “Straight Rhymez,” which has now garnered over 20 million views. It was followed by more hit singles like “Taste (Make It Shake)” and “Rain” with AJ Tracey and inquiries from big names in the UK grime scene like Skepta, Wiley and Stormzy. On August 19th, Aitch released his debut album, CLOSE TO HOME, which is primarily a tribute to his hometown of Manchester. MUSIKEXPRESS spoke to the musician about feeling at home, dealing with success and the creation of a very personal song for his sister, on which Ed Sheeran is also represented.
“People are nicer in Manchester than in London”
Feelings of home play a major role for Aitch, who is about to do a European tour. The rapper spent his youth in Manchester, where he shot his first freestyle videos with his friends. A musical tribute to the city comes from the track ‘1989’, which samples the song ‘Fools Gold’ by British rock band The Stone Roses, which formed in Manchester in the 1980s. A song that Aitch probably remembers from his childhood home: “It was just always playing in the background for as long as I can remember, and “1989” is a tribute to the people who came before me.”
Here is the music video for “1989”:
In an interview, he revealed to us what is particularly important to the rapper about his hometown:
It’s primarily the people. Not just my friends and family. It’s a certain vibe. People are just a bit nicer than in London for example (…) I broke through when I was 18 and I feel like I’ve never really been home since then. Hopefully one day I can retire and spend the rest of my days in Manchester.
Aitch in the video interview about feelings of home, vodka and his feature with Ed Sheeran. here go to the video:
With “My G” the rapper dedicates a song to his sister
At one point on CLOSE TO HOME, the rapper also provides a very personal insight into his family life. The rapper dedicated the song “My G” to his twelve-year-old sister Gracie Armstrong, who has Down syndrome. Aitch’s father originally came up with the idea for the song. However, it probably took a few years before the rapper dared to tackle the subject musically. The decision to have Ed Sheeran sing the hook was no coincidence. Gracie is a big Ed Sheeran fan herself, so in addition to the request, the singer also received a video of her singing one of his songs. This is how the collaboration finally came about. Aitch says about the song in an interview:
It was just a personal song that I really wanted to do. I didn’t think about whether fans would like the song. It was all about good vibes. (…) My sister loves the song. It’s currently her favorite song. But I’ve been gone for a few days now. When I come back, she’ll probably hear something else.
Here is the music video for “My G” Feat. Ed Sheeran:
The album CLOSE TO HOME was released on August 19, 2022. here listen to the stream: