SWG3, GlasgowAn unexpected appearance by JME punctuates a stripped-back but rambunctious hour that thrums with the energy of a basement club
It has been a good year for Giggs. The industrious rapper from Peckham – AKA Nathaniel Thompson – kicked off 2019 by releasing his fifth album, Big Bad, a sprawling 18-track field study of urban life and strife delivered in his distinctive, unhurried and often seismic baritone. Featuring guest spots from local fixtures (Labrinth, Wretch 32) and US imports (Lil Yachty, Swizz Beatz), it confirmed the 36-year-old’s status as
UK rap’s self-assured kingpin.
In April, Giggs joined his admiring collaborator
Drake on stage at one of the latter’s O2 extravaganzas; this current tour will conclude with his own headline show at Wembley Arena. On a subzero night in Glasgow, it is a relatively stripped-back experience: just Giggs prowling back and forth in a black T-shirt, trackie bottoms and an eye-catching gold medallion that would not look out of place in Raiders of the Lost Ark. Despite the venue’s toweringly high roof, the packed room thrums with the energy of a basement club night.