Flohio was born Funmi Ohiosumah in Nigeria in 1992 and raised in Bermondsey, south London. The rapper first featured on God Colony’s track SE16 in 2016 and in 2018 released her first EP Wild Yout, which merged UK hip-hop with grime. She was chosen for BBC Music’s Sound of 2019 list and her 10-track debut mixtape, No Panic No Pain, was released last month to critical acclaim.
1. Film
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
Different spider people from different universes come together to help defeat a monster. It has the first black spider-boy, Miles, who is the protagonist, and also a spider-woman. I’ve watched it about three times now, once with my nephew. I sat him down and said: “Put your iPad down, you’re watching this with me!” Watching movies growing up, with my dad or my sister, it was such a thing to be immersed in whatever it is that’s on and just put yourself in that character’s shoes.
2. Music
He’s a Nigerian artist who meshes soul with Afrobeats. What I really like about him is that when you hear about something that’s come out of Africa, you kind of have an idea of what it’s going to be, but he pushes the boundaries. He paints with his words. Even with his visuals, he incorporates Nollywood. He’s in his own lane. I like Rapid Fire from his album Mandy & the Jungle. I like how it starts off slow and picks up pace towards the end. It just keeps you on your feet. It’s so smooth, you want to sing to it.
3. Video game
I’m so into video games. I have a PS4 console but I’m trying to get the PS5! Back in the day, if I wanted to play video games, it would be at a friend’s house, but eventually, when I got my own console, the first game I got was Mortal Kombat. I love Mortal Kombat 11, simply because I like every single character’s way of fighting. It’s along the lines of Tekken. The great thing is that technology has gotten better. The graphics, the sound, it’s a whole different experience now.
4. YouTube
Chicago drill music documentaries
YouTube is a wormhole – you go in and you get lost. I’ve been watching the history of Chicago drill music, simply because there are a lot of rappers losing their lives to gun violence and I find it so interesting to learn about what is going wrong. It’s historical. Gang violence is so deep-rooted that we can’t start unravelling this today, but it’s artists I like and that I’m listening to who are dying, and it hurts. One, King Von, lost his life last month. He was an up-and-coming rapper.
5. Art
He’s so fire! It’s his style. The first time I saw his work, it just took me back. I was one of those kids who sat down in front of the TV and watched cartoons right before school and right after school. Ben Jennings’s colours invite me in. They’re really funny and quirky. His stuff is so political, but you always get the message. It’s just another form of comedy, but it’s real stuff you’re being served on the plate. When I look at them, I come away with so many things.
6. Food
Shumai
I don’t care where I am in the world, I will look for something Asian before I try the local food. Before the second lockdown, I tried to hit up some restaurants in Soho. Taro has a nice vibe, when I’m feeling low-key. You watch them cook the food. When I’m feeling bougie, I go to Yauatcha. My favourite thing to order are these little Japanese starters called shumai. I don’t even know how to describe them, but they are a scallop wrapped in a prawn with roe on top. They are so nice. I need to learn how to make them.
