“If you don’t believe in yourself, no one else will,” offers Master Peace. From the glitching swagger of 2019’s debut single ‘Night Time’ to the party-starting indie riot of debut album ‘How To Make A Master Peace’, you can hear that self-confidence across his genre-hopping, energetic back catalogue. Master Peace, real name Peace Okezie, has already racked up bold collaborations with the likes of Santigold, Georgia and The Streets, played a string of electric headline shows across the country, while his Top 30 charting debut album earned him the Rising Star trophy at the 2024 Ivor Novello Awards. “It feels like other people are believing in what I’m doing now,” Peace says. “This is only the beginning though.” Like most teenagers, Peace didn’t really know what he wanted to do with his life. “Part of me wanted to just play video games, and I was also thinking about being a social worker but I never really had any aspirations,” he explains. Music had always been there, but coming from a working-class background, a career just didn’t seem possible. Things changed when Peace started hanging out in recording studios with friends who had scraped together the cash for sessions and eventually found the confidence to take part in an alternative rap group. “Making music just gave me a sense of hope,” Peace says. “I knew that if I was going to make music, I wanted to go all the way with it,” he continues, eventually going solo with Master Peace to explore a richer range of influences. Across a trio of EPS that cut the jangly indie rock of Bloc Party with the forward-thinking ambition of The 1975 and his own inclusive worldview, Master Peace found himself at the forefront of a revival in British indie music. “I do feel like I’m this voice of a generation, but I don’t want to box it in as just indie, because it’s more than that,” he says. That vision can be felt across debut album ‘How To Make A Master Peace’. Created during a three-week blitz of inspiration, it’s a deliberately scrappy celebration of excitement with Peace out to capture lightning in a bottle. “A lot of new artists come from wealthy backgrounds and cut through with these very glossy records. I didn’t have a cousin in the industry to give me a leg up, so I wanted to make something that felt more real,” says Peace. “It’s all about chasing a feeling”. Like Arctic Monkeys’ ‘Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not’ and Oasis’ ‘Definitely Maybe’, Peace’s debut is an urgent mix of harsh reality, wide-eyed optimism, and the confidence of youth, designed to bring people together. Listening to the likes of ‘I Might Be Fake’, ‘Get Naughty’ and ‘Los Narcos’, it feels like anything is possible while tracks like ‘Shangaladang’ are a reminder of what it’s like to grow up in the UK as a young black man. “It needed that dirt and that joy. I was dealing with a lot of difficult stuff in my personal life while my career was popping off,” says Peace, who once again turned to music for hope. “I knew the album was fire, but I didn’t know what other people would make of it,” he admits, having to constantly battle feeling like an outsider in an industry. A string of glowing reviews has helped but it’s the reception from fans that’s really given him a sense of belonging. “When someone tells me ‘Panic101’ helped them get through a break-up or ‘Sick In The Bathroom’ stopped them committing suicide, that’s all that really matters,” he says. “I’m doing this for all the kids that come from weird backgrounds and don’t know where they fit.” “I’m always hungry though,” he grins. “I want more”. True to his word, work on album two is already underway, while there are plans to release a new EP and a string of collaborations this summer. “When you’ve got motion, you don’t want to take your foot off the gas, do you,” he asks. “I’d never work with anyone just to get a cheque or chase clout,” continues Peace of his approach to crossover collabs. “I need to be a fan of the artist, the song and know I can bring something worthwhile to the project.” Like his own music, genre is never an issue, but the track needs to push things forward or what’s the point? Master Peace’s music might tackle complex, sprawling issues like masculinity, mental health and race, but it’s designed to offer community and freedom. “I just want to bring people together,” says Peace. “With everything going on in the world, I need young people to know they are important.” “Master Peace just started from an idea, and look at it now,” he continues. “I want others to know that their ideas are worthwhile. I want to just give people hope,” he adds. After years of building Master Peace into something worth believing in, 2024 looks set to be his breakout year. Not that he’s planning on taking the easy route. “Sometimes, you need to go against the grain to make an impact,” he explains. “Nothing worth having is easy, but I knew what I was getting into when I first started making music,” Peace continues. The plan for the future is the same as what’s brought him this far. “I just need to keep making music that’s undeniable.”
