Bandokay interview: ‘Not everyone’s had the story I’ve had’

This interview originally appeared in Frontline Issue 001: The Breakthrough Issue, released August 2023.

Frontline joins Breakthrough Issue cover star Bandokay on Broadwater Farm Estate in North London to discuss his new solo mixtape, how OFB has impacted UK music, and being ‘Made Around Real Killers’.

‘I’m Bands, you know. The same kid from Broadwater,’ chants Bandokay, signing off his new project M.A.R.K. with Outro. ‘I’m Bands, you know. The same kid who went through trauma’. For those who know his story, this statement will make a lot of sense. To those unfamiliar, it’s a vignette highlighting the foundations from which Bandokay built a game-changing music career as part of one of UK drill’s most influential collectives.

Born Kemani Kane Duggan in May 2001, Bando is the son of Mark Duggan, the 29-year-old Black man who was shot and killed by police in Tottenham in August 2011, leading to riots that spread across the country. Bando was ten years old at the time, and has since grown up in the shadow of an inquest that changed the course of UK history. 

Although this trauma has undoubtedly had an impact on the Bandokay we see today, it’s not where the story begins. It begins with Broadwater Farm: a housing development with a turbulent history. The site of the 1985 Tottenham Riots, it’s since been presented in the media as the ‘worst estate in Britain’, but despite these detrimental depictions, Broadwater Farm has become a breeding ground for talented young people using creativity to share their stories. 

OFB, an acronym for the Original Farm Boys moniker, has been affiliated with the likes of Bandokay, Double Lz, SJ, RV, Headie One, Abra Cadabra, Dezzie and more. To give an idea of their reach and influence; Headie One performed at The BRIT Awards in 2021, with stage design from the late Off-White founder and Louis Vuitton Men’s Creative Director Virgil Abloh, and Abra Cadabra won Best Song at the 2016 MOBO Awards, following the release of his track, Robbery. 

As well as critical acclaim, OFB has proven its connection with young music fans through views and streaming numbers. To date, Bandokay, Double Lz and SJ’s Mixtape Madness Next Up freestyle, released in 2019, has received more than 20 million views.

In June, Bandokay dropped his debut solo mixtape, venturing out on his own to make his mark and showcase how he’s ‘not just a drill rapper’. To the surprise of those who might have predicted a limited, drill-heavy project, Bando meanders through different sounds, with a variety of flows, melodies and rap sub-genres appearing throughout. ‘Versatile Bando,’ explains his manager Frogga as the pair describe what first-time listeners will experience when hearing the tape. ‘Yeah,’ adds Bando. ‘It’s kind of just me coming out of my shell’.

For those who grew up listening to Boy Better Know and Meridian Crew, Tottenham will represent one of the pillars of grime. Skepta, JME, Bossman, Big H and President T might be some of the names that come to mind thinking of N17, but as the younger generations have risen, the area has also become synonymous with drill.

‘As a group, we’ve definitely brought a lot of attention to drill,’ Bando explains, when asked how he feels OFB has impacted UK music. ‘In Tottenham, there were other groups like BBK and that – they were grime. There are more groups that do drill, but I don’t really feel like they’ve effected drill how OFB have effected drill, with so many rappers in there that are established as well’.

Bando and his team often refer to Broadwater Farm’s generational wealth when it comes to rap talent. This is no coincidence. It’s the result of community, brotherhood and inherent ambition. Each generation, familiar with the obstacles that might stifle young talent, advises and encourages the next, providing examples of paths they can follow to navigate through the system towards legitimate success. 

On Brothers in Arms, featured on M.A.R.K., Abra Cadabra shares: ‘The other day little bro hit me up and told me he’s tryna be legit / I looked him in his eyes and said I rate that, you should try the ting / I ain’t ever been legit apart from this rapping ting, how do I advise the kid?’.

Bando explains that, as a collective, they’ve shown how different generations from one estate can make it. ‘From Lz to me to Headie, there’s so many rappers,’ he adds. ‘That as well could be an inspiration to other areas’.

Considering the achievements of the Farm boys who came before him, the bar has been set high for Bando. However, the relationship he’s created with his audience feels like something unique to him. Despite his YouTube videos historically being taken down or censored, Bandokay still manages to regularly hit over a million views. His visuals and freestyles are some of the most anticipated in UK drill, and his legions of fans are active in their support.

What is it they connect to in his music? ‘The realness, definitely,’ he claims. ‘I don’t know if it’s because I started off young doing music and they just followed me from then’. He says he didn’t necessarily make a conscious effort to target a particular audience, the support just manifested organically. ‘I didn’t put together a plan and say “I want certain people to listen to my music”’. 

In conversation with Bando, his authenticity is evident. He’s selective with what he shares, and thoughtful in the way he articulates himself, more often than not talking through a smile. In his music, that authenticity translates as rawness. He erupts with energy to deliver hard-hitting, visceral bars that may sometimes land awkwardly on delicate ears. 

What he talks about on his tracks – a regular topic of debate in UK music and in mainstream media, with some claiming drill glamorises violence to a young audience – is his reality, and unfortunately a reality to many. ‘This is just what I’ve grown up seeing,’ he says, referring to the stories of tracks like Rivals and Live. ‘It’s kind of my life’. 

Bando is unbothered when receiving criticism for talking about violence in his music, claiming ‘I don’t really mind’ in response to the negativity. He adds, ‘It’s your opinion. You’re entitled to your opinion. Same way I don’t like some other people’s music’. However, he doesn’t want young people to think he’s encouraging that lifestyle. ‘I rap about bad stuff, I don’t want them to take that,’ he admits. ‘I just want them to enjoy the music’.

A lot has been said about Bandokay, OFB and drill in general since the UK’s scene started to expand its influence. The genre has also evolved, with its artists achieving chart success, furthering its reach and accessibility. So, what does Bando’s first solo mixtape bring to the table? His story. ‘My story is my story,’ he expresses. ‘Not everyone’s had the story I’ve had. It’s a bit different to everyone else’.

Whether conceptually, figuratively or literally, from the project’s title to its artwork, Bandokay’s father, Mark, is a constant presence in his work. Track two, Memories, was dedicated to him, touching on some of the pain and anger Bando feels when looking back. ‘Police killed my dad though / they still got me mad, bro / my little sis confused where her dad go’. In the video, he visits his dad’s grave. ‘Early morn’ in the cemetery / Just me Uncle Spangz with a bit a Henny’.

Bandokay pursues music to ‘open more doors’ and get to ‘bigger places’, with his dad’s story and fate being a driving force. ‘You gotta be looking down on me smiling,’ he says in an Instagram post shared on Father’s Day. ‘Keep guiding and protecting me’.

Following the release of M.A.R.K., Bandokay has more attention on him as a solo artist. Previously wielding the strength and support of his OFB brothers, he now shoulders more expectation and responsibility independently, with an opportunity to build an even stronger relationship with his fan base. He chooses this moment to impart wisdom on the young people receptive to his message, in the same way previous generations of Broadwater Farm’s creative force have done for him. ‘Be yourself and keep going. When I first started doing music, it didn’t happen overnight. You can’t just give up. Just keep going’.

Words by Patch Fennelly

This interview originally appeared in Frontline Issue 001: The Breakthrough Issue, released August 2023.