“It’s popping off!”: Zane Lowe on London’s music scene

It is great to revisit a city that you still feel you have roots in. In July, I took a trip to London from my home in LA and it was the first time that my wife Kara and I had travelled, just the two of us, since becoming parents 17 years ago. Coming back and experiencing the city I lived in for nearly 18 years, and where I had so many formative moments – meeting my wife, the birth of our two boys, working at the BBC, DJing to audiences all over the country – was incredibly poignant.

It was a strange combination of things I remembered, things that had changed and things that felt new. During that week, I felt more connected as a fan of what’s going on here than ever before. Even though I still play UK records on my Apple Music radio show, it was soulful to come back, to see and feel the city – and its impact – differently to how it was when I lived here.

I had this realisation that, no matter what happens in terms of infrastructure or politics, London continues to be at the forefront of innovation, creativity and artistic culture, and an essential part of what makes the UK so exciting from a music point of view continues to thrive. I mean, it’s popping off! London had one of the busiest summers – everyone rolled through doing shows. The music being made here is resonating all over the world and you can sense a pride in that. The city has a confidence to it, like it knows what it’s making is at the highest level. I walked the streets listening to music being played in cars, stores and got a real sense of what London sounds like, which is incredibly exciting with artists like Fred Again, J Hus, Central Cee, Dave, Stormzy, Shy Girl, PinkPantheress, Bakar and Nia Archives. There’s an incredible sound and a huge amount of energy being driven out of the UK right now.

London, for me, is also the place where anxiety thrives. As someone who’s suffered from anxiety, it can be debilitating. When I lived in London, if anxiety needed a host, there were more than enough places for it to feed. The city is ‘human experience’ at this really heightened level. But anxiety can be a powerful fuel and, in my 20s and my 30s, I plugged into that, and fed off it. I was very happy here but moving to LA for my Apple Music role meant we would be closer to family in New Zealand, making it easier to rekindle that connection.

This trip wasn’t intended to be a reflective pilgrimage – although I did pass through the BBC forecourt after nine years. It was more about seeing the city with fresh eyes, feeling inspired and sharing that time with my wife. We went to Reckless Records, Regent’s Park, shopped in Mayfair (the shopping here is next level compared to the States) and ate oysters at Scott’s. We explored the boroughs and loved going back west. We just made the most of walking everywhere because you don’t walk in LA – everything is by car. We’d step outside our hotel and follow our nose, ending up in a park, coffee shop or sitting by the Thames, simply because it’s beautiful. There’s no other city that is as enjoyable to have no direction in. You could lose a day walking to Portobello and back from Soho and have an amazing experience.

For my wife and me to have that time to absorb London, now, while our kids are having their adventures, it’s hard to put into words, because it’s a feeling. I don’t think home is ever ‘one’ place – it’s a combination of people and places – but London will always be a part of the puzzle that makes up what home is to me.

The Zane Lowe Show airs from Mondays to Thursdays and New Music Daily every Friday, both from 5pm BST, on Apple Music 1