You’d be hard-pressed to find another artist who lights a baseball-bat-sized spliff in front of a sold-out O2, while lifting his trousers to reveal an ankle tag. The act earns Nines a £5,000 fine – but he shrugs: “What’s five grand to a trap star like me?” Smoke billows across the screens as Weedman plays.
This is supposedly the final gig by the west London rapper, who announced his retirement aged 34 with Quit While You’re Ahead, his sixth album in a row to reach the UK Top 5. It was a cohesive body of work, but it lacked a real explanation as to why he’s turning his back on music. Devoted to authentic expressions of himself and the world around him, he always felt free from commercial motives and conventional career arcs.
