Stormzy talks Maya Jama split and 'horrifying' story of being stabbed

Stormzy has opened up to Louis Theroux on the heartbreak of splitting up with Maya Jama, and the realisation that having been stabbed was "horrifying".

The chart-topping rapper who has headlined Glastonbury features in a new BBC interview series with Theroux, where he speaks on some of the most painful parts of his past.

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Before he and recently-announced Love Island host Jama were famous, they began dating - but split up in 2020 after around four years with rumours that he had cheated.

Stormzy tells Theroux in the interview set to air on BBC Two on Tuesday: “My break-up, that was probably the biggest catalyst for growth as a man.

“That’s probably the biggest loss a man can have, isn’t it? Away from someone passing away, that’s the biggest loss you can have."

He admits: “I didn’t do what a man should do to fully appreciate love, and care for his woman.”

The 29-year-old 'Crown' artist adds: “Long story short, I learned that if I don’t want to feel like that again, and if I believe that God will bless me again with an amazing woman and a family and marriage and all of that kind of thing, I have to do all the necessary work to never be in that situation again.”

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Elsewhere in the interview, Theroux asks Stormzy about one of his lyrics, “If you knew my story you’d be horrified.”

Stormzy explains: “I’ve been stabbed a few times… to some people that’s going to be horrifying.

“You go on that journey and it can lead you anywhere. It’s a random box of prison, death, becoming an entrepreneur because you learnt to be streetwise and now you applied that, becoming a musician, becoming a footballer. But of course, the most likely ones are harmed, dead or in jail.”

The MOBO, Brit and Ivor Novello-winning artist tells how he had moved to Leamington Spa to start an apprenticeship with an oil refinery before finding fame, and found reactions of his new colleagues an eye opener about his past.

He says he once took his hard hat off and revealed a large scar on his head, shocking the other apprentices and workers as he explained it was from being stabbed.

Stormzy says: “Bruv I just remember the look on all their faces, I remember feeling like an artefact in a museum.

“They were all like what?! It was kind of a realisation that okay, yeah that’s not the most normal thing, as much as it’s normal in our community.”

Louis Theroux Interviews: Stormzy premieres on BBC Two and iPlayer at 9.15pm on Tuesday 25 October.

Watch: Louis Theroux speaks to Stormzy about relationships