At just 24, the Compton-raised artist is incredibly well connected, working with stars like Kendrick Lamar and making wondrous solo tracks. He reveals the breakups, freakouts and sexuality struggles he’s faced so far
Once, fame meant being universally recognised – but these days even well-connected musicians can get confused. “Instagram celebrities who have 100 million followers: who the fuck is this person?” says Steve Lacy. In 2022, he says, “fame is super-subjective – you’re only famous to people who think you’re famous. To the other 80% of the world, you’re a nobody. Me, I won’t be famous until you can feel my fame. You know: when motherfuckers walk in the room and you’re like, oh, I can feel that fame. But I’m just a dude, bro.”
Be that as it may, this London photostudio felt more famous when Lacy walked in. At just 24 years old, the US singer, songwriter, guitarist and producer is a star in a boringly quantifiable way: hundreds of millions of streams for his psychedelic pop songs, topped up with more from his funk supergroup the Internet, plus tracks he’s made with Solange, Vampire Weekend and a host of rappers including Kendrick Lamar and YG. But he is also a star in that room-changing way where barometric pressure seems to shift around him.