{"id":1800591,"date":"2026-03-01T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-02-28T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1800591"},"modified":"2026-03-01T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T21:00:00","slug":"wonderland-61","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1800591","title":{"rendered":"Wonderland"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\t
\n\t\t\tWonderland<\/span>
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\n\t\t\tTHE RISE AND RISE OF WESLEY JOSEPH<\/span>
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Artist and filmmaker Wesley Joseph pulled a disappearing act, vanishing for three years at the height of his early success. But now he\u2019s back with his debut album, Forever Ends Someday<\/em>, proving good things come to those who don\u2019t rush.<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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\"The
T-shirt: WESLEY JOSEPH EXCLUSIVE MERCH; long sleeve top & hat MEDINA; shorts BIANCA SAUNDERS; trainers PUMA; sunglasses TOM FORD; necklace OUIE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Wesley Joseph didn\u2019t sleep much on the night of Wednesday 21st January. Blood pumped too fast, the voice in his head spoke too loudly. He was overcome by the thrill of it all. Hours earlier, he had performed his first London show in three years at Hackney Wick venue Number 90. He opened the crowd for mosh pits, demanding their attention, darting between favourites from his two EPs, 2021\u2019s \u201cULTRAMARINE\u201d and 2023\u2019s \u201cGLOW\u201d, while testing out a handful of unheard tracks from his forthcoming debut album, Forever Ends Someday<\/em>, due for release on 10th April via Secretly Canadian.<\/p>\n

The venue was purposefully intimate. It could have been far larger; when he last performed in London in 2023, it was to a sold-out KOKO, Camden\u2019s iconic 1,500-capacity live space. But this comeback show was designed as a seminal, private moment \u2013 shared only with his inner circle: friends, family, and early followers of his art. Fans travelled from across the country and abroad, waving boarding passes in the 29-year-old\u2019s face as he cooled down at the merch stand \u2013 a token of their unwavering devotion.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose songs were written in lectures, on the night bus, the tube, my bedroom,\u201d he exasperates, evidently still in awe at his vigorously received return to the live circuit. Those from the West Midlands (which Wesley is; the modest, industrial town of Walsall to be exact) are known for their humility, and within the timespan of niceties, there\u2019s welcomed assurance that Wesley fits the archetype. It\u2019s two days after his gig, and the singer, rapper, producer and filmmaker is tired but loquacious, clearly abuzz with being back on stage and releasing music. Outside, a crisp Friday awaits, but for now we sink into a quiet corner of a sleepy East London pub, sipping something sweet, warmed by a flickering open fire.<\/p>\n

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\"The
Tops stylist\u2019s own; jacket SOLID HOMME; trousers & belt MEDINA; boots TONDOLO; necklace OUIE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s probably many layers to it, subconsciously, that I couldn\u2019t explain now,\u201d Wesley begins carefully, addressing the question on the minds of anyone who has followed his rise. After amassing millions of streams across two EPs, signing to a prestigious US label, selling out KOKO, touring America, and being recognised as one of the most distinctive British artists of his generation, he disappeared for three years. No shows, no features, more than 18 months without a peep on social media. Where has he been, and why the wait?<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery time I\u2019ve made music, I\u2019ve done it without compromise. I only release it when I feel it\u2019s the best I can do, when I\u2019m almost a bit scared to put it out. But after \u201cGLOW\u201d, I felt a comfort I\u2019m not used to feeling. I don\u2019t want my art to feel comfortable. I wanted to make something that was truly a challenge, the absolute best I could do\u00a0\u2013 and that\u2019s my debut album. Also life happened, man, there\u2019s a lot of things. It wasn\u2019t like I could just pop out another one.\u201d<\/p>\n

Really, it says more about the state of the industry than Wesley\u2019s decision-making that many inside of it would (and did) advise against such a lengthy, clandestine hiatus to perfect your debut album, arguably the most significant artistic statement you\u2019ll ever make. Amid the fast-food, algorithmic production line that dominates contemporary music, authentic and unrushed art is still vital. Still, it\u2019s a risk to take the handbrake off the momentum and shield yourself from the rush-hour of releasing. \u201cHopefully the times haven\u2019t changed too much from my brief experience,\u201d he counters. \u201cI feel like good music will always find its way. I know sometimes it doesn\u2019t, but I am a believer in that, it\u2019s honestly my compass within having blind-faith. I know that if I just make the best shit I can and truly believe it\u2019s worth the experience, it will find its way \u2013 somehow.\u201d<\/p>\n

And, why wouldn\u2019t he have faith? It\u2019s how he reached these heights in the first place. An outsider in a small town, Wesley always held a fascination for filmmaking and music \u2013 the latter first, commenting, \u201cmy first interaction as an artist with music was trying to find music for my own films.\u201d In his late teens, he found a community to explore his budding interests in OG Horse, a local collective that also included fellow Walsall-native and BRIT Award-winning singer-songwriter, Jorja Smith. The childhood friends are inherently musically connected \u2013 their fathers were members of the same neo-soul band, 2nd Naicha \u2013 and have continued to collaborate in recent years. Jorja appears on the closing track from \u201cULTRAMARINE\u201d, the sprawling, stunning ballad \u201cPatience\u201d, and features on \u201cJuly\u201d, a standout outing on Forever Ends Someday<\/em>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\"The
Top AV VETTEV; jacket & trousers TONDOLO; boots BURBERRY<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Seeing life beyond the West Midlands\u2019 fish tank, Wesley took a leap into open waters, moving to London to study film at University. In these early years in the city, he\u2019d make ends meet by shooting and editing videos for \u201crich car dealer guys\u201d in Essex, and coping with a cantankerous boss during a stint as a waiter in an Indian restaurant. Everything he did, he did for his art. In lecture halls, sleepy early morning train rides, and student accommodation, Wesley made his debut project.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Not much happened at first. Streams were low. Yet through \u201cword of mouth and time,\u201d he watched on as eventually millions of people began listening. Off the back of the success of \u201cULTRAMARINE\u201d, he signed to US imprint Secretly Canadian. He toured with and featured on London lyricist Loyle Carner\u2019s third album, hugo<\/em>, via the devastating \u201cBlood On My Nikes\u201d, and released his own second EP, \u201cGLOW\u201d, in February 2023, which included the Ivor Novello-nominated \u201cCOLD SUMMER\u201d.<\/p>\n

The sophomore, alongside its predecessor, made clear the weight of intentionality that Wesley\u2019s artistic expression carries. Accompanied by cinematic, immersive self-directed videos, the discography \u2013 written and produced solely by him \u2013 thrusts its listener into an otherworldly state of being. A unique blend of avant R&B, opaque hip-hop, atmospheric soul and experimental electronica, its cold and haunting yet ethereal and euphonious. It\u2019s music that\u2019s created from \u201can insular place,\u201d and that forms a distinct synthesis of tone and style. It\u2019s a sound ill-fitting to any singular scene or genre \u2013 something he\u2019s indifferent about, \u201cnot mad or happy.\u201d He understands why he\u2019s \u201cperceived as a bit of a lone wolf in this.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

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\"The
Vest stylist\u2019s own; top MEDINA; trousers GUESS JEANS; sneakers PUMA; gloves TONDOLO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

The roots that were planted on \u201cULTRAMARINE\u201d and fertilized on \u201cGLOW\u201d have sprouted remarkably on his debut full-length. There\u2019s a reason it took three years to put together. One word frequently persists when Wesley speaks about making the album: care. He treats his work as an object of fragility, an entity of unmatched significance. The thing that matters more than anything else. An absolute fealty to his craft.<\/p>\n

The meaning of the album\u2019s title embodies this. Forever Ends Someday<\/em>. A hotchpotch of temporal terminology that feels patched together to be interesting. And that\u2019s what it was at first. But as the record\u2019s structure and themes unfolded, and Wesley experienced life\u2019s highs of love, romance and belonging, and the lows of grief, doubt and existentialism, he began noticing a pattern, and the title revealed itself.<\/p>\n

\u201cI realised the songs were channeling different parts of my life \u2013 from childhood to teenage years to present tense, and looking into the future. And it was becoming a coming of age record, an overarching look at romance, growing up, teenage angst, joy, lust, nostalgia. The best parts, the worst parts. The sun and the rain. I understood the feeling of youth as something that\u2019s borrowed, not kept. It\u2019s something that is fleeting. But it isn\u2019t over yet. I\u2019m still in it. I\u2019m still here.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"The
Vest stylist\u2019s own; top MEDINA; trousers GUESS JEANS; sneakers PUMA; gloves TONDOLO<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

He continues: \u201cThe album has darkness in it. There\u2019s an underlying tone of stress and anxiety. But there\u2019s also hope in it. The joy that comes with the pain, that\u2019s the \u2018forever\u2019. The ending is the darkness, but the \u2018someday\u2019 is the appreciation that it hasn\u2019t happened yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Coated with the cool ambience and rich world-building he contrived on \u201cULTRAMARINE\u201d and \u201cGLOW\u201d, Forever Ends Someday <\/em>takes Wesley\u2019s conceptualisation and craft towards crescendo. It\u2019s starker, more personal, compassionate, complex, mature. The visuals are more striking. In the lyrics, you can read his fear \u2013 of losing his youth, his memories, those who he loves. And you can sense his desire \u2013 to hope, to learn, to grow. From the aching and emotional \u201cSeasick\u201d to the sharp rap incandescence of Danny Brown-featuring \u201cPeace of Mind\u201d, the grandiosity and drama of \u201cQuicksand\u201d to the consuming intimacy of \u201cJuly\u201d. This record does everything you want from a debut album: it sketches a mercurial outline of who its maker is as a human, and paints a vivid picture on who he is as an artist.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never wanted to just fill space or add to the noise for the sake of it. There\u2019s enough of it already,\u201d he mediates as the sun threatens to set outside the window. \u201cI want to have a distinctive colour on the board, and feel grounded about it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t help but disagree with the last part though, as I scurry off into the shadowy evening. From rapper to singer, filmmaker to beatsmith, a speaker of truths and a merchant of hope, Wesley Joseph is a kaleidoscope of artistry. A rainbow derived from greying clouds. The sun and<\/em> the rain. No single shade will ever suffice.<\/p>\n

Photography<\/strong> by Frayser Thorne
Styling <\/strong>by Zahra Asmail
Words<\/strong> by Ben Tibbits
Grooming <\/strong>by Michela Olivieri at Caren Agency using Innersense Organic Beauty & Erborian\u00a0
Photography Assistant<\/strong> Aadam Clarke<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n

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\n\t\t\t\t1 March 2026\t\t\t<\/div>\n
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Culture<\/a><\/div>\n
Magazine<\/a><\/div>\n
Music<\/a><\/div>\n
Ones To Watch<\/a><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
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\n\t\t\t\tIs CHANEL Moving Further Into Unisex?<\/span> <\/span><\/a>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Wonderland THE RISE AND RISE OF WESLEY JOSEPH Artist and filmmaker Wesley Joseph pulled a disappearing act, vanishing for three years at the height of his early success. But now he\u2019s back with his debut album, Forever Ends Someday, proving good things come to those who don\u2019t rush. T-shirt: WESLEY JOSEPH EXCLUSIVE MERCH; long sleeve […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,257],"class_list":["post-1800591","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-wonderlandmagazine-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1800591","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1800591"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1800591\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1800591"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1800591"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1800591"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}