{"id":1801795,"date":"2026-03-02T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-02T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1801795"},"modified":"2026-03-02T12:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-02T09:00:00","slug":"fakemink-im-the-eminem-of-the-uk-underground","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=1801795","title":{"rendered":"fakemink: \u2018I\u2019m the Eminem of the UK underground\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1200\/0-750-2400-1600\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439649.jpg&#8221;]<\/p>\n<article class=\"main-article longread\">\n<div class=\"article-main-content article-wrapper has-media-but-its-an-image\" data-status=\"loaded\" data-primary-article=\"true\" data-url=\"\/music\/article\/69785\/1\/fakemink-londons-saviour-terrified-interview-uk-ug-underground-spring-2026-issue\" data-article-id=\"69785\">\n<header class=\"article-header has-portrait-image no-media\">\n<div class=\"wrapper dg-max-width\">\n<div class=\"inner\">\n<figure class=\"main-img has-figcaption\" data-img-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\" data-img-aspect-ratio=\"0.8\" data-template=\"Longread Article\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"DC291_Covers_fakemink_4x5\" class=\"img\" height=\"3000\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1280\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439649.jpg\" width=\"2400\"><\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"img-caption\"><span class=\"inner\"><span class=\"credit\">Photography Rosie Marks, Styling <span class=\"nowrap\">Zara Mirkin<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<aside class=\"meta\">\n<div class=\"inner\"><time datetime=\"2026-03-02T12:00:00+00:00\" class=\"timestamp\" title=\"02 March 2026\"><span class=\"month\">DateInMeta<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span class=\"day\" data-day=\"2\">2,<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span class=\"year\">2026<\/span><\/time><\/div>\n<\/aside>\n<div class=\"titles\">\n<div class=\"tags\">\n<div class=\"sections\"><a class=\"category vertical vertical - music\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\">Music<\/a><br \/>\n\/<br \/>\n<a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/the-spring-2026-issue\">The Spring 2026 Issue<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h1 class=\"title\"><span>fakemink: \u2018I\u2019m the Eminem of the <span class=\"nowrap\">UK underground\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/h1>\n<div class=\"standfirst\">\n<h2>\u2018I\u2019m so much better than these man and they can&#8217;t face it\u2019: For our spring 2026 issue, we spend a day with the 21-year-old UK Ug trailblazer as he closes in on <span class=\"nowrap\">mainstream stardom<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<p><time datetime=\"2026-03-02T12:00:00+00:00\" class=\"timestamp\" title=\"02 March 2026\"><span class=\"month\">March<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span class=\"day\" data-day=\"2\">2,<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span class=\"year\">2026<\/span><\/time><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tags\">\n<div class=\"sections\"><a class=\"category vertical - music\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\">Music<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/the-spring-2026-issue\">The Spring 2026 Issue<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><time datetime=\"2026-03-02T12:00:00+00:00\" class=\"timestamp\" title=\"02 March 2026\"><span class=\"month\">March<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span class=\"day\" data-day=\"2\">2,<\/span>\u00a0<br \/>\n<span class=\"year\">2026<\/span><\/time><\/p>\n<div class=\"providers\">\n<div class=\"contributors\"><span class=\"contributor\" data-contributor-role=\"Text\"><span class=\"contributor-role\">Text<\/span><a class=\"contributor-name\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/user\/solomonpacemccarrick\">Solomon Pace-McCarrick<\/a><\/span><span class=\"contributor\" data-contributor-role=\"Photography\"><span class=\"contributor-role\">Photography<\/span><a class=\"contributor-name\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/user\/RosieMarks\">Rosie Marks<\/a><\/span><span class=\"contributor\" data-contributor-role=\"Styling\"><span class=\"contributor-role\">Styling<\/span><a class=\"contributor-name\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/user\/ZaraMirkin\">Zara Mirkin<\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"article-body-container\">\n<div class=\"article-body wrapper\">\n<div class=\"dazed-gallery has-12-images \">\n<div class=\"inner\">\n<header>\n<div class=\"info\"><span class=\"heading\">Fakemink \u2013 The Spring <span class=\"nowrap\">2026 Issue<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"gallery-thumbs\">\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/0\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"690\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-304-1035-690\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439637.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/1\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"690\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-223-1035-690\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439638.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/2\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"DC291_COV1_M1_Fakemink_RosieMarks_ZaraMirkin_07\" class=\"img\" height=\"690\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-365-1035-690\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439639.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/3\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"690\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-543-1035-690\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439640.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/4\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"DC291_COV1_M1_Fakemink_RosieMarks_ZaraMirkin_12\" class=\"img\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-85-1350-900\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439641.jpg\" width=\"1350\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/5\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"690\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-405-1035-690\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439642.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-footer\">Gallery \/ 12 images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><em>This story is taken from the spring 2026 issue of Dazed, which is on sale internationally from March 5. Pre-order a copy of the magazine<span>\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.boutiquemags.com\/dpa\/add\/tocart\/id\/14592\">here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span>I\u2019m waiting for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/fakemink\">fakemink<\/a> at a Mayfair sushi restaurant, the day after he cancelled our first scheduled interview at the <\/span><span>last minute. Friends who\u2019d met the Essex-born artist before described him as \u201ccute\u201d and \u201ckind of innocent\u201d, but, after almost an hour of hanging around, I privately swear I will not fall for his charms. So it really is despite my best efforts that I find myself immediately swept up in fakemink\u2019s presence when he does finally show. He asks my name, shakes my hand, introduces himself as Enzo and, without sitting <\/span><span>down, invites me outside for a cigarette. \u201cI\u2019m sorry, I was up making music till, like, 7 or 8am,\u201d the 21-year-old says, <\/span><span>rubbing his eyes between drags on a Marlboro Gold. \u201cI didn\u2019t get up till 5pm.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>It\u2019s hard to imagine this is the same viral rapper who opened the door for the now-flourishing<\/span><span>\u00a0UK underground (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/uk-ug\">UK Ug<\/a>) rap scene, paving the way for peers including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/esdeekid\">EsDeeKid<\/a>, Feng and SINN6R, and who is now poised to release his sophomore album, <em>Terrified<\/em>. <\/span><span>O<\/span><span>nline, the artist born Vincenzo Camille appears cocky: he titled his debut <\/span><span>album, released in 2023 when he was just 18, <em>London\u2019s Saviour<\/em>, and his Instagram presence almost exclusively consists of designer clothes, luxury meals and, occasionally, a flicker of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/frank-ocean\">Frank Ocean<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I search his mannerisms for any hint of conceit, an ego inflated by sudden fame, but all I find is a polite, if slightly awkward, young man. Apart from his signature overgrown skullet, fakemink\u2019s appearance is generally unremarkable: average height, slight build, smart-casual clothes. He clearly struggles with eye contact.\u00a0<\/span><span>To the surprise of his publicist sitting next to us, he explains that he made the hour-long journey here from his home in Essex by public transport.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"inline-img expandable dev-view-hide\" data-img=\"43b9d488-c8b8-4238-80b8-b400012642f2\" data-src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1035\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439637.jpg\" data-img-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\" data-img-aspect-ratio=\"0.77\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"1350\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1035\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439637.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"img-caption\"><span class=\"caption\">Fakemink wears wool jacket and leather trousers Versace, T-shirt worn throughout <span class=\"nowrap\">his own<\/span><\/span><span class=\"credit\">Photography Rosie Marks, Styling <span class=\"nowrap\">Zara Mirkin<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><span>Fakemink does, however, know the restaurant\u2019s menu like the back of his hand, rattling off recommendations including their signature tuna and natto bowl \u2013 a stringy, snot-like fermented bean dish considered an acquired taste even in Japan. \u201cI\u2019m super big on my health,\u201d he explains, the sentiment running in stark contrast to his hedonistic, substance-laced lyrics. \u201cThings like natto are especially good for digestion. Also, drinking warm water, because cold water <\/span><span>disturbs the microbes in your gut.\u201d He looks up from the menu, raising one hand in a cartoonish \u201ceureka\u201d gesture. \u201cMaturing is being able to drink warm water,\u201d he declares to everyone and no one in particular.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>We speak about his recent trip to Tokyo and the conversation quickly turns to Pok\u00e9mon. \u201cI was really, really into it,\u201d fakemink tells me, pulling up a Pok\u00e9mon fan page he created on Instagram when he was seven years old that \u201conly the diehard fans\u201d are allowed to know about. \u201cThis was around the time that Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby were being leaked, but my favourite game is Pok\u00e9mon X\u2026\u201d Trailing off, he turns towards me and asks sheepishly, \u201cDo you like Pok\u00e9mon?\u201d After determining that I, too, am a true fan (I\u2019ve been playing consistently from an early age), he loosens up and challenges me to a game of browser-based battle simulator Pok\u00e9mon Showdown (gen 9 randoms, for those that know). Sadly, the challenge is forgotten as the evening takes its course and we move on to discuss fakemink\u2019s many other passions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Still, obsessive Pok\u00e9mon love is exactly what you would expect from the paragon of UK Ug \u2013 being terminally online gen Z kids is about the only thing that ties the scene together. Influences are disparate, even incongruent, from EsDeeKid\u2019s abrasive scouse rap and Feng\u2019s early 2010s pop nostalgia to SINN6R\u2019s so-called \u201cemo drill\u201d and Zukovstheworld\u2019s digital indie rock \u2013 the list goes on.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<blockquote>\n<p><span>\u201cI\u2019m super big on my health. Things like natto are especially good for digestion. Also, drinking warm water, because cold water <\/span><span>disturbs the microbes in your gut\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><span>Fakemink, meanwhile, oscillates between Nujabes-esque lo-fi hip hop, slack-jawed cloud rap and hints of hyperactive Japanese nightcore. He tells me that he started producing when he was just ten years old, and it\u2019s clear the music software FruityLoops is the only instrument he\u2019s ever known. With it, mink sports a sort of <\/span><span>musical rule-bending that comes naturally to a child of the internet \u2013 frequently pitch-shifting, speeding up and even reversing vocal takes across his prolific discography. (In 2024 alone, fakemink uploaded 80 tracks to Spotify.) <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI got a laptop for my birthday [from my dad],\u201d says the artist of his entry into music, \u201cand I found a copy of FruityLoops 11 on the hard drive that I ended up using for years. My dad was a drum &amp; bass DJ <\/span><span>\u2013 he used to play at Hippodrome when it was a club \u2013 so maybe he was [planning to make music]. But I don\u2019t think so.\u201d It was also his father <\/span><span>who inspired mink\u2019s love of rap music, having made a habit of playing hip hop and dancehall classics during regular drives to visit his grandparents in Ilford. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Far from the \u201cLondon saviour\u201d he would later declare himself to be, though, fakemink says he was initially \u201cquite <\/span><span>bad\u201d at music. \u201cI was just doing it as a hobby, I never thought it was something to \u2018win\u2019 at,\u201d he says. \u201cHonestly, if I\u2019d known it was my true calling, I probably would have been more vocal about it. I never told my parents I wanted to do music, because I didn\u2019t want there to be even a chance for them to shut me down. I would post songs on SoundCloud and people at school would see them, but I don\u2019t think they believed in me. <\/span>It was only in 2019, 2020 that I thought, \u2018Oh, I\u2019m actually pretty good at producing, let me home in on it.\u2019\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"inline-img expandable dev-view-hide\" data-img=\"3a6506d7-55ef-4225-90f6-b4000126843b\" data-src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/917\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439644.jpg\" data-img-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\" data-img-aspect-ratio=\"0.68\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"1350\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/917\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439644.jpg\" width=\"917\"><\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"img-caption\"><span class=\"caption\">From left: Fakemink wears organic cotton jacket Stone Island, coated denim trousers Maxime Black, leather trainers Nike. Roxanne wears all clothes Pleats Please Issey Miyake, leather trainers Nike x <span class=\"nowrap\">Martine Rose<\/span><\/span><span class=\"credit\">Photography Rosie Marks, Styling <span class=\"nowrap\">Zara Mirkin<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><span>These releases, uploaded under mink\u2019s former moniker 9090gate, have been unearthed since his recent virality. \u201cI was 14 when I made that name, my frontal lobe was still developing,\u201d he explains. \u201cI think I got it from this 90s cult called Heaven\u2019s Gate. They thought that when the Hale-Bopp comet passed Earth there would be a ship that took them to heaven. So, all the members dressed in the same uniform and drank poison. I saw it and thought, \u2018Oh, that\u2019s a cool word.\u2019 Before that, my name was Gate Visions or something. But it\u2019s meaningless, really.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI only changed my name to fakemink in April 2024, about five months after<em> London\u2019s Saviour<\/em> came out,\u201d he continues, suddenly pausing and looking at my voice recorder. \u201cWait, this is recording, right? OK, so, if anyone is listening and they have a name which has a bunch of numbers in it or it doesn\u2019t roll off the tongue, change that shit right now. More people judge books by their covers than they like to admit.\u201d <\/span><span>Having started our interview by describing his favourite Pok\u00e9mon, it\u2019s striking to see mink position himself as a mentor to his listeners, almost as if I am watching his own evolution play out in real time. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>This maturity is partly born of necessity: nowadays, fakemink finds his every move scrutinised by countless fan pages across the internet, many of whom are ready to turn on him at the drop of a hat. \u201cI would have never have guessed life would be this stressful,\u201d he says. <\/span><span>\u201cI\u2019ve felt people\u2019s jealousy more than ever recently, and I\u2019m talking about people I never would have thought would be jealous. I was oblivious; I didn\u2019t feel like my success was anyone\u2019s loss. If I lose and you\u2019re my enemy, that doesn\u2019t make you any more successful: that <\/span><span>just makes me a loser.\u201d <\/span><span>Without prompting, he brings up the recent criticism he\u2019s faced for branding himself as an \u201cartist\u201d and not a \u201crapper\u201d. \u201cThat doesn\u2019t mean I\u2019m denouncing rap or that I\u2019m denouncing other people\u2019s rap, it just means my rap is the best art. I\u2019m a rapper more than anything. That is my artform.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<blockquote>\n<p><span>\u201cI know it\u2019s bold to say \u2018London\u2019s saviour\u2019, living in Essex, but I\u2019m still waiting for someone to challenge it. No one has\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><span>\u201cI made <em>London\u2019s Saviour<\/em> in three days, but no one seems to believe that,\u201d he continues. \u201cI know it\u2019s bold to say \u2018London\u2019s <\/span><span>saviour\u2019, living in Essex, but I\u2019m still waiting for someone to challenge it. No one has. I actually was London\u2019s saviour, <\/span><span>because I opened people\u2019s eyes [to the UK Ug scene]. <\/span><span>Sometimes, I really feel like the Eminem of the UK underground, <\/span><span>because I\u2019m so much better than these man and they can\u2019t face it.\u201d I suggest that social media has played a central role in <\/span><span>the rise of UK Ug. It\u2019s a trend I\u2019ve observed more widely writing about the scene: today\u2019s up-and-comers are used to <\/span><span>controlling every aspect of their online presence, and consequently signing off some creative agency to interviewers like <\/span><span>me seems less appealing or even anxiety-inducing. Fakemink agrees: \u201cSocial media is really just a lie; everyone\u2019s just <\/span><span>sharing their best highlights. But, if that\u2019s the case, then I\u2019ll use it to my advantage. I\u2019m going to design how I\u2019m portrayed <\/span><span>on social media to the point that I\u2019m a superstar.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I ask if all these public pressures have played a role in the title of his new album. Instead, he tries to describe the project. He turns to me: \u201cHow would you describe<em> London\u2019s Saviour<\/em>? I don\u2019t even know how.\u201d I suggest lo-fi hip hop. \u201cOK, <\/span><span>so if<em> London\u2019s Saviour<\/em> is lo-fi hip hop, then <em>Terrified<\/em> is lo-fi hip hop if it was played on the radio.\u201d Suddenly taken by another idea, mink whips out his phone for the umpteenth time and offers to play me some of the record. He\u2019s clearly excited, barely breaking his gaze on the device as he pairs my AirPods and plays me snippets of five new tracks, all the while chainsmoking cigarettes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>From that brief listen, at least, fakemink\u2019s summary of the album rings true. The classic mink hallmarks are present and correct: distorted production, pitch-shifted vocals, frequent BPM changes. But there is also a surprising sonic maturity: clear melody lines, catchy choruses, even a bit of singing. One line in particular jumps out at me: \u201c<em>We\u2019re terrified but we\u2019re not scared<\/em>.\u201d What does terrified mean, then? <\/span><span>\u201cTerrified is when you\u2019re [afraid], but you know exactly what is happening and why,\u201d he replies. \u201c\u2018Scared\u2019 is being confused. Things are scary right now, but I\u2019m far from confused. It\u2019s like if Jason from Friday the 13th was coming at you with a knife \u2013 you\u2019d be scared. But if you had a gun, <\/span><span>you\u2019d also have hope that you were going to win.\u201d I ask if he knew who the killer was. Fakemink pauses. \u201cIt\u2019s me,\u201d he says flatly, and excuses himself to go to the bathroom.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"inline-img expandable dev-view-hide\" data-img=\"8d9b8c99-37c0-491d-9beb-b40001269906\" data-src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1350\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439647.jpg\" data-img-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\" data-img-aspect-ratio=\"1.38\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"977\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1350\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439647.jpg\" width=\"1350\"><\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"img-caption\"><span class=\"caption\">From left: Gabrielle wears cotton and polyester dress Sentimento, polyurethane shoes Casadei. Shania wears polyester dress Sentimento, leather and crystal shoes Rene Caovilla. Fakemink wears all clothes and shoes as before. Roxanne wears lace embroidered top Katya Zelentsova, cotton trousers Laura Andraschko, leather shoes Rene Caovilla. Victoria wears lace embroidered dress Katya Zelentsova, leather shoes Rene Caovilla. Isabella wears chiffon skirt worn as dress Guess, leather bag Vaquera, leather <span class=\"nowrap\">shoes Rene<\/span><\/span><span class=\"credit\">Photography Rosie Marks, Styling <span class=\"nowrap\">Zara Mirkin<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><span>When he returns, he announces that he\u2019d like to go shopping at Selfridges and suggests we continue our interview <\/span><span>there. As the bill is settled, he places his phone, Notes app open, into my hands. \u201cThis is the Terrified story. It\u2019s going to be published in a small magazine with the album,\u201d he says, adding that the goal was to convert the narrative into \u201ccatchy, radio-ready songs\u201d. \u201c[About] 80 per cent of it was written by my friend, GhostInnaFurCoat. Once people read this, they\u2019ll get an insanely bigger understanding of me.\u201d Replete with accidental capital letters and sporadic line breaks, the Notes app novella has clearly been typed out hastily, but it\u2019s haunting nonetheless. It\u2019s sort of like JD <\/span><span>Salinger meets Stephen King, depicting a young man locked in a hotel room with a love interest whose presence is both seductive and threatening. Halfway through reading, I glance up to find that fakemink has already left the table and started making his way towards Oxford Street. I jog to catch up, wondering what would happen if his precious phone were to get snatched in the interim. He seems to have forgotten <\/span><span>all about it. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Weaving through shoppers and eventually ducking into Selfridges\u2019 brightly-lit Dior storefront, he continues to unpack the album: \u201cI did the boxing ring show [at All Stars Boxing Gym in north London], and then I went on a mini-tour between August and November [of 2025]. The whole album is about my life in London, Toronto, New York and LA. I was staying at this hotel called Chateau Marmont [whose storied <\/span><span>rooms have hosted everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Britney Spears] in LA, but this haunted girl was the only ghost I was looking at. In the Bible, hell is never described as this fiery place, it\u2019s just somewhere that God isn\u2019t. For me, hell is this beautiful, cold mansion in LA, far from home. Heaven is my house in Essex. It\u2019s quiet, my family are there, there\u2019s no one to bother me.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201c<span>Heaven is my house in Essex. It\u2019s quiet, my family are there, there\u2019s no one to bother me\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html-embed\">\n<p><span>Inside the department store, mink makes a beeline for Tom Ford. It feels like the sushi menu all over again as he <\/span><span>speeds across the sales floor, reflecting on how he used to window-shop here as a teenager. \u201cBeing able to actually buy <\/span><span>things now is the best feeling.\u201d He tries on a few plain, smart-casual tops \u2013 silk, only silk \u2013 before settling on a cream polo <\/span><span>that costs \u00a31,200. \u201cEnzo, is it?\u201d the clerk asks as mink enters his login details to collect points at the till. As we exit the <\/span><span>store, mink muses, \u201cI don\u2019t regret spending that much, but I also do.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Lighting up a final cigarette outside, fakemink is recognised for the first time. He\u2019s beset by three handshakes in quick succession as a trio of teenage boys begin showing off a recent haul. \u201cWhat do you think? I\u2019ve just bought them!\u201d one asks, pointing to the moss-coloured, oversized moon boots he\u2019s wearing. Fakemink looks unimpressed, prompting cries of anguish from the group, before quickly snapping into his burgeoning role-model persona once more. \u201cBut that\u2019s <\/span><span>you, bro! Don\u2019t change it!\u201d Together, they pose for a picture as mink\u2019s manager motions that it\u2019s time to leave. I manage to get one last question in: what\u2019s your favourite Pok\u00e9mon? fakemink mulls it over, and then responds with a child-like grin. \u201cMew, because he\u2019s a baby and he\u2019s powerful.\u201d That seems about right.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><em>This story is taken from the spring 2026 issue of Dazed, which is on sale internationally from March 5. Pre-order a copy of the magazine\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.boutiquemags.com\/dpa\/add\/tocart\/id\/14592\">here<\/a>.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span class=\"s1\">Hair <\/span>Rachel Lee<span class=\"s1\"> at <\/span>MA+ Group <span class=\"s1\">using <\/span>Hair by Sam McKnight<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span><span class=\"s1\">make-up <\/span>Lauren Parsons<span class=\"s1\"> at <\/span>Art Partner<span class=\"s1\">, nails <\/span>Sabrina Gayle<span class=\"s1\"> at <\/span>Arch the Agency using <span class=\"s2\">Chanel<\/span>, models <span class=\"s2\">Brixton <\/span>Key<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Gabrielle Mooney<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Isabella Sina<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Jack Lloyd<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Linda Malcolm<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Roxanne RosePresley<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Shania Steele<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Victoria Easlea<span class=\"s1\">, set design <\/span>Jack Appleyard<span class=\"s1\"> at <\/span>The Magnet Agency<span class=\"s1\">, lighting <\/span>Vasilis Kalegias<span class=\"s1\">, photographic <\/span><span class=\"s1\">assistants <\/span>Sam Khoury<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Daiki <span class=\"s2\">Tajima<\/span>, styling assistants Darlene Park<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Moni Jiang<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Emily Jones<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Sam Perring<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Malcom D Costa<span class=\"s1\">, hair <\/span><span class=\"s1\">assistants <\/span>James Tarquin<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Peter Cheng<span class=\"s1\">, make-up <\/span><span class=\"s1\">assistants <\/span>Lara Weidmann<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Shani Mushington<span class=\"s1\">, nails <\/span><span class=\"s1\">assistant <\/span>Annie Kilalea<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>set design assistant <span class=\"s2\">Billie <\/span><span class=\"s2\">Browne<\/span>, production <span class=\"s2\">Mica <\/span>Kossakowska<span class=\"s1\"> at <\/span>CEBE <span class=\"s2\">Studio<\/span>, production assistants Phoebe Bunje<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Lucy Taylor<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span><span class=\"s2\">Harvey Watt<\/span>, post-production Dtouch<span class=\"s1\">, casting <\/span>Good Catch At New School Represents<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-series header article-series tags\"><span class=\"heading\">More on these topics:<\/span><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\">Music<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/the-spring-2026-issue\">The Spring 2026 Issue<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/feature\">Feature<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/fakemink\">Fakemink<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/rap\">rap<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/london\">London<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/uk-ug\">UK Ug<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/frank-ocean\">Frank Ocean<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"image-navigation\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/news\/\" class=\"image-navigation__img one\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image-navigation__wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"image-navigation__title\">News<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/fashion\/\" class=\"image-navigation__img two\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image-navigation__wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"image-navigation__title\">Fashion<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/\" class=\"image-navigation__img three\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image-navigation__wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"image-navigation__title\">Music<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/film-tv\/\" class=\"image-navigation__img four\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image-navigation__wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"image-navigation__title\">Film &amp; TV<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/article\/69785\/1\/fakemink-londons-saviour-terrified-interview-uk-ug-underground-spring-2026-issue#features\" class=\"image-navigation__img five\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image-navigation__wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"image-navigation__title\">Features<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/beauty\/\" class=\"image-navigation__img six\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image-navigation__wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"image-navigation__title\">Beauty<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/life-culture\/\" class=\"image-navigation__img seven\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image-navigation__wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"image-navigation__title\">Life &amp; Culture<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/art-photography\/\" class=\"image-navigation__img eight\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"image-navigation__wrapper\">\n<h3 class=\"image-navigation__title\">Art &amp; Photography<\/h3>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<div class=\"article-body wrapper\">\n<div class=\"dazed-gallery has-12-images \">\n<div class=\"inner\">\n<header>\n<div class=\"info\"><span class=\"heading\">Fakemink \u2013 The Spring <span class=\"nowrap\">2026 Issue<\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<\/header>\n<div class=\"gallery\">\n<div class=\"gallery-thumbs\">\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/0\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"690\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-304-1035-690\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439637.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/1\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"690\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-223-1035-690\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439638.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/2\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"DC291_COV1_M1_Fakemink_RosieMarks_ZaraMirkin_07\" class=\"img\" height=\"690\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-365-1035-690\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439639.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/3\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"690\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-543-1035-690\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439640.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/4\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"DC291_COV1_M1_Fakemink_RosieMarks_ZaraMirkin_12\" class=\"img\" height=\"900\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-85-1350-900\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439641.jpg\" width=\"1350\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-thumb\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/gallery\/36771\/5\/fakemink-the-spring-2026-issue\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"690\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/320\/0-405-1035-690\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439642.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"gallery-footer\">Gallery \/ 12 images<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><em>This story is taken from the spring 2026 issue of Dazed, which is on sale internationally from March 5. Pre-order a copy of the magazine<span>\u00a0<\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.boutiquemags.com\/dpa\/add\/tocart\/id\/14592\">here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span>I\u2019m waiting for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/fakemink\">fakemink<\/a> at a Mayfair sushi restaurant, the day after he cancelled our first scheduled interview at the <\/span><span>last minute. Friends who\u2019d met the Essex-born artist before described him as \u201ccute\u201d and \u201ckind of innocent\u201d, but, after almost an hour of hanging around, I privately swear I will not fall for his charms. So it really is despite my best efforts that I find myself immediately swept up in fakemink\u2019s presence when he does finally show. He asks my name, shakes my hand, introduces himself as Enzo and, without sitting <\/span><span>down, invites me outside for a cigarette. \u201cI\u2019m sorry, I was up making music till, like, 7 or 8am,\u201d the 21-year-old says, <\/span><span>rubbing his eyes between drags on a Marlboro Gold. \u201cI didn\u2019t get up till 5pm.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>It\u2019s hard to imagine this is the same viral rapper who opened the door for the now-flourishing<\/span><span>\u00a0UK underground (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/uk-ug\">UK Ug<\/a>) rap scene, paving the way for peers including <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/esdeekid\">EsDeeKid<\/a>, Feng and SINN6R, and who is now poised to release his sophomore album, <em>Terrified<\/em>. <\/span><span>O<\/span><span>nline, the artist born Vincenzo Camille appears cocky: he titled his debut <\/span><span>album, released in 2023 when he was just 18, <em>London\u2019s Saviour<\/em>, and his Instagram presence almost exclusively consists of designer clothes, luxury meals and, occasionally, a flicker of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/frank-ocean\">Frank Ocean<\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I search his mannerisms for any hint of conceit, an ego inflated by sudden fame, but all I find is a polite, if slightly awkward, young man. Apart from his signature overgrown skullet, fakemink\u2019s appearance is generally unremarkable: average height, slight build, smart-casual clothes. He clearly struggles with eye contact.\u00a0<\/span><span>To the surprise of his publicist sitting next to us, he explains that he made the hour-long journey here from his home in Essex by public transport.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"inline-img expandable dev-view-hide\" data-img=\"43b9d488-c8b8-4238-80b8-b400012642f2\" data-src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1035\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439637.jpg\" data-img-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\" data-img-aspect-ratio=\"0.77\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"1350\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1035\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439637.jpg\" width=\"1035\"><\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"img-caption\"><span class=\"caption\">Fakemink wears wool jacket and leather trousers Versace, T-shirt worn throughout <span class=\"nowrap\">his own<\/span><\/span><span class=\"credit\">Photography Rosie Marks, Styling <span class=\"nowrap\">Zara Mirkin<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><span>Fakemink does, however, know the restaurant\u2019s menu like the back of his hand, rattling off recommendations including their signature tuna and natto bowl \u2013 a stringy, snot-like fermented bean dish considered an acquired taste even in Japan. \u201cI\u2019m super big on my health,\u201d he explains, the sentiment running in stark contrast to his hedonistic, substance-laced lyrics. \u201cThings like natto are especially good for digestion. Also, drinking warm water, because cold water <\/span><span>disturbs the microbes in your gut.\u201d He looks up from the menu, raising one hand in a cartoonish \u201ceureka\u201d gesture. \u201cMaturing is being able to drink warm water,\u201d he declares to everyone and no one in particular.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>We speak about his recent trip to Tokyo and the conversation quickly turns to Pok\u00e9mon. \u201cI was really, really into it,\u201d fakemink tells me, pulling up a Pok\u00e9mon fan page he created on Instagram when he was seven years old that \u201conly the diehard fans\u201d are allowed to know about. \u201cThis was around the time that Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby were being leaked, but my favourite game is Pok\u00e9mon X\u2026\u201d Trailing off, he turns towards me and asks sheepishly, \u201cDo you like Pok\u00e9mon?\u201d After determining that I, too, am a true fan (I\u2019ve been playing consistently from an early age), he loosens up and challenges me to a game of browser-based battle simulator Pok\u00e9mon Showdown (gen 9 randoms, for those that know). Sadly, the challenge is forgotten as the evening takes its course and we move on to discuss fakemink\u2019s many other passions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Still, obsessive Pok\u00e9mon love is exactly what you would expect from the paragon of UK Ug \u2013 being terminally online gen Z kids is about the only thing that ties the scene together. Influences are disparate, even incongruent, from EsDeeKid\u2019s abrasive scouse rap and Feng\u2019s early 2010s pop nostalgia to SINN6R\u2019s so-called \u201cemo drill\u201d and Zukovstheworld\u2019s digital indie rock \u2013 the list goes on.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<blockquote>\n<p><span>\u201cI\u2019m super big on my health. Things like natto are especially good for digestion. Also, drinking warm water, because cold water <\/span><span>disturbs the microbes in your gut\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><span>Fakemink, meanwhile, oscillates between Nujabes-esque lo-fi hip hop, slack-jawed cloud rap and hints of hyperactive Japanese nightcore. He tells me that he started producing when he was just ten years old, and it\u2019s clear the music software FruityLoops is the only instrument he\u2019s ever known. With it, mink sports a sort of <\/span><span>musical rule-bending that comes naturally to a child of the internet \u2013 frequently pitch-shifting, speeding up and even reversing vocal takes across his prolific discography. (In 2024 alone, fakemink uploaded 80 tracks to Spotify.) <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI got a laptop for my birthday [from my dad],\u201d says the artist of his entry into music, \u201cand I found a copy of FruityLoops 11 on the hard drive that I ended up using for years. My dad was a drum &amp; bass DJ <\/span><span>\u2013 he used to play at Hippodrome when it was a club \u2013 so maybe he was [planning to make music]. But I don\u2019t think so.\u201d It was also his father <\/span><span>who inspired mink\u2019s love of rap music, having made a habit of playing hip hop and dancehall classics during regular drives to visit his grandparents in Ilford. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Far from the \u201cLondon saviour\u201d he would later declare himself to be, though, fakemink says he was initially \u201cquite <\/span><span>bad\u201d at music. \u201cI was just doing it as a hobby, I never thought it was something to \u2018win\u2019 at,\u201d he says. \u201cHonestly, if I\u2019d known it was my true calling, I probably would have been more vocal about it. I never told my parents I wanted to do music, because I didn\u2019t want there to be even a chance for them to shut me down. I would post songs on SoundCloud and people at school would see them, but I don\u2019t think they believed in me. <\/span>It was only in 2019, 2020 that I thought, \u2018Oh, I\u2019m actually pretty good at producing, let me home in on it.\u2019\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"inline-img expandable dev-view-hide\" data-img=\"3a6506d7-55ef-4225-90f6-b4000126843b\" data-src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/917\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439644.jpg\" data-img-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\" data-img-aspect-ratio=\"0.68\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"portrait\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"1350\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/917\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439644.jpg\" width=\"917\"><\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"img-caption\"><span class=\"caption\">From left: Fakemink wears organic cotton jacket Stone Island, coated denim trousers Maxime Black, leather trainers Nike. Roxanne wears all clothes Pleats Please Issey Miyake, leather trainers Nike x <span class=\"nowrap\">Martine Rose<\/span><\/span><span class=\"credit\">Photography Rosie Marks, Styling <span class=\"nowrap\">Zara Mirkin<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><span>These releases, uploaded under mink\u2019s former moniker 9090gate, have been unearthed since his recent virality. \u201cI was 14 when I made that name, my frontal lobe was still developing,\u201d he explains. \u201cI think I got it from this 90s cult called Heaven\u2019s Gate. They thought that when the Hale-Bopp comet passed Earth there would be a ship that took them to heaven. So, all the members dressed in the same uniform and drank poison. I saw it and thought, \u2018Oh, that\u2019s a cool word.\u2019 Before that, my name was Gate Visions or something. But it\u2019s meaningless, really.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI only changed my name to fakemink in April 2024, about five months after<em> London\u2019s Saviour<\/em> came out,\u201d he continues, suddenly pausing and looking at my voice recorder. \u201cWait, this is recording, right? OK, so, if anyone is listening and they have a name which has a bunch of numbers in it or it doesn\u2019t roll off the tongue, change that shit right now. More people judge books by their covers than they like to admit.\u201d <\/span><span>Having started our interview by describing his favourite Pok\u00e9mon, it\u2019s striking to see mink position himself as a mentor to his listeners, almost as if I am watching his own evolution play out in real time. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>This maturity is partly born of necessity: nowadays, fakemink finds his every move scrutinised by countless fan pages across the internet, many of whom are ready to turn on him at the drop of a hat. \u201cI would have never have guessed life would be this stressful,\u201d he says. <\/span><span>\u201cI\u2019ve felt people\u2019s jealousy more than ever recently, and I\u2019m talking about people I never would have thought would be jealous. I was oblivious; I didn\u2019t feel like my success was anyone\u2019s loss. If I lose and you\u2019re my enemy, that doesn\u2019t make you any more successful: that <\/span><span>just makes me a loser.\u201d <\/span><span>Without prompting, he brings up the recent criticism he\u2019s faced for branding himself as an \u201cartist\u201d and not a \u201crapper\u201d. \u201cThat doesn\u2019t mean I\u2019m denouncing rap or that I\u2019m denouncing other people\u2019s rap, it just means my rap is the best art. I\u2019m a rapper more than anything. That is my artform.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<blockquote>\n<p><span>\u201cI know it\u2019s bold to say \u2018London\u2019s saviour\u2019, living in Essex, but I\u2019m still waiting for someone to challenge it. No one has\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><span>\u201cI made <em>London\u2019s Saviour<\/em> in three days, but no one seems to believe that,\u201d he continues. \u201cI know it\u2019s bold to say \u2018London\u2019s <\/span><span>saviour\u2019, living in Essex, but I\u2019m still waiting for someone to challenge it. No one has. I actually was London\u2019s saviour, <\/span><span>because I opened people\u2019s eyes [to the UK Ug scene]. <\/span><span>Sometimes, I really feel like the Eminem of the UK underground, <\/span><span>because I\u2019m so much better than these man and they can\u2019t face it.\u201d I suggest that social media has played a central role in <\/span><span>the rise of UK Ug. It\u2019s a trend I\u2019ve observed more widely writing about the scene: today\u2019s up-and-comers are used to <\/span><span>controlling every aspect of their online presence, and consequently signing off some creative agency to interviewers like <\/span><span>me seems less appealing or even anxiety-inducing. Fakemink agrees: \u201cSocial media is really just a lie; everyone\u2019s just <\/span><span>sharing their best highlights. But, if that\u2019s the case, then I\u2019ll use it to my advantage. I\u2019m going to design how I\u2019m portrayed <\/span><span>on social media to the point that I\u2019m a superstar.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>I ask if all these public pressures have played a role in the title of his new album. Instead, he tries to describe the project. He turns to me: \u201cHow would you describe<em> London\u2019s Saviour<\/em>? I don\u2019t even know how.\u201d I suggest lo-fi hip hop. \u201cOK, <\/span><span>so if<em> London\u2019s Saviour<\/em> is lo-fi hip hop, then <em>Terrified<\/em> is lo-fi hip hop if it was played on the radio.\u201d Suddenly taken by another idea, mink whips out his phone for the umpteenth time and offers to play me some of the record. He\u2019s clearly excited, barely breaking his gaze on the device as he pairs my AirPods and plays me snippets of five new tracks, all the while chainsmoking cigarettes.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>From that brief listen, at least, fakemink\u2019s summary of the album rings true. The classic mink hallmarks are present and correct: distorted production, pitch-shifted vocals, frequent BPM changes. But there is also a surprising sonic maturity: clear melody lines, catchy choruses, even a bit of singing. One line in particular jumps out at me: \u201c<em>We\u2019re terrified but we\u2019re not scared<\/em>.\u201d What does terrified mean, then? <\/span><span>\u201cTerrified is when you\u2019re [afraid], but you know exactly what is happening and why,\u201d he replies. \u201c\u2018Scared\u2019 is being confused. Things are scary right now, but I\u2019m far from confused. It\u2019s like if Jason from Friday the 13th was coming at you with a knife \u2013 you\u2019d be scared. But if you had a gun, <\/span><span>you\u2019d also have hope that you were going to win.\u201d I ask if he knew who the killer was. Fakemink pauses. \u201cIt\u2019s me,\u201d he says flatly, and excuses himself to go to the bathroom.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure class=\"inline-img expandable dev-view-hide\" data-img=\"8d9b8c99-37c0-491d-9beb-b40001269906\" data-src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1350\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439647.jpg\" data-img-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\" data-img-aspect-ratio=\"1.38\"><span class=\"has-css-custom-props image-container\" data-aspect-ratio-type=\"landscape\"><span class=\"preserve-aspect-ratio\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fakemink Dazed cover shoot\" class=\"img\" height=\"977\" src=\"https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1350\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439647.jpg\" width=\"1350\"><\/span><\/span><figcaption class=\"img-caption\"><span class=\"caption\">From left: Gabrielle wears cotton and polyester dress Sentimento, polyurethane shoes Casadei. Shania wears polyester dress Sentimento, leather and crystal shoes Rene Caovilla. Fakemink wears all clothes and shoes as before. Roxanne wears lace embroidered top Katya Zelentsova, cotton trousers Laura Andraschko, leather shoes Rene Caovilla. Victoria wears lace embroidered dress Katya Zelentsova, leather shoes Rene Caovilla. Isabella wears chiffon skirt worn as dress Guess, leather bag Vaquera, leather <span class=\"nowrap\">shoes Rene<\/span><\/span><span class=\"credit\">Photography Rosie Marks, Styling <span class=\"nowrap\">Zara Mirkin<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<p><span>When he returns, he announces that he\u2019d like to go shopping at Selfridges and suggests we continue our interview <\/span><span>there. As the bill is settled, he places his phone, Notes app open, into my hands. \u201cThis is the Terrified story. It\u2019s going to be published in a small magazine with the album,\u201d he says, adding that the goal was to convert the narrative into \u201ccatchy, radio-ready songs\u201d. \u201c[About] 80 per cent of it was written by my friend, GhostInnaFurCoat. Once people read this, they\u2019ll get an insanely bigger understanding of me.\u201d Replete with accidental capital letters and sporadic line breaks, the Notes app novella has clearly been typed out hastily, but it\u2019s haunting nonetheless. It\u2019s sort of like JD <\/span><span>Salinger meets Stephen King, depicting a young man locked in a hotel room with a love interest whose presence is both seductive and threatening. Halfway through reading, I glance up to find that fakemink has already left the table and started making his way towards Oxford Street. I jog to catch up, wondering what would happen if his precious phone were to get snatched in the interim. He seems to have forgotten <\/span><span>all about it. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Weaving through shoppers and eventually ducking into Selfridges\u2019 brightly-lit Dior storefront, he continues to unpack the album: \u201cI did the boxing ring show [at All Stars Boxing Gym in north London], and then I went on a mini-tour between August and November [of 2025]. The whole album is about my life in London, Toronto, New York and LA. I was staying at this hotel called Chateau Marmont [whose storied <\/span><span>rooms have hosted everyone from Marilyn Monroe to Britney Spears] in LA, but this haunted girl was the only ghost I was looking at. In the Bible, hell is never described as this fiery place, it\u2019s just somewhere that God isn\u2019t. For me, hell is this beautiful, cold mansion in LA, far from home. Heaven is my house in Essex. It\u2019s quiet, my family are there, there\u2019s no one to bother me.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html\">\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201c<span>Heaven is my house in Essex. It\u2019s quiet, my family are there, there\u2019s no one to bother me\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"embed-content\" data-embed-type=\"raw-html-embed\">\n<p><span>Inside the department store, mink makes a beeline for Tom Ford. It feels like the sushi menu all over again as he <\/span><span>speeds across the sales floor, reflecting on how he used to window-shop here as a teenager. \u201cBeing able to actually buy <\/span><span>things now is the best feeling.\u201d He tries on a few plain, smart-casual tops \u2013 silk, only silk \u2013 before settling on a cream polo <\/span><span>that costs \u00a31,200. \u201cEnzo, is it?\u201d the clerk asks as mink enters his login details to collect points at the till. As we exit the <\/span><span>store, mink muses, \u201cI don\u2019t regret spending that much, but I also do.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Lighting up a final cigarette outside, fakemink is recognised for the first time. He\u2019s beset by three handshakes in quick succession as a trio of teenage boys begin showing off a recent haul. \u201cWhat do you think? I\u2019ve just bought them!\u201d one asks, pointing to the moss-coloured, oversized moon boots he\u2019s wearing. Fakemink looks unimpressed, prompting cries of anguish from the group, before quickly snapping into his burgeoning role-model persona once more. \u201cBut that\u2019s <\/span><span>you, bro! Don\u2019t change it!\u201d Together, they pose for a picture as mink\u2019s manager motions that it\u2019s time to leave. I manage to get one last question in: what\u2019s your favourite Pok\u00e9mon? fakemink mulls it over, and then responds with a child-like grin. \u201cMew, because he\u2019s a baby and he\u2019s powerful.\u201d That seems about right.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span><em>This story is taken from the spring 2026 issue of Dazed, which is on sale internationally from March 5. Pre-order a copy of the magazine\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.boutiquemags.com\/dpa\/add\/tocart\/id\/14592\">here<\/a>.<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span class=\"s1\">Hair <\/span>Rachel Lee<span class=\"s1\"> at <\/span>MA+ Group <span class=\"s1\">using <\/span>Hair by Sam McKnight<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span><span class=\"s1\">make-up <\/span>Lauren Parsons<span class=\"s1\"> at <\/span>Art Partner<span class=\"s1\">, nails <\/span>Sabrina Gayle<span class=\"s1\"> at <\/span>Arch the Agency using <span class=\"s2\">Chanel<\/span>, models <span class=\"s2\">Brixton <\/span>Key<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Gabrielle Mooney<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Isabella Sina<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Jack Lloyd<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Linda Malcolm<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Roxanne RosePresley<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Shania Steele<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Victoria Easlea<span class=\"s1\">, set design <\/span>Jack Appleyard<span class=\"s1\"> at <\/span>The Magnet Agency<span class=\"s1\">, lighting <\/span>Vasilis Kalegias<span class=\"s1\">, photographic <\/span><span class=\"s1\">assistants <\/span>Sam Khoury<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Daiki <span class=\"s2\">Tajima<\/span>, styling assistants Darlene Park<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Moni Jiang<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Emily Jones<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Sam Perring<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Malcom D Costa<span class=\"s1\">, hair <\/span><span class=\"s1\">assistants <\/span>James Tarquin<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Peter Cheng<span class=\"s1\">, make-up <\/span><span class=\"s1\">assistants <\/span>Lara Weidmann<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Shani Mushington<span class=\"s1\">, nails <\/span><span class=\"s1\">assistant <\/span>Annie Kilalea<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>set design assistant <span class=\"s2\">Billie <\/span><span class=\"s2\">Browne<\/span>, production <span class=\"s2\">Mica <\/span>Kossakowska<span class=\"s1\"> at <\/span>CEBE <span class=\"s2\">Studio<\/span>, production assistants Phoebe Bunje<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span>Lucy Taylor<span class=\"s1\">, <\/span><span class=\"s2\">Harvey Watt<\/span>, post-production Dtouch<span class=\"s1\">, casting <\/span>Good Catch At New School Represents<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-series header article-series tags\"><span class=\"heading\">More on these topics:<\/span><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\">Music<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/the-spring-2026-issue\">The Spring 2026 Issue<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/feature\">Feature<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/fakemink\">Fakemink<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/rap\">rap<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/london\">London<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/uk-ug\">UK Ug<\/a><a class=\"series\" href=\"https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/tag\/frank-ocean\">Frank Ocean<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>[analyse_source url=&#8221;https:\/\/www.dazeddigital.com\/music\/article\/69785\/1\/fakemink-londons-saviour-terrified-interview-uk-ug-underground-spring-2026-issue&#8221;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>[analyse_image type=&#8221;featured&#8221; src=&#8221;https:\/\/images-prod.dazeddigital.com\/1200\/0-750-2400-1600\/azure\/dazed-prod\/1430\/9\/1439649.jpg&#8221;] Photography Rosie Marks, Styling Zara Mirkin DateInMeta\u00a0 2,\u00a0 2026 Music \/ The Spring 2026 Issue fakemink: \u2018I\u2019m the Eminem of the UK underground\u201d \u2018I\u2019m so much better than these man and they can&#8217;t face it\u2019: For our spring 2026 issue, we spend a day with the 21-year-old UK Ug trailblazer as he [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[226,76],"class_list":["post-1801795","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics","tag-crawlmanager","tag-dazeddigital-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1801795","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=1801795"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1801795\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1801795"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1801795"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1801795"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}