17 December 2022
Newsdesk
Over the last two days, Stormzy’s charity, #Merky Foundation held their second annual ‘A Very #Merky Xmas’ Christmas event at Fairfield Halls, situated in Stormzy’s hometown of Croydon.
Held across two days (15th & 16th December), the event was funded and supported by an abundance of generous donors (all of which are listed below) and was an opportunity for the local community to enjoy an evening of extra special Christmas activities and merriment including Gospel singing, games, performances, a raffle and more, with Stormzy also being present to join in on the fun.
The two-day event began on Thursday afternoon with ‘A Very #Merky Xmas: Gospel night’, a joyous family night of music which saw performances from a plethora of talent including Guvna B, Tab Worship, Becca Folks, Called Out Music, Volney Morgan & New Ye and hosted by Cassandra Maria and Muyiwa Olarewaju of Premier Gospel Radio. Displaying some of London’s finest world-class musicality, Stormzy also took to the stage to perform ‘Holy Spirit’, a track taken from his recent third #1 album ‘This Is What I Mean’ and his double-platinum selling single, ‘Blinded By Your Grace Part 2’.
Speaking on the gospel night, Stormzy said: “The gospel night was something my team and I had spoken about for a while and I said “this year let’s actually do it”. We wanted to have a night for all the amazing gospel artists who are killing it and to really celebrate them. It just felt right in my spirit.”
On day two, the doors opened at 4:30pm and the guests were welcomed with an array of activities in the foyer of Fairfields Hall including a visit to Santa’s grotto, face painting, soft play, a free gift shop and a huge indoor football pitch.
The main hall then opened its doors for a night of entertainment. British Comedians, Judi Love & Jordz Comedy were on hosting duties and the night began with a beautiful performance from the BRIT School Choir. Shortly after, Stormzy took to the stage to welcome the guests.
“Welcome to the second annual #Merky Christmas.” he said. “I just wanted to say thank you so much to everyone who has come down tonight. We appreciate you all. Tonight is all about joy. People ask why we do this and it’s because of that; we want to have a day filled with joy and memories, so let’s have some fun! Have a wonderful night, peace.”
Next on the program Jordz Comedy announced the lucky winners of the first (of three) part of the raffle. Prizes up for grabs included a Burberry coat, a year’s supply of Nando’s sauce, a Stella McCartney bag, 2 exclusive Adidas Box tickets to see Man U Vs. Crystal Palace and much, much more. Continuing the fun, The #Merky Quiz began which saw Presenter ZeZe Millz, Comedian Michael Dapaah and Stormzy go head to head on some rather challenging general knowledge questions.
The second half of the show saw the return of the #Merky Talent Contest followed by a game of Catchphrase. Hosted by British Comedian Eddie Kadi, Stormzy was also joined by singer Ray BLK, and Alex Boateng (0207 Def Jam co-president). Concluding the night, guests were treated to an exclusive performance from platinum-selling British duo, A1 x J1 who performed their chart scaling singles, ‘Come For You, ‘Latest Trends’ and ‘Night Away’ followed by a standing ovation from the audience.
