Stefflon Don

Stephanie Victoria Allen (born 14 December 1991), known professionally as Stefflon Don, is a British rapper, singer, and songwriter, who rose to fame after her 2017 single "Hurtin' Me" featuring French Montana peaked at number 7 on the UK Singles Chart. In 2016, Allen released her debut mixtape Real Ting, followed by another mixtape, Secure, in 2018.

Stefflon Don
Don in 2019
Background information
Birth nameStephanie Victoria Allen
Born (1991-12-14) 14 December 1991
Northwest Birmingham, West Midlands, England
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Rapper
  • singer
  • songwriter
InstrumentsVocals
Years active2015–present
Labels
Websitewww.stefflondonofficial.com

Early life

Allen was born in Birmingham, West Midlands. She is of Jamaican descent.[2] She has six siblings. When she was five years old, her family moved to Rotterdam, Netherlands, (hence Allen speaks fluent Dutch)[2][3] but at the age of fourteen, she returned to Britain to study at a London school.[2][3] Allen has been singing and writing music since primary school. At the age of 9, she recorded a "Hard Knock Life" hook for a rapper called Unique. The song was never released but she was surprised to hear her voice on the playback.[4][5]

She worked as a cake decorator and hairdresser before her career in music.[2]

Career

2015–2017: Career beginnings and Real Ting

Don first surfaced in 2015 by releasing a cover of Wretch 32’s "6 Words," and went on to be featured on tracks such as Lethal Bizzle's "Wobble," Sneakbo's "Work" remix, Angel's Hop On, and KSI's 2016 song "Touch Down", which appears on the soundtrack of the 2017 film Baywatch.[6] "Fashion Killa (Papapapa)" by Mason released August 16, 2016 was written by Stefflon Don and Mason (Iason Chronis). Don made her first appearance on an American song with the track "London" by singer Jeremih,[7] and was later featured on Lil Yachty's "Better" from the album Teenage Emotions. On 16 December 2016, Don released her first mixtape titled Real Ting.

In the spring of 2017, Don was signed to 54 London, a subsidiary of Universal Music Group that was created just for her.[6] A few months later, she was featured on the dancehall track "Instruction" with Jax Jones and Demi Lovato. The trio performed the song live for the first time in June 2018 at the Summertime Ball.[8]

On 15 August 2017, she released the lead single "Hurtin' Me" with American rapper French Montana from her debut EP titled Hurtin' Me - The EP, which reached number 7 on the UK Singles Chart. The EP was later released on 12 January 2018.[9]

On 29 November, Don took home the award for Best Female at the 2017 MOBO Awards.[10]

2018: Secure

In March 2018, Don appeared on the front cover of the final print edition in the 66-year run of NME.[11]

In March 2018, Don was featured on the remix for American singer Halsey's "Alone" along with American rapper Big Sean. The song peaked at 66 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming her first entry on the chart, and also earned Don her first Dance Club Songs number one. The music video was released on 6 April 2018.

In March 2019, Don was featured on the Mariah Carey remix for the song "A No No" from her 2018 album, Caution.[12]

In June 2018, Don was included in the XXL Freshman Class.[13] On 17 August 2018, Don released her second mixtape Secure.[14]

In March 2019, she collaborated with Wiley on the song "Boasty".

In July 2019, her vocals were featured on XXXTentacion's posthumous track, "Royalty".

Discography
Main article: Stefflon Don discography

Personal life

During an interview with the Evening Standard in April 2018, [15]

In February 2019, Don confirmed that she is in a relationship with Nigerian afrobeats artist Burna Boy.[16]

She is the sister of the British rapper, Dutchavelli.[17]

Awards and nominations
YearOrganisationCategoryWorkResult
2017 MOBO Awards Best Female[18] Herself Won
The Line of Best Fit The Best Fifty Songs of 2017[19] "Hurtin' Me" #10
2018 NME Awards Best New Artist[20] Herself Won
BET Awards Best International Act[21] Nominated

References
  1. "Stefflon Don - Motown Records". Motown Records.
  2. "9 Things You Need To Know About Stefflon Don | MTV UK". web.archive.org. 22 April 2019. Retrieved 12 November 2019.
  3. "Stefflon Don on bubbling, family and why her house is the place to stay fambe". HungerTV. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
  4. "Meet Stefflon Don, the British-Jamaican MC Ready for 'World Domination'". Billboard. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
  5. "Meet: Stefflon Don, The British Artist Bridging Dancehall & Hip-Hop". Umusic. 17 August 2018. Retrieved 25 April 2019.
  6. Kieran, Yates. "Stefflon Don: 'I'm not going to compromise, or not say what I want'". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  7. "Jeremih releases 'London' video featuring Stefflon Don and Krept & Konan". 14 December 2016.
  8. "Jax Jones feat Demi Lovato & Stefflon Don – 'Instruction' (Live At The Summertime Ball 2018)". Capital FM. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  9. Fresh, Mikey. "Stefflon Don Teams Up With French Montana On "Hurtin Me"". Vibe. Retrieved 17 August 2018.
  10. Bruce-Jones, Henry. "Stefflon Don releases new mixtape Secure". Fact Mag. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  11. "NME's most memorable front covers as it prints for the last time". BBC News. 9 March 2018. Retrieved 3 November 2018.
  13. "XXL 2018 Freshman Class Revealed". XXL. 12 June 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
  14. Seabrook III, Robbie (8 August 2018). "Stefflon Don Channels Lil' Kim on Cover of 'Secure' Mixtape". XXL. Retrieved 10 August 2018.
  15. Godwin, Richard (18 April 2018). "Stefflon Don on getting advice from Drake, motherhood and why she'll never do drugs". Evening Standard. Retrieved 31 August 2019.
  16. "Stefflon Don confirms romance with Burna Boy". GRM Daily. 12 February 2019. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
  17. "Rapper Stefflon Don's brother 'didn't need to' rob Yalding family 'because of famous sister'". KentOnline. 27 November 2019. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  18. "MOBO Awards Best Female". Capital Xtra. Retrieved 30 November 2017.
  19. "The Best Fifty Songs of 2017 Ranked". The Line of Best Fit. 8 December 2017. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
  20. "NME Awards Best New Artist". NME. Retrieved 14 February 2018.
  21. "News: Vote: BET Awards Best International Act". BET Africa. 15 May 2018.
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