As effortless as it sounds, Iris Gold’s synthesis of sunshine pop and block party hip hop can’t be pulled off by just anyone. The wide afro’d wordsmith is something special, with a killer back story and an arsenal of tunes set to rain down upon the world this year.

Born in the UK, Iris was whisked across the North Sea and grew up living a nomadic existence in Copenhagen, squatting for intervals above the Folkteatret (‘People’s theatre’) and in the fristaden (‘free town’) of Christiania. Hearing the likes of Fugees, Wu Tang Clan and Beastie Boys play in the legendarily liberal, anything-goes environment has left its impression on the artist. Often the only child at gatherings of space cadets, nudists and free-thinkers, she developed the charisma and storytelling prowess necessary to command attention.

Iris moved to London - “I wanted to spread my wingflowers,” she explains with a typically poetic flourish. Her journey from hippy roots to the glass and concrete of the city can be heard in the dually free-minded and sharply focused nature of her work: shiny bright hip hop and block party dance breaks compressed into 3 minute pop blasts.