The musician gave a performance inside Retail 24 in Highbury [Becca Barry]

HIGHBURY local and Mercury Prize-winning rapper Little Simz took some time out of her busy recording schedule to perform a one-off set in an unusual location – an off-licence in Upper Street.

Swapping the bright lights of Glastonbury for the reflective shine of buzzballs and beer bottles, the musician played a set inside Retail 24 by Highbury and Islington station last Thursday.

Those hoping to send off their Evri parcels were surprised to find the shopfront shutters closed, as inside the Top Boy actress whistled through a set of favourites like Gorilla and Selfish, before treating the crowd to some new songs from her recent EP Sugar Girl.

Ali Imran, who has been running Retail 24 for 15 years, said that when he was approached for the idea, he was surprised as it seemed niche, and very different to the usual enquiries he receives. But ultimately he thought: “Why not?”

Observing from the shop’s back room, Mr Imran watched on as the space was transformed from retail to rave. He told the Tribune: “It was very good. A very different experience to the usual, but lovely. When they offered, I just said ‘yeah, come and do it’. It’s a nice thing for our community to do things like this.

“When it all kicked off, I said to my boys on shift, ‘go enjoy yourself for a bit, forget about work for now, the shop is closed’. They had a great time, a bit of a dance. It was definitely not a normal shift for them!”

The event was organised by Off-License Sessions, an events platform and record label who host rap, grime and hip-hop stars “straight out of bossman’s corner shop”.

Little Simz at Retail 24 [Lovell Small]

Will Shiston, who co-runs the platform, said: “This event couldn’t have gone any better for us. Simz has played one of the biggest sets on the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury, played at Coachella. So then to have her straight here to perform in an intimate setting in Islington where she grew up, it was special. The energy for the whole night was unmatched.

“We started this up three years ago and the project has just grown so much, but we’ve worked relentlessly to get it to the stage it’s at now. We had Idris Elba and Beenie Man last month too.

“To have someone of Little Simz’s magnitude to add to that, it’s a huge moment for us.

“We love putting events on in off-licences because we’re all about being an intersection between community and music – and these spaces allow us to do something a bit different, that’s what we represent.”

Mr Imran added: “After her performance, Little Simz came over to me and spoke to me and shook my hand. She thanked me for letting her perform here, and for our cooperation. It was really lovely.

“She’s very popular and well known around here, and she’s very good at what she does. A proper mix of rapping and then some stuff on the DJ decks too. People were really happy, everybody was cheering for her.”

Little Simz, who attended Highbury Fields School, has regularly spoken about her pride and connection to Islington. In 2024, she returned to her former school to meet new students and opened a recording studio at the LIFT Youth Club.

he has taken some time away from touring this year to record more music, and released her new EP Sugar Girl earlier this month.