Stormzy has admitted his split from Maya Jama in 2019 made him realise he was still a boy and needed to become a man.
In a cover interview with GQ magazine, the Shut Up rapper revealed that he realised he had a lot of growing up to do emotionally following his split with the TV presenter in 2019 after four years together.
"I think my break up with Maya was still really heavy on my heart. I'd never experienced a breakup and the feelings that come with a breakup," he admitted. "And I never wanted to ever be in a position again where I felt what I was feeling. Because it showed me that I was a boy. And I do not want to go any further as a boy. I've seen how that manifests in other people. And I don't want to be like that.
"So what is the necessary work I have to do to make sure I'm not in this position again? That means growth, accountability, changing my character, changing my routines, my habits, my tradition, my values, my morals. Because how I feel right now and how I've made someone else feel and how I've devastated a world that I was living in - I just never want to be in this position again."
Stormzy, who previously denied allegations that he cheated on Maya, went to retreat in Jamaica with his close friend Adele and a group of pals in the summer of 2020. He spent the trip talking honestly about his feelings and believes that is when his life "really changed forever". He told the publication that he went to Jamaica as a boy and returned as a man.
And the 29-year-old now feels ready to settle down and start a family.
"My version of success now requires a man: not just more music and more money. Now it means taking care of my family, having children, having a wife, even understanding marriage and raising kids, and that requires a man," he said.
