Gang Signs & Prayer - wikipedia Gang Signs & Prayer Gang Signs & Prayer Studio album by Stormzy Released 24 February 2017 Recorded 2015 -- 16 Genre Hip hop grime R&B Length 58 : 47 Label # Merky Warner ADA Producer Stormzy ( also exec. ) Fraser T Smith ( also exec. ) 169 E.Y Beats Mura Masa Sir Spyro SOS Sunny Kale Swifta Beater Wizzy Wow XTC Stormzy chronology Dreamers Disease ( 2014 ) Dreamers Disease2014 Gang Signs & Prayer ( 2017 ) Singles from Gang Signs & Prayer `` Big for Your Boots '' Released : 3 February 2017 `` Cold '' Released : 12 March 2017 `` Cigarettes & Cush '' Released : 29 August 2017 `` Blinded by Your Grace, Pt. 2 '' Released : 27 October 2017 Gang Signs & Prayer is the debut studio album by English rapper Stormzy. It was released on 24 February 2017 independently through # Merky Records while being distributed by ADA of Warner Music Group. It is Stormzy 's first major commercial release, following the Dreamers Disease EP ( 2014 ). The album features guest appearances from fellow MCs Wretch 32, Ghetts and J Hus, along with singers Kehlani, Raleigh Ritchie and MNEK. It features production from Fraser T Smith and Sir Spyro, among others. The album was supported by the lead single `` Big for Your Boots ''. Gang Signs & Prayer received critical acclaim upon release, and entered the UK Albums Chart at number one with sales of 69,000, becoming the first grime album in history to reach number one. It holds the distinction of having every song from the album appear concurrently on the UK Singles Chart, including seven songs in the top 40. In February 2018, Gang Signs & Prayer won British Album of the Year at the 2018 Brit Awards. Contents 1 Background 2 Promotion 3 Singles 4 Critical reception 4.1 Accolades 5 Commercial performance 6 Track listing 7 Personnel 8 Charts 8.1 Weekly charts 8.2 Year - end charts 9 Certifications 10 Release history 11 References Background After garnering attention on the UK underground music scene via his Wicked Skengman series of freestyles over classic grime beats, Stormzy released his debut EP Dreamers Disease independently in July 2014. In March 2015, he released the single `` Know Me From '', which entered the UK Singles Chart at number 49. In September 2015, he released a final instalment to his `` WickedSkengMan '' freestyle series, `` WickedSkengMan 4 '', onto iTunes, along with a studio version of his `` Shut Up '' freestyle over XTC 's Functions on the Low instrumental. The track debuted at number 18 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Stormzy 's first top 40 hit. The online video for `` Shut Up '' garnered millions of views and attention from the mainstream. As a result, Stormzy launched a Christmas number one campaign to get the song to number one, ultimately peaking at number eight on the UK Singles Chart. After a year 's hiatus from social media to focus on the recording of the album, Stormzy returned in early February 2017 via a series of billboard campaigns across London displaying lyrical quotes and the hashtag # GSAP 24.02. The album title was announced to be Gang Signs & Prayer, set to be released on 24 February 2017, followed by the track listing the following day. Promotion Prior to the album 's official announcement, the non-single track `` Shut Up '' was released in September 2015 and ultimately included as the penultimate track on Gang Signs & Prayer. The non-album single `` Scary '' was released in April 2016 prior to Stormzy 's hiatus. On 1 February 2017, a billboard campaign was launched across numerous areas in London that foreshadowed the release of the album. Singles `` Big for Your Boots '' was released as the album 's lead single on 3 February 2017. The track was produced by Fraser T Smith and Sir Spyro. It entered the UK Singles Chart at number eight, become tied with `` Shut Up '' as Stormzy 's highest - charting single. The song reached a new peak of number six in its fourth week of charting after the release of Gang Signs & Prayer, surpassing `` Shut Up '' as Stormzy 's highest - charting single. `` Cold '' was released as the album 's second single on 12 March, following the album being certified Gold in the United Kingdom. `` Cigarettes & Cush '' was released as the album 's third single on 29 August 2017. `` Blinded by Your Grace, Pt. 2 '' was released as the album 's fourth single on 27 October 2017. Critical reception Professional ratings Aggregate scores Source Rating Metacritic 82 / 100 Review scores Source Rating AllMusic Evening Standard The Guardian The Independent The Line of Best Fit 9 / 10 musicOMH NME Pitchfork 7.6 / 10 Upon its release Gang Signs & Prayer received widespread acclaim from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 82, based on 18 reviews. Giving it a perfect score, Jordan Bassett of NME stated that Stormzy `` delivers a knockout debut that 's brash and pensive in equal measure. '' Alexis Petridis of The Guardian praised the musical diversity of the album : `` More startling, however, is the confidence with which other tracks shift into unexpected musical territory. On paper, a rapper like Stormzy recording a lo - fi, electric piano - led, Stevie Wonderesque gospel track called ' '' Blinded By Your Grace, Pt 1 '' sounds like a textbook case of an artist overstretching himself ; in reality, it 's fantastic, and oddly moving. ``, concluding that `` It 's not a perfect debut -- it 's slightly too long for one thing, and there are a couple of points where it sags -- but it sounds like an album teeming with original, daring ideas. More importantly, it sounds like the work of an artist with the confidence and the talent to pull those ideas off. '' Accolades Publication Accolade Year Rank Ref. Drowned in Sound Favourite Albums of 2017 2017 79 NME NME 's Albums of the Year 2017 2017 14 Exclaim ! Exclaim ! 's Top 10 Hip - Hop Albums of 2017 2017 10 Commercial performance After receiving close competition with Rag'n'Bone Man 's Human, Gang Signs & Prayer entered the UK Albums Chart at number one, with combined sales of 68,594 copies. It set British streaming records for the most first - week streams for a number one album in chart history, with 13.9 million streams, surpassing the opening week stream count of Drake 's Views. Gang Signs & Prayer became the first grime album to chart at number one, as well as joining the likes of Skepta and Giggs of charting in the top five independently. The album also charted at number one on the UK Independent Chart, UK R&B Chart and the Irish Albums Chart, number two on the Scottish Albums Chart. Outside of the UK, it entered the Official New Zealand Music Chart at number 14 and number 34 in Sweden. In the album 's first week of release, seven tracks from Gang Signs & Prayer were in the top 40 of the UK Singles Chart -- `` Big for Your Boots '', `` Cold '', `` Bad Boys '', `` First Things First '', `` Mr Skeng '', `` Cigarettes & Cush '' and `` Shut Up ''. All sixteen tracks from the album appeared in the top 100 in a single week, making Stormzy only the fourth artist to achieve this after Justin Bieber ( Purpose ), Beyoncé ( Lemonade ) and The Weeknd ( Starboy ). Gang Signs & Prayer was certified Silver by the BPI in its first week of release. Track listing No. Title Writer ( s ) Producer ( s ) Length 1. `` First Things First '' Michael Omari Alex Crossan Mura Masa Fraser T Smith 3 : 27 2. `` Cold '' Omari Omari Mosi Wooley Swifta Beater Fraser T Smith 2 : 36 3. `` Bad Boys '' ( featuring Ghetts and J Hus ) Omari Justin Clarke Momodou Jallow Fraser T Smith E.Y Beats 169 4 : 06 4. `` Blinded by Your Grace, Pt. 1 '' Omari Fraser Lance Thronycroft - Smith Varren Wade Dion Wardle Fraser T Smith 2 : 40 5. `` Big for Your Boots '' Omari Karl Joseph Fraser T Smith Sir Spyro 3 : 58 6. `` Velvet / Jenny Francis ( Interlude ) '' Omari Mikey Akin Moses Samuels Neo Jessica Joshua Fraser T Smith 5 : 39 7. `` Mr Skeng '' Omari Joseph Fraser T Smith Sir Spyro 3 : 17 8. `` Cigarettes & Cush '' ( featuring Kehlani and Lily Allen ) Omari Thornycroft - Smith Kehlani Parrish Wardle Fraser T Smith 5 : 49 9. `` 21 Gun Salute ( Interlude ) '' ( featuring Wretch 32 ) Omari Jermaine Sinclair Akin Samuels Fraser T Smith 2 : 26 10. `` Blinded by Your Grace, Pt. 2 '' ( featuring MNEK ) Omari Uzoechi Emenike Thornycroft - Smith Fraser T Smith 3 : 50 11. `` Return of the Rucksack '' Omari Joseph Dylan Kwabena Mills Sir Spyro Fraser T Smith 3 : 04 12. `` 100 Bags '' Omari Sunny Kale Fraser T Smith Kale 3 : 37 13. `` Do n't Cry for Me '' ( featuring Raleigh Ritchie ) Omari Jacob Anderson Varren Wade Isra Andja - Diumi Lohata Prince Galalie Fraser T Smith Wizzy Wow 3 : 34 14. `` Crazy Titch ( Interlude ) '' Omari Carl Dobson Fraser T Smith 2 : 40 15. `` Shut Up '' Omari XTC XTC 2 : 46 16. `` Lay Me Bare '' Omari EY Kwabena Adjepong Thornycroft - Smith EY Fraser T Smith 5 : 04 Total length : 58 : 47 Notes `` Velvet / Jenny Francis ( Interlude ) '' features additional vocals by Jenny Francis. `` Crazy Titch ( Interlude ) '' features additional vocals by Crazy Titch. Sample credits `` Velvet / Jenny Francis ( Interlude ) '' contains a sample of `` Intro ( Like Velvet ) '' performed by Nao, written by Neo Jessica Joshua. `` Return of the Rucksack '' interpolates lyrics from `` Seems 2 Be '' by Dizzee Rascal. `` Lay Me Bare '' contains a sample of `` Last Stand '' by Kwabs, written by Kwabena Adjepong. Personnel Vocals Stormzy -- vocals MNEK -- vocals Lily Allen -- vocals Raleigh Ritchie -- vocals Kehlani -- vocals Wretch 32 -- vocals J Hus -- vocals, backing vocals Yasmin Green -- vocals Sleeks -- backing vocals Rasul A-Salaam -- arranger, vocals Keesha Gumbs -- vocals Babatunde `` Soye '' Soyebo -- vocals Monet Ulerio -- vocals Jenny Francis -- spoken word Crazy Titch -- spoken word Mama Stormz -- spoken word LaDonna Harley - Peters -- backing vocals Phebe Edwards -- backing vocals J Warner -- backing vocals Kenneth Asomani -- backing vocals Flipz -- backing vocals Rimes -- backing vocals Moses Samuels -- backing vocals Instruments Rosie Danvers -- orchestration, cello Ruth O'Reilly -- French horn Corinne Bailey -- French horn Mike Lovat -- trumpet Andy Greenwood -- trumpet Paul Spong -- trumpet Dave Stewart -- trombone Ed Tarrant -- trombone Owen Slade -- tuba Simon Haram -- saxophone Martin Williams -- saxophone Lydia Griffiths -- oboe Louise Chapman -- bassoon Patrick Kiernan -- violin Hayley Pomfrett -- violin Debbie Widdup -- violin Eleanor Mathieson -- violin Jenny Sacha -- violin Anna Croad -- violin Kotono Sato -- violin Natalia Bonner -- violin Sally Jackson -- violin Emma Owens -- viola Becky Jones -- viola Nozomi Cohen -- viola Bryony James -- cello Richard Pryce -- double bass Camilla Pay -- harp Ben Epstein -- bass guitar Dexter Hercules -- drums Dion Wardle -- keyboards, piano Adam Wakeman -- hammond Production Fraser T Smith -- producer, mixer, programming, guitar, bass guitar, piano, keys, percussion Manon Grandjean -- mixer, engineer Nick Taylor -- engineer Tom Coyne -- mastering engineer Randy Merrill -- mastering engineer Bryan Wilson -- engineer Mura Masa -- producer, programming Swifta Beater -- producer, programming EY -- producer, programming Sons of Sonix -- production, programming Sir Spyro -- producer, keyboards, programming Sunny Kale -- producer, programming Wizzy Wow AKA Isra Lohata -- producers, programming 169 -- bass programming 6Sixx -- producer, programming, mixer Scott Jacoby -- recording engineer Charts Weekly charts Chart ( 2017 ) Peak position Australian Albums ( ARIA ) 11 Australian Urban Albums ( ARIA ) Belgian Albums ( Ultratop Flanders ) 86 Belgian Albums ( Ultratop Wallonia ) 126 Canadian Albums ( Billboard ) 91 Danish Albums ( Hitlisten ) 12 Dutch Albums ( MegaCharts ) 25 Finnish Albums ( Suomen virallinen lista ) 44 Irish Albums ( IRMA ) New Zealand Albums ( RMNZ ) 14 Norwegian Albums ( VG - lista ) 22 Scottish Albums ( OCC ) Swedish Albums ( Sverigetopplistan ) 34 Swiss Albums ( Schweizer Hitparade ) 38 UK Albums ( OCC ) UK Independent Albums ( OCC ) UK R&B Albums ( OCC ) Year - end charts Chart ( 2017 ) Position UK Albums ( OCC ) 10 Certifications Region Certification Certified units / Sales United Kingdom ( BPI ) Platinum 300,000 sales figures based on certification alone shipments figures based on certification alone Release history Region Date Format Label Worldwide 24 February 2017 CD digital download # Merky Warner ADA References ^ Jump up to : `` STORMZY ( @ STORMZY1 ) - COLD ''. YouTube. Retrieved 1 June 2016. ^ Jump up to : `` STORMZY - CIGARETTES AND CUSH FT. KEHLANI & LILY ALLEN ''. YouTube. ^ Jump up to : `` BBC - Radio 1 - Playlist ''. Radio 1. Jump up ^ `` iTunes - Gang Signs & Prayer by Stormzy ''. iTunes. Retrieved 3 February 2017. Jump up ^ `` Official Singles Chart Top 100 Official Charts Company ''. www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 2017 - 03 - 03. Jump up ^ `` BRIT Awards 2018 ''. www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2018 - 02 - 21. Jump up ^ `` New EP : Stormzy ' Dreamers Disease ' -- MOBO Awards ''. Jump up ^ `` WickedSkengMan4 -- Single by Stormzy ''. iTunes ( UK ). Retrieved 20 September 2015. Jump up ^ `` Justin Bieber back at No 1 with What Do You Mean ? ''. The Guardian. 18 September 2015. Jump up ^ `` Grime MC Stormzy launches campaign for Christmas No 1 ''. The Guardian. 14 December 2015. Jump up ^ `` Stormzy And Twitter Want # ShutUpForXmasNo1 ''. Capital XTRA. 14 December 2015. Jump up ^ `` Odds on Stormzy getting Christmas Number One cut following ' Shut Up ' boxing performance ''. NME. 14 December 2015. Jump up ^ `` Stormzy shares full debut album details - NME ''. nme.com. 2 February 2017. Retrieved 4 February 2017. Jump up ^ `` Stormzy album GSAP may be ' best of 2017 ' says 1Xtra 's A. Dot ''. bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 4 February 2017. Jump up ^ `` Stormzy reveals tracklist for debut album Gang Signs & Prayer ''. factmag.com. Retrieved 4 February 2017. ^ Jump up to : `` Reviews for Gang Signs & Prayer by Stormzy ''. Metacritic. Retrieved 14 August 2017. Jump up ^ Martin, Liam ( 24 February 2017 ). `` Gang Signs & Prayer - Stormzy : Songs, Reviews, Credits ''. All Media Network. Retrieved 27 April 2017. ) Jump up ^ Smyth, David ( 24 February 2017 ). `` Stormzy -- Gang Signs & Prayer review : the grime crown is his ''. Evening Standard. Retrieved 24 February 2017. ^ Jump up to : Alexis, Petridis ( 23 February 2017 ). `` Stormzy : Gang Signs and Prayer review -- teeming with original ideas ''. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 23 February 2017. Jump up ^ Andy, Gill ( 23 February 2017 ). `` Album reviews : Stormzy - Gang Signs & Prayer ''. The Independent. Retrieved 23 February 2017. ) Jump up ^ Paul, Bridgewater ( 23 February 2017 ). `` Stormzy redefines what it means to be a British institution on Gang Signs & Prayer ''. The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 23 February 2017. Jump up ^ Baber, Andy ( 28 February 2017 ). `` Stormzy - Gang Signs & Prayer ''. musicOMH. Retrieved 2 March 2017. ^ Jump up to : Bassett, Jordan ( 23 February 2017 ). `` Stormzy -- ' Gang Signs & Prayer ' Review ''. Time Inc. UK. Retrieved 23 February 2017. Jump up ^ Ruiz, Matthew Ismael ( 28 February 2017 ). `` Stormzy : Gang Signs & Prayer Album Review ''. Condé Nast. Retrieved 2 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Drowned in Sound 's Favourite Albums of 2017 ''. Drowned in Sound. November 22, 2017. Retrieved November 23, 2017. Jump up ^ `` NME 's Albums of the Year 2017 ''. NME. 23 November 2017. Retrieved 28 November 2017. Jump up ^ `` Exclaim ! 's Top 10 Hip - Hop Albums ''. Exclaim. 5 December 2017. Retrieved 5 January 2018. Jump up ^ `` FLIPZ on Twitter : `` GSAP sold 68,594 copies 😳 😳 😳 😳 Fam madnesssss ''. Twitter. 3 March 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Stormzy defeats Rag'n'Bone Man in one of the closest chart battles in recent memory to score the Official Number 1 album ''. Official Charts. 3 March 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Ed Sheeran 's Shape of You rules the Official Singles Chart for an eighth week thanks to Stormzy and Major Lazer remixes ''. Official Charts. 3 March 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` BPI Music on Twitter : `` He was number 1 in the midweeks and now @ Stormzy1 's ' Gang Signs & Prayers ' has gone Silver in the UK ! `` ''. Twitter. 3 March 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Australiancharts.com -- Stormzy -- Gang Signs & Prayer ''. Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` ARIA Australian Top 40 Urban Albums ''. Australian Recording Industry Association. March 13, 2017. Retrieved March 14, 2017. Jump up ^ `` Ultratop.be -- Stormzy -- Gang Signs & Prayer '' ( in Dutch ). Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Ultratop.be -- Stormzy -- Gang Signs & Prayer '' ( in French ). Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Stormzy Chart History ( Canadian Albums ) ''. Billboard. Retrieved 7 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Hitlisten.NU -- Album Top - 40 Uge 9, 2017 ''. Hitlisten. Retrieved 8 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Dutchcharts.nl -- Stormzy -- Gang Signs & Prayer '' ( in Dutch ). Hung Medien. Retrieved 4 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Stormzy : Gang Signs & Prayer '' ( in Finnish ). Musiikkituottajat -- IFPI Finland. Retrieved 5 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Irish Albums Chart : 3 March 2017 ''. Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 4 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` NZ Top 40 Albums Chart ''. Recorded Music NZ. 6 March 2017. Retrieved 3 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` VG - lista -- Stormzy ''. VG - lista. Retrieved 4 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100 ''. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Sverigetopplistan - Sveriges Officiella Topplista ''. Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 4 March 2017. Click on `` Veckans albumlista ''. Jump up ^ `` Swisscharts.com -- Stormzy -- Gang Signs & Prayer ''. Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Official Albums Chart Top 100 ''. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50 ''. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 March 2017. Jump up ^ `` Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40 ''. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 4 March 2017. Jump up ^ White, Jack ( 3 January 2018 ). `` The Top 40 biggest albums of 2017 on the Official Chart ''. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 3 January 2018. Jump up ^ `` British album certifications -- Stormzy -- Gang Signs & Prayer ''. British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 23 February 2018. Enter Gang Signs & Prayer in the search field and then press Enter. Stormzy Discography Studio albums Gang Signs & Prayer ( 2017 ) Singles `` Know Me From '' `` Big for Your Boots '' `` Cold '' Featured singles `` Good Goodbye '' `` Power '' Other songs `` Shape of You '' `` Shut Up '' Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Gang_Signs_%26_Prayer&oldid=828108267 '' Categories : 2017 debut albums Stormzy albums Hidden categories : Articles with hAudio microformats Music infoboxes with deprecated parameters Pages using div col without cols and colwidth parameters Certification Table Entry usages for United Kingdom Talk Views Contents About Wikipedia Italiano Lietuvių Português Русский Edit links This page was last edited on 28 February 2018, at 16 : 37. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. 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Question: when did blinded by your grace come out
Answer: 27 October 2017