Stefflon Don has carved out her own niche within UK rap’s boys’ club with relative ease. Thanks to her cutting verses, the 30-year-old star has a string of features: Anne Marie, Sean Paul, Nile Rodgers. And yet, no album. This year, that will finally change as she releases her long-awaited debut, Island 54. It holds true to her willingness to meld multiple music styles – the dancehall of her youth, lightning-fast verses influenced by grime, even South African dance style amapiano – and her eagerness to prove herself as a creative force.

On the album you’re playing with lots of genres. What motivated you to explore new sounds?
It’s just been natural. [The amapiano track] is very interesting, right? I love amapiano. I go to Ghana every year for New Year. If you’re in a dance, all you hear is afrobeats, amapiano, it always gets everyone going. It’s just a hype! I was brought up in Holland, my parents are Jamaican, so everything is a mix. I’m so used to hearing many different languages and many different sounds that I connect with. That’s why my music is very versatile – I don’t stick to just one thing because I’m not one thing.