Photography by Nathaniel Bailey

Hackney (which is a district in East London, England)-based collective GRAMN. are back with “Glow Up” and the smooth track melts away the stress of life.

Described by GRAMN. frontwoman Aux the song is “a love song to the black community”. It opens with truly intimate and soulful Spanish-language vocal lines sung by Aux herself. On choosing to open the song in Spanish, she tells: “I chose Spanish for the first verse because that is where myself, my siblings, cousins and close family friends spent a lot of our childhoods and it was always a time of happiness and joy, and so it’s kind of a little nod to all my family for being the amazing human beings that they are, and to the place where we found so much joy.” As the visuals spring from rich, soulful closeups to group vogueing and vibeing out in Hackney Downs, it’s a visual ode to self-affirmation and family love.

Lyrically, the song is an unflinching celebration of community. Aux explains: “This song and visual is supposed to bring hope. It is so people witness Black joy, black excellence, black creativity, black influence, black solidarity and most importantly, black love. The love we have for our communities, our children, our friends, partners and families. We are more than our pain, we are light.”

Enjoy the video below: