Hopefully! Loyle Carner’s bright future

Loyle Carner’s 4th studio album hopefully! looks tentatively forwards, with all the anticipation, fear, and brightness of its title.

Benjamin Coyle-Larner has spent over a decade in the spotlight. Despite becoming more mainstream in recent years, he first appeared on the scene in 2012, as a support for MF Doom. The Croydon-born rapper boasts an immense career; his back-catalogue alone features three immensely successful LPs. His mercury-nominated debut Yesterday’s Gone (2017) is a vulnerable personal tapestry, one that gives way to its similarly familial successor Not Waving, But Drowning (2019), a record complexified by a myriad of feature artists including Tom Misch, Jordan Reiki, Sampha and Jorja Smith. Hugo (2022) confronts bigger issues in bigger tracks, as the rapper stepped away from the nostalgia of his first two albums, into a dissonant present of knife crime, racism and reality. Now joined by hopefully! (2025) Carner’s sonic progression is one characterised by a steady rise to success, rather than a flash breakout or viral moment. 

That’s not to say that he doesn’t have any big tracks – ‘Damelsfly’, ‘Ottolenghi’ and ‘Loose Ends’ are just three highlights – but rather that his consistent excellence and clarity of vision have earned him an industry-wide respect. Carner’s most recent release slots itself perfectly alongside his discography; his records have always been intensely personal, and this one is no different. We’ve watched the rapper grapple with both his past and present realities, and it’s only due now that he turns to the future, which for him, rests in the delicate lives of his two children. Naturally,. Hugo’s intensity has been traded in for a softness, one reminiscent of his first two albums, an artistic choice that some have deemed a regression. But to these critics I’d say you’ve missed the point entirely. 

hopefully! Is technically excellent and intensely vulnerable, but more than that, it’s brave. Carner is at his most stripped back; his usual emotional confessionals are no longer yelled, but quietly admitted (or sung!), with a tone of gentle honesty that feels as though he’s talking to his children directly. Yes, the album is less showy, but its tender address is unique, heartfelt, and a welcome into Carner’s typically guarded personal life.

The album begins on a sunny morning in a childhood bedroom, sun peeking through the blinds. ‘feel at home’ is a lullaby with a skittering breakbeat, fading into consciousness with windchimes and playground noise, Carner’s musical invite into his family home. It’s followed by a quintessential LC pair, the first two singles released from the album. ‘in my mind’ relents the narcissistic cycle of insecurity on a slow, guitar-led beat – a sound The Guardian aligns with fellow South-Londoner King Krule’s early work. ‘all I need’ is a hurtling runaway train of a song, as Carner’s spiralling lyrics vocalise panic and over-thinking on a jungle beat and contrasting twinkly piano. It’s an exceptional track.

Then comes ‘lyin’. It’s gentle and unassuming , but it’s the song that’s spurred most of the conversations being had post-release…Carner has made his singing debut. The rapper, or should I say vocalist, has spoken on this new venture in multiple interviews, describing singing as ‘really exposing…if I was thinking it through, I never would have done it’. The original intention was to have someone feature (with names like Grian Chatten and Adrienne Lenker being thrown around) but after recording a demo with his own voice, Carner was convinced to leave the song as is. Whilst I love Fontaines D.C. and Big Thief as much as the next person, I think this choice is integral to the personal feel of the album. Carner’s signature humility prevents him from hearing the talent he possesses, but he does praise the bravery that it took to put  himself out there in this way, admitting ‘it’s good to be scared, it shows that you care’. The record is teeming with these vulnerable realisations; an ode to the fear, betterment and learning that comes with new parenthood.

I’ll attempt to leave some mystery in the latter half of the album, but to sum, expect tear-stained lyricism, unpredictable jazz-freestyle beats, and dreamy, hope-filled vocals. Fan favourite tracks ‘horcrux’ and ‘about time’ are accompanied by some amazing artist features, including a sampled speech from Benjamin Zephaniah. Carner has always held Zephaniah as a personal hero, describing him as ‘the man that gave me my name’ in an Instagram post after the poet’s passing in 2023. On the album’s titular track, Carner simply felt that Zephaniah’s words expressed his feelings better than he could. It’s yet another personal touch that, when accompanied by samples of his own son, cements the album as a collage of the artist’s nearest and dearest.

As a headliner for The Other Stage, Carner rang in his fourth Glastonbury appearance this summer. A bare bones stage and a handheld camera, the set felt relaxed as a rehearsal tape – not that he felt that way, confiding in the audience about his persisting singing nerves. The rapper begins the UK leg of his world tour this November, which is nearly sold out (!) so if you’re hoping to catch him at his (very humble and down-to-earth) best, act fast.

Words By Madeleine Royle-Toone