Evening Standard

Meet Dalston's 50-person hip-hop collective: The Silhouettes Project

Source: The Silhouettes Project

Concealed by a looming iron door, where the lines between Dalston and Stoke Newington blur into one, lies an oasis for London’s most exciting musical talent. The inconspicuous brick building first opened as a chocolate factory in 1904, but today it is known as Total Refreshment Centre, an ex-live music venue turned community hub.

Like a classroom, there are wooden desks, whiteboards and musical instruments scattered in each corner — plus stacks of records to dive into. Though the walls are plain, you can tell they hold colourful memories. I’m meeting the community that finds sanctuary here, 50-person jazz-rap/hip-hop collective The Silhouettes Project, on the eve of the release of their sophomore album, . Not all of them, unfortunately, just co-founders Jaden Osei-Bonsu and

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