Rapper Tinie Tempah on launching a green project that unites urban communities

When rapper Tinie Tempah was growing up on a sprawling, concrete jungle of an estate in Peckham, south-east London, there were times when he felt safer inside than he did outdoors, even though there were parks nearby.

“When I was growing up, there was talk about ASBOs and groups of young teenage boys – regardless of race – not being able to congregate in large groups,” recalls Tempah, 34, who spent his 20s in Hackney.

“As everyone knows, there were lots of localised postcode wars – ‘You’re not allowed to cross over to our side’ – especially within the inner city. More often than not, you were not involved – just a civilian, but you could get caught up in it if you fit the profile and there were times when I definitely felt like it was wiser and safer to just be indoors.”

Tempah believes there is huge value in community gardens both mentally and physically, as well as a way of bringing people together. Now, in partnership with Chase Distillery, he has joined forces with RHS award-winning landscape designer Tom Massey to launch ‘Inspired by the Wild’, a project that sees one of London’s most forgotten city backroads undergo a nature-fuelled rejuvenation.

Miller’s Terrace, a once rundown street in Dalston, has been transformed into a green haven for residents who for some years have wanted a community garden, packed with more than 350 plants and trees, offering a vibrant and relaxing outdoor space for the residents who live there. Tempah hopes it will make them feel safer and happier.

“It’s not just about safety, it’s a sensory thing, it’s being able to take in the colours and smells, they’re just more inclined to enjoy that space. I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re spending more sunny afternoons outside talking to their neighbours.”

RHS Chelsea Gold Medal winner Massey has designed the planting scheme, creating a line of raised beds from potato crates filled with climate-resilient plants, focusing on biodiversity and creating an access to nature with a mixture of ornamentals and edibles.

“We’ve figs, walnuts, medlars, loquats, hazels, things that residents can pick from and eat, and what they don’t take, local birds and animals will come and eat,” Massey explains.

Asters, Kniphofia and geraniums, which will survive in London’s warming climate, provide some of the colour of the scheme.

“Just having the plants in the street really brings the community together,” Massey observes. “It’s really nice to see people coming out and just spending time. Previously no-one wanted to sit in the road. It was very open and exposed and hot.

“As soon as the plants came in, there was more shade and it felt cooler. Plants lift the mood, especially when you’re coming from a very hectic urban part of London.”

Tempah, who admits he is not a gardener but can see himself taking it up over time, recalls the elation he felt when, at the age of 12, his family moved to Plumstead, near Kent, and he experienced his first own garden.

“The first thing that I did when we walked in is ran all the way through the house and ended up in the back garden, where there was a tiny little pond and a little tree.

“I just remember basking in it. It wasn’t anything phenomenal but I remember my 12-year-old self saying, ‘Wow, we’ve actually got a garden now!’ Without realising it subconsciously, I realised the importance and significance of having something like that.”

He also believes communal gardens can bring warring communities together.

“If you’ve got a communal garden, you have to decide who’s going to maintain it and it becomes a group effort and, of course, it could probably stop warring communities because it’s all our responsibility for us to be able to enjoy this.”

Tempah, who lives with his wife and two daughters in south west London, has a bigger garden now than when he was growing up and he shows me his large lawn filled with play equipment and a small vegetable patch, in which his children are attempting to grow tomatoes, courgettes and sunflowers.

‘Inspired by the Wild’ is part of a longer campaign to bring a slice of the countryside to urban areas, in which Tempah is going to attempt to incorporate some musical elements.

Being in green spaces sparks his own creativity, he agrees.

“For me personally, green spaces always gave me a sense of scale. Growing up as a Londoner, you don’t realise there’s so much countryside space. From Plumstead, I used to take a bus to Greenwich Park and see the whole of London from the observatory.”

His hit Written In The Stars is inspired by those views from Greenwich, looking over London at night surrounded by nature.

“It always gave me a sense of perspective and scale. It sparked more curiosity and made me want to achieve something.”