25 years of AKO: 5 reasons why it’s being documented in all-new video
Write-up by Rave Report
Christmas day premieres the brand new AKO documentary on DJMag & AKO BEATZ youtube: celebrating 25 years of foundational UK Jungle.
In a sneak preview of what’s to come, here’s rave report’s 5 reasons why AKO is so legendary, with quotes from label boss DJ Stretch, film editor and producer dj n.e.girl, daughter Renee, Goldie, Marc Mac, Mantra, Double O, Threshold, Sweetpea, King Britt, Enjoy, Djinn, Decibella, Blackeye, Malx, Sheba Q aNd Paydro.
What does Jungle mean to you? Nostalgia, euphoria, spirituality, community, career, family, identity? When you talk to any of the AKO family you quickly realise it’s all of the above and more: these heads don’t play when it comes to this music!
“I bleed Jungle,” said AKO label boss David Stretch. “Jungle’s like air to a human'' said Threshold, long standing AKO DJ and producer. Rupture Co-Founder DJ Mantra, who released her first vinyl on AKO said the same: Jungle is “career, children, family. It goes deep. Very deep”.
It’s a family affair: Stretch, Threshold and MC Blackeye at AKO. Captured by Apps Photography
Whatever Jungle means to you, as the narrative becomes gentrified, celebrating foundational labels like AKO is more vital now than ever.
So, let’s jump into a deeper dive why 25 years of AKO is so worth documenting. And don’t forget - like Metalheadz label boss Goldie said with a gold-toothed grin - “AKO is real tings. Not for the faint hearted”!
1. The high musical standards are set by the spirit of B-Boy culture
No label earns its reputation without consistently high quality music at the heart of it. “It’s B-Boy Culture”, Stretch explained. With standards set at what Goldie has called the ‘University’ of Reinforced Records, Stretch earned his respect by knowing he had to bring a sound at the level of Reinforced or beyond. “Someone like Alpha Omega would enter the studio and would drop something so hard, you knew you'd have to step up your game”.
"Stretch turned up at the Reinforced studio in Dollis in his school uniform, that’s how long I’ve known him through a family connection. He’s been around the Force ever since and became one of the key DJ’s at the R.
- Marc Mac, Reinforced Records
“When I heard the first minute of Sexy Sally by Skitty, I immediately knew it was an AKO track” said Stretch. “The same for Stay by Demented Soul - as soon as i heard it! And Double O - Dreaming”. For Stretch, being a Jungle label boss is all about pushing the scene forward: by creating more classics and getting more people talking.
“The track that sums up AKO for me has gotta be Dem Deh by Headgear”- MC Blackeye
“HEADGEAR planet 03 sums up everything AKO related. The rough with the smooth, old with the new, club and soundsystem culture... it’s all in there.”
- Alessandro Enjoy
2. AKO wouldn’t be what it is without the ‘Vibes Man’ himself!
Stretch (AKA ‘the Vibes Man’!) wouldn’t have been so successful without being such an absolute legend to be around. Like DJ Sweetpea said: we all love Stretch for “that beautiful cheesy grin”, (Blackeye agrees - “you can’t escape that smile”)! But it goes deeper than that. Threshold sums it up well: “he always makes you feel like you’re part of the family”. “It's not just a brand, you’re a part of it and he's excited for you to be there”.
Stretch repping the brand at AKO, captured by Apps Photography
Again - it all comes back to Reinforced. As Stretch told me in a previous interview, they “taught me how to present myself, how to build my crew and look after everyone in my circle”.
“I’ve always got time for people in the scene that have time for themselves, people who drive and push themselves, so I’ll always have time for Stretch and AKO. " - Marc Mac
It's why artists like Djinn love collaborating with Stretch: his “infectious enthusiasm, focus and sense of humour” just makes him a pleasure to work with. And that attitude extends right through to his wider community too. DJ Paydro told us that when it comes to customer service, Stretch “always goes “above and beyond. Whenever you're happy, he’s happy”!
3. AKO and sneaker culture go hand in hand - and that’s what makes it such a strong brand
Stretch’s daughter Renee, Captured by 25 years of AKO cameraman J Mist
“He’s got his merch on point”, Mantra nodded when asked what she loves about the AKO brand. “Even our sons have AKO T-shirts!” Double O added. With a community as hungry for the new vinyl releases as sneakerheads waiting for the latest Air Jordans, Stretch is constantly releasing limited edition, collectable vinyls and merch. Stretch’s amazing 16 year old daughter Renee summarized it perfectly: “AKO is the Louis Vuitton of Jungle''!
One amazing example of Stretch’s ever-evolving brand is the Defender album, which takes the AKO Arcade sister label to another level. As Stretch told us, “I’ve built an entire Arcadian Universe with Marc Mac and Greg Blackman who did the design for the album and comic that comes with it”. From rainbow vinyls through to AKO and Nike collabs: there’s always something worth collecting…
The Defender, Deluxe Edition: Featuring Stretch, New Blood, Coco Bryce, Specialist X, Tom & Jerry, Enjoy, Pete Cannon, Tek 9 and Shay
4. AKO club nights have the friendliest crowds you’ll ever meet
Whether you’re a vinyl junkie or not - you can’t miss those AKO nights. As Mantra put it, AKO raves “get those pressure cooker vibes. Everyone is totally committed to the music”. And really, what that boils down to is the relationship between the DJs and the crowd. Like Decibella said, “people that go to AKO are heads. They’re into their beats and they know the tunes. So that makes for a really receptive and reactive dance floor”. DJ Sweetpea agrees - it’s why all the DJ’s “bring their A Game”!
All captured by Apps Photography, apart from bottom right - Casales Photography
On top of that, the club nights perfectly embody what DJ Malx calls the label’s “unique fun factor”, especially when it comes to the AKO Halloween specials. The crew loves dressing up for these events because, as Sheba Q said with a cheeky smile, “we’re all geeks - and everyone’s dying to do cosplay whilst raving!”
5. The label’s diversity embodies the spirit of Jungle
AKO is an inclusive label. And that best part is, that diversity isn’t even a conscious effort: Stretch just knows how to find great talent (because if you know where to look - it’s everywhere!). For Stretch, “if I feel what you're doing, you're gonna be on the label”. He released both Mantra and Decibella’s first vinyl on AKO because they were tunes he “loved anyway”. When he saw Mantra “flingin down tunes and killing people”, he “wasn’t thinking she's a female”, he was “thinking rahh- bad DJ!” And the best part is, we’re already seeing how this attitude is impacting the next generation. Stretch's daughter Renee told us “Mantra, Storm, Panka, Decibella, are all so inspiring because they’re women who’ve created names for themselves in music”.
As a Black owned label, AKO also speaks directly to the Black experience. Kwame Safo’s feature with Marc Mac, Bryan Gee, DJ Flight and Junior Tomlin around the Gentrification of Jungle explains why this is critical: because “large aspects of the Black experience have been erased due to an unwillingness by the music industry to accept the art form in its uncompromising form”.
But that kind of industry corruption doesn’t apply within AKO. As Sheba Q told us, “the more AKO tunes I’ve collected, the more I've realised they speak to me and my experiences growing up. Whether it be recognising hymns I heard at church, or Rare Groove R&B elements, it’s mixed with Jungle in a way that just makes sense. It speaks to my lived experience so naturally. It taps into my nostalgia; I feel like it's telling my story”.
“Jungle is all the things that make us happy in the world. Family, community, sad times, good times. It all comes together to create something special. For me it changed my life because otherwise I don't know what direction I would have gone in. I could have been in the streets doing things I shouldn't be doing. But it gave me a purpose. Friends for life. More importantly, it's given me something to make other people happy. I definitely say I bleed jungle, and it’s just an important part of my life. Always will be'' - David Stretch
As you can see, AKO is so much more than just your typical Jungle label, and that’s why it’s so important that this anniversary is documented properly. As King Britt told us, AKO has “kept the spirit of Jungle alive in the public eye” for over 25 years. So let’s raise a toast to one of the most important labels in Jungle history!
Meet the ako documentary team
full doc edited & produced by
dj n.e.girl
Esther Wanyama AKA N.E.Girl is a UK bass DJ, promotor, animator, editor and graphic designer based in Copenhagen. She’s one third of Solumn Records and a resident at Co-Select – a London collective advocating balanced representation in underground music.
“As someone who’s always loved and played UK bass, working on the doc has been amazing! As the breakbeat sound of the 90s makes a comeback, I think this doc will shed light for those who have been loyal to the sound for many years, and those looking to dig deeper into a bit of UK Jungle history”.
(left to right): Project managed by Stretch and Rave Report (Verity Raphael). Footage of Stretch and Threshold filmed by DJ JMist (Jay Mistry)