How ‘DLT’ Became One Of The Biggest Celebrations Of Blackness In London

Since the Swinging Sixties, London City has been seen as a hotspot for creativity on a global scale, known for its fashion and music exports as much as its impact in film and fine art. Whatever it is, England’s capital has produced countless people, countless moments, that have been able to stand toe-to-toe with the best of ‘em from anywhere on God’s green Earth. 

From iconic raves that helped spawn whole genres (see: ska, jungle, UK garage, grime, dubstep…) to iconic muses such as Kate Moss and Maggie Smith—when you think about how many creators have come from this island, one thing you can’t ignore are the contributions that have been made by Black people. The same people dominating in culture today—on every level.

After the explosion of scenes like UK garage and grime—in the ‘90s and Noughties, respectively—it felt like there was a partying disconnect in London. UK funky had its moment, but it didn’t last long. For myself, when I was in university, it felt like the selection of parties we had to enjoy were quite limited: if it wasn’t a grime or house dance in Fabric or The Nest, it was a cheesy uni rave in a student union. But beyond that, many of us were still searching for spaces to congregate—to be ourselves, unapologetically—as Black folk who might want more from a night out than seeing MCs shout down the mic or having ravers—off their rockers—shuffling in your face. 

Tired of having to pick between micro-aggressive DJ sets in the Hip-Hop Room of nightclubs like TigerTiger or Oceana, or just praying you hear some Chaka Demus or D’banj in your local Be At One, the option to have a place to unwind after a long week of surviving wasn’t always afforded to someone like myself. But it’s 2022, and times have changed. With the introduction of parties—for the day and the night—like Recess and DLT (Days Like This), Black Londoners have finally found their own spaces to forget the stresses of London’s hustle and bustle.

Team DLT have had a groundbreaking year, to say the least. Having thrown their very first festival in Malta and picked up the GUAP Gala award for Business Of The Year, we managed to catch up with Will Stowe—head of brand partnerships at DLT—to discuss conception, motivation, and new iterations. Launched by four friends back in 2016, inspired by the day parties they’d experienced in New York whilst interning there, we get to know the story behind Days Like This, and how—having cemented their status in the city—they aim to take this experience to the rest of the diaspora.

“Parties are culturally what many of us are accustomed to. It’s in our DNA. Our older brothers, sisters, aunties, uncles and parents did it, so we’re just keeping tradition in new ways.”