Jermain Jackman

In just three decades Jermain Jackman has journeyed from winning ‘The Voice’ to becoming CEO of Rising Tide.

Jermain Jackman was born at Homerton Hospital and grew up in Hoxton and Finsbury Park. He says: “There were tons of youth clubs and young people playing in the street. There weren’t many opportunities but you found joy within your community.”

Jermain is the youngest of five, and a twin – one of two sets in his siblings – all of whom are high achievers. A self-confessed ‘shower singer’, he first got praise for his singing at the age of seven, when he performed a rendition of ‘Amazing Grace’ in his local church, and the congregation erupted in applause.

“That’s the first time I had sung in front of anyone,” he recalls. “I felt like I was being recognised for what I love to do.”

His other love, politics, was also being realised around the same time. Jermain remembers his primary school getting a visit from local MP Diane Abbott. 

He says: “I was questioning why the world was how it was. Seeing Diane talking about parliament, I realised that was where I would need to be to find the answer and change what I was seeing. Music is my passion, but politics is my purpose.”

In 2006, while performing in a singing contest at his secondary school, he noticed one of his ‘idols’, Jeremy Corbyn, in the front row. By that point Jermain, a member of Hackney Youth Parliament, was actively involved in politics. 

He recalls: “Jeremy came up to me afterwards to congratulate me and I said I was interested in politics. So he gave me his contact details and invited me to lunch!”

Most people first encountered Jermain when he captivated audiences as a contestant on the third series of BBC’s ‘The Voice’ – which he went on to win in 2014. 

Jermain Jackman performs 'And I Am Telling You' - The Voice UK 2014: The Live Finals - BBC

During the initial production interview, Jermain mentioned his Hackney roots, which led to some lines of questioning that perpetuate harmful stereotypes often directed at young Black men from London – such as ‘have you ever been stabbed?’

Jermain explained that he wanted to move away from that narrative, and he later received an email stating he was not the type of candidate they were looking for. With his confidence shaken, Jermain admitted: “I didn’t sing for the next two years.”

Luckily, when he next sang, at a family friend’s 50th, he met Kanya King, the founder of the MOBO awards who pushed him to reapply for ‘The Voice’ – “and the rest is history.”

Jermain’s charity, Rising Tide, operates from Mare Street, which he first visited at age 11. The building, once a youth club where artists like Labrinth and Little Simz went, fell into disrepair before Jermain revived it.

Today, the space offers local young people opportunities in music and the arts, maintaining an open-door policy. 

Jermain explains: “There is a power intersection between music and politics – and that is what I’m trying to create here at Rising Tide.

“When I think about how young people are doing something creative in here, rather than being out there – that for me is political.

 “I want to open a music academy in the Caribbean, train young people, and pump their music around the world. That’s the big dream.”

For more information on Rising Tide click here.