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London-based freelance features writer & journalist.

areas of interest: music, tech, society, investigations, youth & fringe subcultures

bylines: dazed, the face, mixmag, dj mag, crack, etc 

RECENT WORK

DJMag.com •

How is the cost-of-living crisis hitting UK nightlife?

“It’s terrifying... I wake up every day and hope that we find a way to keep going,” Kate Hodgkinson, co-founder of Cobalt Studios, an independent 220-capacity venue in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, tells DJ Mag. “We’re just trying to keep our heads above water. You just have to do what the shit mugs say: keep calm and carry on.” Her views are echoed by club owners across the country. As the cost-of-living crisis bites, expenses across the board are skyrocketing. While the media has pointed its lens on t
Euronews.com •

Inside the world's first living musical instrument

Mikeal Hwang is a man of many talents. He’s a biologist, an artist and a musician – but the music he creates is probably something you haven’t heard before. Hwang makes music from living, breathing microorganisms – taking sounds from live yeast and transforming the samples into atmospheric, eerie ambient tracks. “I had an issue with the institutional bureaucracy of science – the way scientific research had become more about capital and less about curiosity,” Hwang told Euronews Culture. Known
DJMag.com •

The LGBTQ+ club nights fighting for diversity in drum & bass

The UK drum & bass and jungle scene lacks queer visibility. While issues like gender diversity and whitewashing have, in recent years, become the focus of much conversation and action within dance music, drum & bass can still present a hostile environment to the LGBTQ+ community. Queer artists seem few and far between, particularly in the upper echelons — a stark contrast to genres like house and techno, which have their foundations in queer and POC communities, and continue to have strong repre

Hey, I'm Jack.

I'm a freelance writer, editor and multimedia journalist from Northern England – now based in London. My work focuses heavily on youth culture, fringe subcultures and music – but I have experience covering a number of fields: from fashion to digital culture, technology to politics.  

I've produced long-form features for online & print magazines distributed across Europe and North America. I've also written branded editorials for Dr Martens, Paris Men's Fashion Week and Calvin Klein.

Need words?

I'm always open for commissions – if you're an editor looking for someone who can produce clean copy to a tight deadline drop me an email.

Email: jhrjourno@gmail.com

MORE OF MY WORK

the-face •

GutterRing is fanning the flames of DIY rave culture

Rave Report: THE FACE celebrates the sounds, styles and stories from the world’s coolest parties In a warehouse conversion in Tottenham Hale, a collective of ravers are carving out their own narrative, one against the grain of the normative and capitalistic culture that dominates London’s big clubs. Tonight, the Unit58 venue is a safe haven for the expressive, where adventurously-dressed alt kids dance to fragmented hardcore and hard-hitting techno while strobes cut through the air. It feels
Crack Magazine •

Kappa Futur 2022: The Turin festival bounces back better than ever

Arriving at Kappa Futur Festival you’re hit by a surge of energy: a thick mist of dust kicked up by dancers, the bass which ricochets off nearby apartment blocks, and the intermittent chants from the crowd which could rival a football stadium. Anticipation is in the air for the festival, the 2022 edition of which has been three years in the making; its past chapters postponed by the pandemic which has hit this part of the world particularly badly. “I’ve been looking forward to this for so long,”
Woo (ITV) •

Queers at Body Movements festival on what queer spaces mean to them - Woo

Self-expression and hedonism kiki in a safe space with banging tunes. Really, that encapsulates the spirit of London’s Body Movements Festival and the crowd that flocked to Hackney Wick last Saturday to celebrate and party with over 60 queer artists, DJs, and performers on the line-up. This queer chaos is a long time coming too, having been postponed for three years previously because of Covid. Bodymovements is the brainchild of renowned DJ Saoirse Ryan and Clayton Wright, founder of the LGBTQAI
Dazed •

#SeshTok: How harm reduction creators are promoting drug safety

As politicians continue to fail to protect drug users, TikTok users are spreading life-saving Love or loathe them, drugs are an undeniable part of youth culture: 15 per cent of all 18 to 24-year-olds in England and Wales report that they have dabbled with drugs. In spite of this, successive governments’ ‘war on drugs’ policies have created a society that stigmatises drug use and shut down vital conversations about harm reduction in the process. But, according to Drug Wise, this approach is like
SCREENSHOT •

Meet the man who has dedicated his life to baked beans

Some people quit smoking for their New Year’s resolution, others join the gym. YouTuber Nikocado Avocado, however, has the aim of hitting 400 pounds (just over 181 kilos). Chances are you’ve seen the famous mukbanger’s content recommended by the YouTube algorithm—known for his aggressive outbursts, his jarring persona and gluttony. It’s the fuel that’s propelled him to stardom. It’s his identity, his brand—from KFC to Burger King, you name it and over the five years of his YouTube career, he’s
Woo (ITV) •

Pulling Plastic: why indoor bouldering is booming

In 2022 more people than ever are flooding to indoor climbing gyms. The bouldering business is booming, with over 400 walls across the UK. And it’s no surprise – bouldering is climbing in its most stripped-back and purest form, with no ropes and minimal barriers for entry. The sport, which made its first Olympic debut in 2021, is providing a much-need community for old and young climbers alike. Is it the Free Solo effect, the film starring professional rock climber Alex Honnold, or the nail bit
the-face •

The zine documenting fox hunt sabotage in Northern England

Under the dull hue of mid-winter England, in the outskirts of Greater Manchester, a group of animal rights activists wait for a mass of dogs and red jackets to protrude against the bleak landscape. It’s a scene that is taking place across the country, as this year’s season of fox hunting – an archaic blood sport occurring across rural Britain – is in full swing. But this is no off-the-cuff protest – this is a skilled vigilante operation, perfected over decades of on-the-field action, designed to
DJMag.com •

U K, G?: the electronic music collectives opening up conversations around mental health

Taking influence from eott is Don’t Keep Hush. It’s run by Fred Conybeare — founder of UK music event and livestream Keep Hush, who DJs as FredCC — and Vanessa Maria, a DJ and psychology graduate. They created the platform in May 2021 to raise mental health awareness through music. “We haven’t quite nailed down what Don’t Keep Hush is yet, it took me seven years and a team to do that with Keep Hush,” FredCC says frankly. “But basically, it’s an initiative to normalise and open up conversations
SCREENSHOT •

People are using Minecraft to share banned journalism in oppressive countries

Ah, Minecraft—nothing is more nostalgia-inducing than taking those first steps on the pixelated grass-blocks, hearing the unmissable low-res crunch feet, desperately trying to find wood for shelter. The game—which, at its core, can be described as digital LEGO—is creative, I’ll give it that. But in all the hours of my teenage years I lost to that digital world, I never considered it to be a mechanism in providing freedom to the press. Fast-forward a decade and I’m seeing the game in a completel
FairPlanet •

Why legalising weed in the US would be better for the planet

Legalising weed may be greener than you think. The list of positives for legalising weed is getting pretty lengthy - from de-escalating the war on drugs to increasing the quality of life of thousands; generating a sizable proportion of tax to put back into public services to expanding our understanding of the effects of the drug and lowering the potentially psychosis-inducing potency of skunk… the list goes on. Yet, if none of these reasons has swayed you in the favour of cannabis legalisation,
SCREENSHOT •

Behind the Instagram account posting from inside a life-threatening refugee camp

‘A picture is worth a thousand words’. I know, it’s a cliché, but bear with me—photography is an incredibly powerful tool. It can expand our knowledge, our empathy for strangers and, ultimately, tell a story. This story will leave you at a loss for words: angry and yearning for change. Enter @Now_You_See_Me_Moria, an Instagram page, turned photography collective, turned into a global movement—telling the stories of refugees living in life-threatening conditions through the lens of the refugees t
Mixmag •

Roaring 20s: Why club culture could surge this decade

The aftermath of World War One and the Spanish Flu in the early 1900s brought a wave of investment into the cultural industry known as ‘the roaring '20s’. Across Europe and North America, the years 1920 to 1925 saw a surge in public cultural spaces, arts, literature and above all - music. The era was fuelled by a drive to seek out social experiences people were deprived of for almost a decade. Flash forward to today: vaccination schemes are rolling out, infection rates are dropping, we are caut

FASHION & BRANDED EDITORIAL

Woo (ITV) •

Legendary Drake and Kendrick Lamar producer Boi-1da talks SS23 collabs and self-care - Woo

Boi-1da, the producer behind Drake and Rihanna’s Work as well as Kendrick Lamar’s The Blacker The Berry hails from Jamaica but moved from the sun-soaked beaches to chilly Toronto when he was just three years old. The influence of his homeland has stuck with him ever since, though. Raised on a recipe of dancehall, reggae, R&B and hip-hop, he’s gone on to produce Grammy-winning music. We caught up with Boi-1da after the debut Paris Men’NAHMIAS SS23 collection show — in collaboration with Bacardi’s
SCREENSHOT •

Calvin Klein’s ‘Murals of Pride’ celebrates defining moments in the queer and trans journey

Calvin Klein’s latest #ProudInMyCalvins campaign is a celebration of LGBTQIA+ journeys LGBTQIA+ representation is fundamental, especially during Pride Month, as it can have a powerful impact in terms of influencing ideas and attitudes towards the community. While putting queer and trans people at the forefront is one way of championing the many voices of the community, it is also crucial for those same voices to be celebrated—not only for who they are today, but for the journey they embarked upo
Woo (ITV) •

PMFW: Nahmias: kicking back with the guy behind skate-inspired QR-coded fits - Woo

"Fashion and music go hand in hand across the board: from the struggles of an emerging musician or designer — it's all the same process. They're the hardest industries to tap into and get involved in," says Doni Nahmias, designer and founder of high-end streetwear brand NAHMIAS. It's just 24 hours before he launches his collection at Paris Men's Fashion Week and the studio is bustling — full of designers and models, photographers and the media. “There are so many moving pieces,” he remarks over
Woo (ITV) •

Dr Martens’ creative director Darren McKoy on staying fresh and finding balance - Woo

“The brand is an unstoppable force, we’re in a really great place,” says Darren McKoy of the pop culture-defining Dr Martens. Of course, he’s right: from the punks of London, The Who, and Sex Pistols, to Bella Hadid and Kendall Jenner, the iconic shaped boot and bright yellow stitching have defined generations after generations of fashion and subculture. McKoy – affectionately known as DMac – is the newly appointed Global Creative Director of Dr Martens. He took up the role back in March, having

Awards

The Drum Awards: Editorial Team of The Year (Shortlist)

University of Leeds: Foundation Award


Qualifications

MA Multimedia Journalism – Newcastle University Journalism School

BSc Psychology (Music Psychology) – University of Leeds