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Big Zuu
Big Zuu in 2021
Big Zuu in 2021
Background information
Birth nameZuhair Hassan
Born (1995-08-19) 19 August 1995 (age 29)[1]
London, England
OriginKilburn, London, England[2]
Genres
Occupations
  • Rapper
  • singer
  • songwriter
  • DJ
  • television personality
Years active2015–present[3]
Labels
Websitebigzuu.co.uk

Zuhair Hassan (born 19 August 1995), known professionally as Big Zuu, is an English rapper, singer, songwriter, DJ and television personality from West London. He is best known for presenting Big Zuu's Big Eats for U&Dave.

Early and personal life

[edit]

Hassan was born in London and grew up on the Mozart Estate in Harrow Road, west London.[2] His mother is from Sierra Leone and his father is from Lebanon.[4][5] During his gap year between college and university, Hassan worked as a mentor for young children in a secondary school in Haggerston, East London.[3][6] He then spent two years at Goldsmiths University in New Cross studying towards a community development and youth work degree. He is a member of the MTP crew (My Team Paid), a rap group that consists of his cousin AJ Tracey and other grime MCs such as Ets and others;[3] much like AJ Tracey, his first demos were recorded at their local youth centre, The Rugby Club, which let them use their studio so long as no expletives were used during the recording, forcing him to become creative to make his point.[7]

In a 2018 interview with Red Bull, Hassan stated that his music style was influenced by "old school" artists such as Tupac Shakur, Jme, P Money, Ghetts and Skepta.[3]

He is an avid supporter of Liverpool F.C.[8]

Television career

[edit]

In late 2019, UKTV channel Dave commissioned a new food show starring Hassan and various stand-up comedians. The show, Big Zuu's Big Eats, began broadcasting on 15 May 2020. It features Hassan and two friends, Tubsey and Hyder, in a 10-part series cooking for stand-up comedians who were touring the UK. For each comedian they prepare a made-to-order pre-show appetiser, followed by a three-course meal.[9] Rosie Jones, Desiree Burch, Ed Gamble, Jamali Maddix, Jimmy Carr, Josh Widdicombe, London Hughes, Lou Sanders, Phil Wang and Guz Khan make guest appearances in the series.[10] In September 2020 it was confirmed that the show would return for two special episodes followed by a second series in 2021.[11] The third series premiered on 4 July 2022; guests include Johnny Vegas, Katherine Ryan and Mel B.[12]

He appeared on episode 11 of series 2 of Guessable. He made an appearance on Jon & Lucy's Christmas Sleepover.

Hassan presented Big Zuu's Breakfast Show on Sunday mornings throughout the spring and summer of 2022 on ITV.[13]

In May 2022, Hassan won two Bafta TV Awards – entertainment performance and features for his show Big Zuu’s Big Eats at the 2022 British Academy Television Awards.[14]

In 2024, Hassan presented Big Zuu Goes to Mecca, a documentary about his Umrah pilgrimage to Mecca. In the documentary, he debated with a friend whether Hassan can be considered Muslim due to his alcohol consumption.[15]

Discography

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Studio albums

[edit]
Title Details Peak chart positions
UK UK Ind. SCO
Navigate - - -

Singles

[edit]
[edit]
Title Year Peak chart positions Album
UK[17] UK Ind.[18] SCO[19]
"Uncontrollable"

(KSI featuring Big Zuu)

2018 89 11 85 Non-album single
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Filmography

[edit]

Television

[edit]
Year Title Role Network Notes Ref.
2020–present Big Zuu's Big Eats Himself Dave 4 series [20]
2020 Big Zuu's Christmas Eats 2 Christmas Specials [21]
2022 Big Zuu's Breakfast Show ITV 8 episodes [22]
Hungry for It Co-presenter BBC Three 8 episodes [23]
Sneakerhead Mulenga Dave Main cast [24]
2024–present 12 Dishes in 12 Hours Presenter ITV [25]
2024 Big Zuu Goes To Mecca Presenter BBC Two Documentary [26]

Publications

[edit]
  • Big Zuu's Big Eats (ISBN 978-1785947292), 2021

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "BIG ZUU CELEBRATES BIRTHDAY WITH CLEAN VISUALS FOR "SO BLESSED"". GRM Daily. 19 August 2019.
  2. ^ a b Hancox, Dan (27 May 2018). "Grime MC Big Zuu: 'The people's response to Grenfell was way better than the government's'". The Guardian.
  3. ^ a b c d "Big Zuu interview: AJ Tracey's cousin is blowing up". Red Bull. 5 September 2018.
  4. ^ "Big Zuu Interview: KSI Collab, His Come Up, Being A Youth Worker and Music career Transition". Amarudontv via YouTube. 11 September 2018.
  5. ^ "Big Zuu interview - Big Zuu's Big Eats". British Comedy Guide. 11 May 2020.
  6. ^ Bassil, Ryan (11 May 2020). "Big Zuu Doesn't Really Go Clubbing – Except The Time He Went With Drake". VICE.
  7. ^ "Big Zuu | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved 23 May 2020.
  8. ^ "Big Zuu's freestyle for Premier League winners Liverpool". BBC Sport. 2 July 2020. Retrieved 26 February 2021.
  9. ^ "Dave commissions new food show with Big Zuu and stand-ups". British Comedy Guide. 26 November 2019.
  10. ^ "Big Zuu's Big Eats". British Comedy Guide.
  11. ^ "Big Zuu's Big Eats to return to Dave". British Comedy Guide. 14 September 2020.
  12. ^ "Big Zuu's Big Eats season 3: release date, trailer, and guests including Mel B, Big Narstie and Katherine Ryan". nationalworld.com/presscentre. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  13. ^ "ITV announces new weekend shows for Spring 2022". itv.com/presscentre. 17 March 2022. Retrieved 17 March 2022.
  14. ^ "Bafta TV Awards 2022: Big Zuu, Jodie Comer and Sean Bean cook up success". BBC News. 7 May 2022. Retrieved 9 May 2022.
  15. ^ "Can you be religious and sin?". BBC. 8 April 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  16. ^ "Review: Big Zuu's Debut Album 'Navigate'". thelinkup.com. Retrieved 9 May 2022.
  17. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 20 February 2018. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
  18. ^ "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 8 September 2018. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
  19. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 7 July 2018. Retrieved 20 June 2020.
  20. ^ Big Zuu's Big Eats. Season 1. Episode 1. 20 May 2020. Dave.
  21. ^ Big Zuu's Christmas Eats. Season 1. Episode 1. 11 December 2020. Dave.
  22. ^ "Big Zuu's Breakfast Show". radiotimes.com. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  23. ^ "Hungry for It Show". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 1 May 2022.
  24. ^ "Sneakerhead". dave.uktv.co.uk. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
  25. ^ "ITV1 and ITVX commission Big Zuu's 12 Dishes in 12 Hours". itv.com/presscentre. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
  26. ^ "Big Zuu Goes To Mecca will follow double BAFTA-winning TV chef and rapper as he performs the pilgrimage of Umrah for the first time". bbc.co.uk/mediacentre. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
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