“I have a lot of bad comments and strange interactions”

After first made his name as a grime artist, who is based on a TV kitchen place, Big Zuu And he landed a new audience in the last month. To be part of the best rated show of the largest streaming service in the world will do this. “There is another type of eye on me, and people see me in a new light. Most of my shows are enough happy and positive. His great world and everything is centered around what I love and what I do, but this was deeper and even more emotional, ”he reflects.

We are talking, of course, about Celebrity Bear Huntreality show named I’m a celebrity on steroids, through which a lot of known personalities are thrown into the jungle of Costa Rica and tries to evade the capture by the survival expert Bear grylls.

The rapper not only survived, but prospered, to the point where, despite being there with extremely competitive sports types like Danny Ciprian and Boris Becker, He – Spoiler Alert – won everything. “In no case did I think I could win. I thought “I certainly take the cat here.” But I thought I would get far away. I have a very strong spirit, I have overcome a lot in my life, ”he says. “It was incredibly difficult, I never thought it would be so hard. I only thought “come on, we are famous, they will let us take it a little slightly”, but no, they certainly have not retained. “

Some of the hardest moments during the filming, he says, were not the threats completely, from the heat to drown to the undesirable wild animal meetings (the closest he came to a dangerous animal being the false Jaguar, his competing colleagues). Instead, the biggest challenges came from sharing a living space with a group of high profile foreigners, an eclectic mix, including Spice Girl Mel B, Strict Judge Shirley Ballas, TV presenter Steph McGovern and professional Bon Viveur Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen.

“Being in a camp with total strangers, especially people who have different types of ego because of their fame, have sometimes become a little intense,” says Zuu. “But everyone brought something different in the camp and, if it was good or bad, it was necessary. I’m glad we all removed ourselves as friends. And I certainly felt that I grew up there. I understood things that I did not understand at first – such as the impact of my words and actions on other people. I can be a little overwhelming for people to understand because they are loud and creepy and I have a big personality and sometimes people do not gel it right away.

“So I had to learn about it and learn that it is not a bad thing. Don’t make me a bad person and don’t make them a bad person. And I certainly felt highly appreciated until the end. “

Zuu made some improbable friends, especially connecting with the business pre-senter around Steph McGovernhis finalist colleague. “He is a true warrior. It was amazing that we tied us and we could finish the show on a tall together. We had a lot of fun. I did a talented show that they did not put in editing – I played a rap about camp and Steph danced the Irish line. One (Healy) sang “Danny Boy” for Danny Cipriani, who was hilarious and Shirley He gave us a little flamenco. He was sick. And I liked to meet and cook for everyone every night, that was very cool. “

Of course, cooking is about what Big Zuu is. His show, Big Zuu eatsDuring which he beats a three -way meal together from a food truck for comedians and other funny people, goes from 2019 and presents the appreciation of Jimmy Carr, Josh Widdicombe, Mel GiedRoyc and Jonathan Ross. Not that it was not assumed that it would not happen especially when he began to share his recipes on Snapchat. “I was just trying to promote my music and show people how to make a spag bolt,” he shrugged.

Zuu’s journey to become “Gourmet Gourmet”, started today in the kitchen of his family on the West London estate, with foods influenced by his mother from Sierra Leonean and the legacy of the Lebanese father. “My mother is a big chef, so I grew loving food because of her, and then I learned a lot through the TV. Sunday Brunch was very easy to watch as a child when I woke up on a Sunday and I I learned a lot of recipes. Simon Rimmer does not really think he influenced me, but he did it and we continued to become big friends.

“In my adolescence, it was social media, youtube and tutorials to cook online, then I started cooking on Snapchat. I continued to make a small youtube series, and then developed on a TV show … “

However, all this success in social media has reached a price for the 29 -year -old. “The negativity I go through is a lot. There were times when I was really upset and I would respond to the things and I let him consume my energy, “says Zuu. “S.OCCIAL MEDIA It is filled with a very dark side. I get a lot of bad comments and strange, annoying, but you have to block it. Over time, you learn how to handle it. I realize I can’t do everyone happy. “

He says that people do not expect him to look in fact all the comments he receives on his many social platforms – but he sees them all. “People tell me bad things on Snapchat and I will answer and I will say” well, God bless you. ” And then I go “in fact, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to say.”

Zuu works hard on his mental health, and his latest effort has seen it – maybe we could say, unlikely – Wellness Guru, collaboration with Holland & Barrett as their job title (eccentric cue), for a fundraising campaign for the comic relief and to celebrate how to celebrate how to celebrate how the comic way Good nutrition And a big belly laugh – two things that are big in Zuu’s set of skills – helps the well -being.

So who or what makes Big Zuu laugh the most? “My friends are probably the funniest people I know.

A very good friend of mine, Mr. Aj Tracey, is very immature, very reactive. You put us in a room together and we will talk about garbage for 15 hours, about nothing that means something. This is my favorite type of comedy, ”he says about his colleague rapper and collaborator, who also happens to be his cousin.

Zuu regularly participates in boxing training and engages in a yoga place afterwards -“I like a cat cow, a descending dog, controlling my breath, stretching the quads.”

His wellness negotiations are not surprising, food and music. However, he makes some surprising choices on the old Spotify. “Music controls my mood. I always listen to music. I like my gangster things, but, nine times out of 10, it will be something uplifting. I am pretty basic, I will not lie. I sing “Never Say Never” by Justin Bieber every day without fail, because I think this is a truly important message. And “Halo” of Beyoncé is my access when I have to show people that I know how to sing. “

Zuu says that cooking helps him mentally. “Just focus on that thing for an hour or two, this is my main thing.”

His kind of signature is his lasagna. “I make a very good red sauce. I cook Ragu for three hours to make sure it is unbelievable. And my name is Mr. Roux. When it comes to Béchamel, I’m your man. You have to use a wooden spoon so you can better incorporate the milk and indeed Get the love there. And then you have to spice. I like to introduce hot sauce there, mustard, three different cheeses, salt, lots of black pepper and a lot of white pepper. He takes him to another universe. “

Of course, there are days when they give in to the pleasures of a trashy. “I would lie if I said there are no moments to eat absolutely,” he smiles. “But I try to do good things for my intestine. I always have fruit in the morning. I love, love fruits and love a little green tea. Lunch is quite sporadic and then dinner, again, depends on where I am. But I normally try to take a balanced meal. “

Currently, Zuu, a practicing Muslim that last year made a BBC documentary about its pilgrimage to Mecca, is in the middle of the period of one month by month Ramadan. Nothing passes his lips between sunrise and sunset.

“Yesterday I had Tortellini and Pesto, at 4 in the morning, which is strange enough to eat at that time,” he says.

“Obviously, I do it for religious purposes, but all people should definitely participate in the job. There are a lot of studies behind her – and I’m not too big in studies, because I think they do things that make you feel good – but there are so many advantages for fasting. It cleanses your body and regenerates your system, ”he adds. And, he says, the benefits go far beyond the physical.

“You appreciate everything when you fast because you have a small window to eat. It also makes you think of your bad habits or it is smokingBeing too much on your phone, swear, being rude, lied – it’s not just food. Respect everything more, you care more about the world. “

All the discipline and concentration of construction of the characters that come from his religious practice have undoubtedly prepared on Zuu to change life Bear hunting Also experience.

“The challenges were unbelievable. Those once in a life opportunity – passing on a rickets between two rocks, being raised in the sky from a rock – I got to experience all these random things I could never do if I were only with my friends at home, “he reflects.

“It was a stressful place to be and could have been going the other way around, but everything went well for me. I am happy and made me so much more fearless and gave me a stronger mentality on the things I cannot control. He taught me a certain level of resistance that I have not had before.

“I feel that if I could go through this, I can go through anything.”

Big Zuu made a team with Holland & Barrett as a funny boss to help raise funds for Red nose day And it shows how laughter and good nutrition are the perfect recipe for wellness. 10p from the price of selected products from the new range of food H&B goes to the comic relief