Although formed just under a year ago, the multidisciplinary platform Something To Hate On has managed to amass a strong following amongst London twenty-somethings. Hosting parties and exhibitions which pair emerging artists with established talent, the collective create inclusive environments where art can be shared, experimented with, and above all, enjoyed. Their core principle? Mutual support and promotion of one another’s work.

With no interest in pleasing anyone’s interests but their own, the rebellious nature of the art gang transpires across their output, from the name to in-house merchandise. Attracting a strong mix of creative talent, the group have already curated exhibitions during Frieze, held pop-up events on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as set up a record label, SHO Records, which just released a handful singles.

Below, Something To Hate On’s Raff Law, Daniel Mould, and Max Clarke take us into their world and discuss the importance of support systems like SHO for the youngest generation of creatives.

Undine Markus: What​ ​is​ ​SHO?
Something To Hate On: Something To Hate On is a creative platform that showcases and celebrates London’s youth and underground culture. SHO is for the people who are bored of your standard ‘get together’ with the same playlists being played. We wanted to give people a sense of direction, when they go to our event they experience and learn something about youth in London. It’s not just London, we’ve been in New York, Milan, Paris, but since we’re all London boys, we really want to show off the talent found in our city.

The idea is to be throwing regular exhibitions and events appealing to anyone who has a genuine interest in being surrounded and immersed in music, fashion, art, and more. Why shouldn’t we celebrate it! Over the past few months, we’ve showcased a lot of different artists and sold some really great pieces. We recently set up a record label, signing Daisy Maybe’s Honey Chai Tea and Raff Law’s Support Network. We plan to develop this label with our wicked variety of music working towards our first SHO Records mixtape which will include a range of different types of music that makes London’s music scene so innovative.

We also have a strong interest in fashion. We started by printing on hoodies and tees with our logo and designs. In the early days, this was really a way to get our logo out there and to get people supporting the movement. We’re now moving away from the simplicity of merch and working on capsule collections with Runway brands such as Rochambeau in NYC, having just done a collaboration with Haculla and Harif Guzman. It’s great to give the artists an opportunity to put their work on clothing and we work very closely with them so everyone is happy with the outcome.

On top of this, we’re always plotting new ideas and ways to make people excited about each event we throw. We’re always up for helping brands put on their events.

Undine: Who​ ​is​ ​part​ ​of​ ​the​ ​core​ ​group?
SHO: Max, Dan, and Raff founded the company, but really we want to give a big shout out to everyone who has been involved thus far, artists and musicians alike.

Undine: How​ ​large​ ​is​ ​the​ ​extended​ ​collective?
SHO: Now being nearly a year into our project, we have a great group of people. There’s some of our mates who we’ve known for years, like Harry Prentice and Basil Fisher. Plus, artists like tia4u Balm, Jasper Levine, Jo Butcher have done multiple projects with us. We also want to shout out musicians and DJs who have played at our events, Bakar, The Illustrious One, Tiffany Calver, Aaron Unknown, and Saz. They’re definitely part of the collective. We wanted to build a movement. Some people only come and help once we have a venue for an event and we need hands, others help us exclusively with creating graphics. It’s hard to put a number on it. It’s growing.

Undine: What​ ​are​ ​the​ ​disciplines​ ​the​ ​collective​ ​encompasses?
SHO: We definitely don’t have any major rules so to speak…We like to have good vibes so we always make sure everyone working with us gets along. It’s also important not to get too comfortable and see where we can improve. One thing we learnt quickly was to put aside personal taste and appreciate the time, effort and skill put into it. If someone is dedicated and has a similar vision, we want them involved.

“Bringing art and music together is a positive thing and we can provide a place for creatives to come and experiment… What’s better than being part of something where anything goes and anything can happen?”

Undine: What​ ​are​ ​the​ ​core​ ​values​ ​of​ ​SHO?
SHO: Freedom of creativity. Restricting the creative process isn’t what we do, we have artists that we work with closely but we never try and change their style or take anything away from it, just give honest opinions and a direction if it’s needed. We always try to put artists and musicians in good places to get the exposure they deserve regardless of age or following. At the end of the day, SHO is about exploring and exposing all the interesting things going on around London and the world, and if people don’t fuck with it well then we’re Something To Hate On.

Undine: What​ ​do​ ​you​ ​view​ ​as​ ​the​ ​main​ ​functions​ ​of​ ​SHO?
SHO: The main function of SHO is to stay relevant in our own right and expose talent in all creative areas. Bringing art and music together is a positive thing and we can provide a place for creatives to come and experiment, maybe ask for a helping hand. And also to provide fun for us and our supporters. What’s better than being part of something where anything goes and anything can happen?

Undine: Do​ ​you​ ​feel​ ​as​ ​if​ ​SHO​ ​is​ ​a​ ​safe​ ​space​ ​for​ ​experimentation​ ​and​ ​functions​ ​as​ ​a​ ​security​ ​network​ ​for​ ​its members?
SHO: Definitely. It’s nice to have a community when you’re creating, one that doesn’t judge you the whole time. As our collective has grown, we’ve noticed artists freely talking about their individual styles and swapping ideas or helping set up spaces. We want people to do what they want.

Undine: Does​ ​SHO​ ​have​ ​any​ ​international​ ​presence?
SHO: London​ ​and New York, but we’re trying to push more internationally, places like Berlin, LA, Tokyo.

Look back at SHO’s previous events and projects here.