Independent artist channels recovery, family, and dark humour into his most personal project yet
UK rapper, songwriter and independent artist JOHKES has announced his forthcoming 2026 album, Peace I Can’t Wake To, a project born out of one of the most difficult chapters of his life — and one that finds him turning trauma into some of his most honest music to date
JOHKES has been writing music since the age of nine, building a sound rooted in storytelling, melodic hooks and dark humour woven through emotionally raw lyrics. But in 2023, his life changed in an instant. A serious road traffic accident left him tetraplegic, and he spent weeks in intensive care — including time in a coma — before beginning the long process of recovery.
“A lot of my writing now comes from real experiences — recovery, family, guilt, love, disability, fear and the strange humour that can exist even in the worst situations,” JOHKES says of the material that followed.
That process of processing is exactly what shapes Peace I Can’t Wake To. The album explores the strange, almost peaceful stillness JOHKES felt while unconscious, set against the jarring reality of waking up to a completely different life. It’s a concept that runs through the record as both a literal account of his accident and a wider meditation on identity, resilience and what it means to keep creating when everything else has changed.
Since the accident, JOHKES has continued releasing music independently — steadily building his catalogue, picking up radio support and press coverage along the way, and using each release as another piece of an ongoing, unfiltered account of his story.
Listen and follow JOHKES:
- Apple Music: music.apple.com/us/artist/johkes
- Instagram: instagram.com/johkes247
- TikTok: tiktok.com/@thejohker
Peace I Can’t Wake To is set for release in 2026.
