Paving The Way For Dublin – The Cultural Empire of Gliders

GUAP Magazine GUAP Magazine Cover Stories

BY Kemi Iruwa

November 28, 2024

Gliders is a Dublin-born creative collective set on exporting their talents to the world in every possible capacity. Fronted by music duo Elzzz and Travy, along with director and videographer Sam Fallover, this loose crew, made up of a variety of mavericks rejecting the traditional boundaries of artistry, opts instead to focus on laying the foundations of a cultural empire.

“When I think of Gliders, I think of family, my brothers and building the dream world we want to live in.”

It’s a gloomy day in Monkstown, Dublin — the kind where the clouds feel like they’ve hit snooze too many times, forming an unmovable grey blanket under which the sun seems to have curled up and disappeared. One by one, our subjects roll up to our location, bringing with them an energy and brightness that warms the temperate climate enough to motivate everyone on set. “We’re just a bunch of guys paving the way for Dublin”, says Sam who charmingly sums up the group that we’re here to discuss.

According to Elzzz, Gliders got its start in events and slowly morphed into something the group realised could be much bigger; “We were throwing house parties just before [COVID-19] lockdown. When lockdown happened, we needed to keep the momentum going. So, we dropped our first bit of merch which was a hat that sold out in 24 hours”. That moment marked the mutual realisation that they might be onto something great. “We just said, ‘let’s do something different. Nothing that has been seen in Dublin before’. No one had done marketing like that, so, I think that’s what gave us the first boom,” Sam adds.

During the same time period, the summer of 2021 saw Travy and Elzzz release their first single together, officially deciding to take music seriously, and shortly after that their breakout track ICL got both the attention of their community in Dublin and across the pond. Compounded with the fashion and the visuals, this meant that Gliders would come to be made up of multi-disciplinary creatives and artists while their audience could engage with the many aspects of the crew. “It was something we did naturally. We were making music with our friends and we used to freestyle all the time. And we were into fashion, so when we started dropping clothes, we stayed making music and everything just went hand in hand,” Travy tells me. “There’s even one song, Pricey, that we made literally for one of our sets.” The set in question is the G-Suit which acted as the group’s uniform during its humble beginnings.

Pricey pretty much encapsulates the breadth of Gliders’ creative output from the beat production by Liam Harris and laying down the track to the finished marketing campaign — similar to creative collectives like A$AP Mob and Odd Future who pushed boundaries in music, fashion, and art during the 2010s on US’ East and West Coasts. “There are a lot of us so it never feels tiring to me because we all help push the vision forward. Everyone plays their role,” Travy says. The key factor which secures these collectives’ success is the ability to build on the authenticity of the group. In Gliders’ case, the crew oozes integrity and genuineness in all that they do and say. Elzzz puts things simply; “Gliders is literally just me and my brothers doing what we love and bringing community together, and showcasing the artistry, the music, the events, our own sauce and everything we do basically.”

Over the last couple of years, the crew has pushed forward, honing their crafts and building their empire. More clothing drops, more events and more music paired with effective marketing strategies and clean visuals — all ensuring that Gliders’ story is well documented and stays fresh in the minds of the community they have nurtured. Across 2022 and 2023, the Irish collective seemingly underwent a metamorphosis that would result in their presence within Dublin’s cultural landscape being solidified, catapulting them into the view of their British counterparts.

On the fashion side, the production increased. Gliders released three G-Suits in different colourways and went a step further with the release of a collection that featured denim jeans and a matching reversible jacket. The community was treated to pop ups and live performances and other events.

Travy and Elzzz made cultural history in the release of their tape Full Circle that went on to debut at number two on the Irish albums chart, earning the title of ‘highest debuting Irish rap project ever’. Full Circle narrated the story of an underdog sowing seeds of greatness against the odds but the group knows better than anyone how much they’ve put into realising their ambitions. While chatting about the space they’ve taken up in Dublin’s scene, Travy summarises the group’s feelings; “We’ve created our own lane and taken up all the space – I feel like creativity wins so, especially being out here, a lot of stuff can be quite boring. You actually need to be creative because creativity wins all the time.”

While Gliders have their own activations, like any group at the heart of a city’s youth culture, it’s safe to say that the crew is big on supporting creativity in Dublin in general. It’s hard to attend any function without running into at least a couple of people in the wider collective, and they have been big on linking up with other Irish visionaries in the scene, something that is very important because when facing a terrain like what Ireland offers, collaboration and camaraderie can be what make or break an idea, project or in this case, collective.

When asked about their thoughts on the current trajectory of the Irish scene, the three shared positive outlooks, and reflected on the changes they’ve been able to witness. Sam tells me, “I think the Dublin scene is bubbling the most right now, there are a lot of big groups, talented acts and artists coming out. I think we’re on the verge of breaking through into Europe in a bigger way and it’s important.”

Travy chimes in; “When we first started doing things, we saw a market and realised we can have an input. We always knew that if [the scene] all joined forces we could push this really far.” Speaking to the group, I can feel their synergy coming through with every interaction. They finish each other’s sentences, speak at the same time and seem to always know what the other is thinking. To a stranger it might come across as if this crew had known each other since their early childhoods. “It’s important that everyone pushes each other and supports each other because there’s strength in numbers”, Sam continues. Travy goes on to expand, “A lot of communities can be very cliquey. You see it in London, there’s cliquiness here as well but I feel like overall, everyone is willing to help. It’s a smaller community…” “…So everybody knows everybody here”, Sam finishes.

In December 2023, the guys got Gliders chains and like in the rest of rap culture, this signified the beginning of another transformation. This year the elevation continued and started off strong with the release of two new G-Suits, shortly followed by Travy and Elzzz’ DOGHOUSE project that charted at number one on both the Official Irish Albums chart and the Irish Independent Albums Chart, left listeners with a sense of anticipation for what was yet to come. A headline show, launch party in Paris and two collabs with London-based collectives later, we find ourselves at Monkstown Castle for the crew’s first magazine cover, of what I project will be one of many.

As Spyder, who connected with the group around 2 years ago, literally embeds himself in a small field of grass to get a perfect shot, we are faced with the next phase of Gliders. It’s meticulously thought out, intentionally put together and more mature. Travy and Elzzz have both begun releasing solo music and moved into conquering the UK music scene. In the same vein, Sam has developed a distinct style in his visual storytelling that has seen him working with fashion brands, music artists and leaving Gliders’ indelible mark in Paris, New York and London. Even the pieces they wear on set showcase a venture into new fashion technologies, silhouettes and colour palettes.

One thing that Elzzz keeps repeating to me is ‘we manifested this’. Looking at Gliders’ achievements since the inception of the group, you can often find references to their plans in Travy and Elzzz’ bars. Reflecting on their favourite moments together, they all highlight different periods that have brought them to where they are now. Travy shares that his favourite moment so far was when they first created the G-Suit, Elzzz’ is their Longitude festival set where they performed to over 2000 people, while Sam’s is the more recent Halloween party in collaboration with the UK’s Lost Boys.

As we close out the day, even I am overcome with excitement at what the group is set to release next. This pioneering crew’s movements are difficult to predict yet the path they are paving always moves in the desired direction. The guys are also naturally secretive about what they have coming up, especially Sam who prefers to have full control over the narrative that they put out. Leaving the set, Elzzz’ bars ring in my mind and one sticks out in particular: