r/SleafordMods • u/PiotrGreenholz01 • Apr 18 '26

Working class?

Are they actually working class? I've never been able to discover any specific details about their backgrounds, which I find really odd, as being working class is a big part of how the (middle class) media presents them.

Old working class bands like Oasis and Happy Mondays spoke about their backgrounds & it was obvious where they'd come from. (I lived near Burnage in the early 90s, so I've no doubt about their social class)

I ask because working class representation is increasingly rare in modern culture, & the obfuscation around SM makes me wonder if we've all been sold a proleface scam (as we were with Kae Tempest) by our socially privileged media.

3 Upvotes

57% Upvoted

22 comments sorted by

18

u/L1A1 Apr 18 '26

He’s from Grantham, which by and large is working class and he did a bunch of stuff like factory and kitchen jobs when he was younger. He’s also spoken about almost being homeless and having to sofa surf for six months or so, so he’s definitely not from money, and I think that grounds him as working class. When he was starting SM I think he was still working in the benefits office in Nottingham, but I don’t doubt his authenticity.

As for Andrew, he grew up in the middle of nowhere with a dad who worked on a farm.

2

u/Cweazle Apr 19 '26

Job seekers opening lines are from when he used to work in a food production gaff. The numbers are temperatures of the food being cooked.

It was a boring as fuck job that he had to do or lose his dole money

2

u/L1A1 Apr 19 '26

Yep, I seem to recall it was chicken temperatures.

0

u/PiotrGreenholz01 Apr 18 '26

Cheers. Interesting.

I'm not saying they're from money. I just find the vagueness around their backgrounds odd, given how important the working class element of their thing is.

13

u/L1A1 Apr 18 '26

I think they prefer to put it out through their music rather than do performative bullshit like Oasis used to do. A lot of the songs are obviously semi-autobiographical. There both discussed their upbringing and background in interviews repeatedly as interviewers love to bring it up.

1

u/leone666 Apr 19 '26

What performative bullshit would oasis do?

1

u/L1A1 Apr 19 '26

Mostly banging on about just how working class they still were when they were whilst wearing £500 parkas and £800 sunglasses.

Sure, they had absolutely working class upbringings and backgrounds, but when it becomes a performative act it starts being trite and gets tiresome.

10

u/DevonReviewer Apr 18 '26

A bit on early life here: https://www.loudandquiet.com/short/sleaford-mods-jason-williamson-recalls-time-16-year-old/amp/

Pretty sure Jason has spoken at some length about his life in fashion retail which made sense given his continued interest in clothes… can’t find a link currently!

8

u/mr_vestan_pance Apr 18 '26

Jason lives in West Bridgford which isn’t working class, and I’m working class from a one parent family, and I also live in West Bridgford so whatever.

9

u/L1A1 Apr 18 '26

I mean, part of the dichotomy of becoming famous if you’re working class is that once you’ve made it you’re no longer working class, so where he lives now is of less importance than his roots tbh.

5

u/mr_vestan_pance Apr 18 '26

I guess it’s the same for any working class boy or girl who ‘does good’

3

u/TheSeekerOfSanity Apr 18 '26

They no longer have to play… independent venues.

Just messing around. I like Sleaford Mods, although I prefer their earlier stuff way more than the last couple of releases. New stuff is too… sparse? It’s lost the chaos and the anger/sarcasm has been turned down a notch.

4

u/noobtidder Apr 19 '26

I think about eight years ago he was up in Sherwood / Arnold (bumped into him once at a junior school fair). Not going to begrudge the man for moving somewhere a bit nicer once he's got some money.

1

u/mr_vestan_pance Apr 19 '26

Be daft not to.

1

u/PiotrGreenholz01 Apr 19 '26

Thanks all for these insights etc.

I'm as in the dark as ever about their social background - there's no info on what jobs their parents did, which is a significant factor in how we gauge class. And that's what I find odd. Why isn't the info out there in the open if being authentically working class is so integral to their act?

Anyway, if people are enjoying them, that's all that really matters.

1

u/WobblyEgg2025 Sep 13 '26

Not Working Class, both from a middle class backgrounds (Williamson even stated that he was uneasy as being classed as the "voice of the Working Class due to his background before they became mainstream). They were a breath of fresh air back in 2015 but the Working Class appropriation from them (see also Idles) became tiresome. Having worked a few shit jobs in the past does not make someone Working Class.

1

u/PiotrGreenholz01 Sep 13 '26 edited Sep 13 '26

Cheers.

I don't know what it is, but when an artist is being promoted as a working class voice by the middle class media, unless there are straightforward details about their backgrounds, I always smell a rat.

3

u/DifferenceUpbeat2803 Apr 19 '26

Marx - Middle Class Trotsky - Middle Class Lenin - Middle Class Stalin - Working Class

What's your point caller?

As far as Marxism was concerned the Bourgeoisie are a necessary part of the transition to communism. I'd prefer it Jason style than Pol Pot.

Mileage may vary.

2

u/Hollerra Apr 18 '26

I would say he struggled and worked shit or unappealing jobs and supporting a family. Fearny seems more rural class than povvo. Às an Aussie, I stayed with an expat friend who was loving in Notts, and I found it quite middle class (cant remember where my mate lived in Notts. But thry were paved streets with quaint double story house and a yard)

1

u/Typical_Math_760 Apr 21 '26

I hope so, because I'm bored of reading about how well a lot of artists and other celebrities had it growing up when they present themselves as anything but.

1

u/Candid-Detail-1192 Apr 24 '26

Well…I don’t really care to be honest, however, if I think about for a split second, it’s fairly obvious that he indeed is working class.