AN IDIOT’S GUIDE TO GRIME Don’t be a wasteman – get to know your Stormzy from your Skepta
Nope, not a new show by Aggie and Kim, but a look at the only music genre worth knowing anything about right now
So it’s music, yeah?
Damn right: a mix of UK garage and jungle, known for its fast beats, raps and east London slang. Just, whatever you do, don’t call it hip-hop.
Who came up with it?
You can thank the east London massive for griming it up in the early Noughties, but veterans of the scene (anyone who’s been making music for, ahem, 10 years or more) Wiley and Lethal Bizzle brought it into the mainstream in around 2004. More recently, with artists like Stormzy playing at the Brits and Coachella, it’s gone global. And even Drake is a fan. He’s just financed Kano’s (that’s another grime name to know, by the way) television show, Top Boy.
And the sound… what does it actually sound like?
OK, it’s not totally unlike hip-hop... but it’s faster, dirtier, and distinctly British. Also shouty, sweary and unapologetically un-PC. Plus, it will make you laugh with lyrics like: “I get withdrawal symptoms from Barclays bank*.”
Skepta seems kind of a big deal. Why do we like him?
As well as being pretty good at what he does, he once brought his mum onstage when he was accepting an award. Presumably it wasn’t just so she could hold it for him while he posed for photos?
Got any interesting poster boys?
Wiley had a key role in creating the genre, so he’s known as the Godfather Of Grime. Skepta, however, is the self-proclaimed ‘King Of Grime’, and that’s fair enough – he’s had so much mainstream success that even old-school etiquette association Debrett’s took notice and named him one of their most influential people of 2017. Yes. We see the irony. Then there’s Kano, who’s been on the scene for over a decade, and JME – an essential Twitter follow and celebrity vegan.
Alright, I’m intrigued. So who should I be listening to?
You likely already know of Stormzy, but give the female grime artists some love – start with Stefflon Don, Shystie and Julie Adenuga (Skepta and JME’s sister). You could also try Bugzy Malone (a Mancunian MC rumoured to have beef with Stormzy).