For any Grime MC in the making has plans of owning the year 2012, they might want to consider taking a backseat due to the lyrical volcano which could erupt any time soon. Ghetts, in his mid twenties, has already seen it all and accomplished a lot of what many aim for, but still possesses the fire to overrule the next 365 days.
If you weren’t at ILUVLIVE on Monday, you missed out. You probably already knew that before the doors opened though, from the second you saw the line-up; after all, it isn’t often that two of UK music's finest take the stage on the same night, let alone share it. But ILUVLIVE pulled out all the stops for a special in which Kano and Mikey J presented his recently released free EP, Not 4 the A List.
It seems like the days of an artist to emerge bearing a diamond-in-the-rough aura have been put to bed. In the past Dizzee Rascal, the So Solid Crew and many others jumped into the mainstream still bearing the so called ‘stains’ of their underground success.
Today, emerging acts are glammed up and polished to appear more ‘camera friendly’ and to (begrudgingly) be labelled as a pop act. But James Devlin has refused to follow suit. A product of the Grime scene, Devlin’s appearance isn’t as a potential poster boy for the new urban pop scene - but rather as a musician who has taken the dark, edgy tools which have elevated him and fine-tuned it to appeal to all markets.
Packing fierce, uncompromising lyricism, Devlin’s debut release Bud, Sweat & Beers intends to reaffirm the notion that the music scene is a level playing field and that the underdog can have its day.
As urban/black pop music dominates the charts, many of the underground heroes of Grime also want a piece of this success. Emcees are trading in their Air Maxes, bars and scowls for boat shoes, sing-along choruses and smiles in the hope of reaching the wider audience. Whilst respect should be given to those daring to enter the wider race, one individual remains adamant that Grime’s credentials are enough for some recognition.
Ghetts has been one of the scene’s consistent performers; releasing numerous mixtapes and going bar for bar with some of the scene’s big hitters. But can his Calm Before The Storm project provide a blueprint for future (and past) stars of the scene as well as proving the doubters wrong who claim “Grime won’t pay a mortgage”?