Grime Notes

For almost a decade now, grime has been a major presence in my life. It started slowly at first, just a guest feature or two by top MCs on tracks in different genres. Then I downloaded Wiley's Treddin' on Thin Ice, Eskiboy next, and from there I knew something big was about to happen. I'd enjoyed hip-hop plenty as a younger adult, but grime was totally new to me. It moved differently, felt different, gave me a new appreciation for the interaction between music and lyrics. I got sucked in deeper and deeper: Tempa T, Jme, Footsie, Dizzee Rascal, Terror Danjah, Durrty Goodz, and countless more besides. Exhilarated by MCs and instrumentals equally, never more so than when the two collided on an unmissable track.

The purpose of this project is to add to the worldwide appreciation of grime. Despite the likes of Dizzee, Skepta, and Stormzy blowing up internationally, grime has always held a tenuous connection to the larger industry infrastructure. It existed on the margins at first, had a brief flirtation with the mainstream in ~2007-09, then returned to obscurity for another half-decade. My interest in the scene began in 2012, when things were mostly under the radar (excluding Wiley's new major-label effort). The old hands were hard at work, of course, and Butterz was ascendant on the club/independent label circuit, yet things were still bubbling with no signs of imminent eruption. So I was surprised as anyone when, a few years later, Skepta's Konnichiwa album started generating serious heat. It was especially surprising that a throwback track like That's Not Me would be the one to touch things off, after so many magazine articles about how grime just didn't make sense to listeners outside the UK. Soon grime found a second life in the charts, and mostly without the last incarnation's pop overtones. It was a heady time even for me as a US-based observer, but the crucial thing to remember is that grime never claimed sole dominance of UK rap. The real kings of that larger movement were Krept and Konan, fellow-travelers who belonged more properly to the 'road rap' genre designation. And then of course came UK drill, current champion and popular scapegoat for the racist press. Ask your average US American what's going on with UK rap, and I would wager they'd be more likely to tell you about Headie One than any of grime's crowning achievements.

(Though one guy here in Baltimore seems to regularly pump out Giggs from his car en route to work...)

Anyhow. The format I'll be using is short, ongoing, and incomplete, which I feel is appropriate for my limited understanding of a musical phenomenon to which I'll never have insider access. I can only relay my impressions and enthusiasms from afar, molded by years of intense stateside admiration. These grime notes will be arrangements of stray thoughts I've accumulated through considering particular MCs, songs, tracks, or labels. The smaller size of my planned posts should help me with semi-regular updates, since more sustained projects tend to wear down my initial motivation. But by the end, I'd like to look back on a database of observations and avenues for continual investigation, a re-organization of what's possible that can guide me through the '20s. If grime was just a passing fancy for me, I would've known it by now. It's absolutely here to stay, and I welcome its permanent place in my life. The effect has already been immense; let's see what a new decade will bring.

Collected links to be compiled here:

Grime Note #1: Wiley, Gangsterz