Top Boy is back…and it’s about time too. After hearing the show was going to be cancelled after its second season, Mr. OVO himself was such a big fan of the show that he helped fund the return which can now be watched on Netflix. Drake is a well known fan of U.K. culture but this really goes to show how much of a fan he really is. The show, if you’ve never seen it before, is a real taste of what London can really be like and this new season features a lot of young, talented actors, as well as some recognisable faces such as Dave and Kano. So, it was only fitting that the soundtrack for the season features all the sounds of the streets of London too and it does not disappoint.
From a first look at the tracklist, only one song title is recognisable and that’s Drake’s ‘Behind Barz’ which he did for LinkUpTV back in 2018. Drake rapping on what can only be described as a U.K. Drill beat was one of the highlights of the year, so it definitely deserved to be amongst the rest of the soundtrack. The Album is filled with bangers that could only have come out of London, but these are the stand out tracks on a first listen…
Dave – Professor X
Many comments on the internet suggest people were hoping this was going to be the unreleased Drill track Dave previewed on his Instagram a while back, however it was not, it’s better. Classic Dave flows over a mysterious sounding beat is exactly what we needed. One thing about Dave is you can never be sure where the rhymes are going to land or what is coming next and this song is a huge demonstration of that.
Baka Not Nice – My Town (feat. Giggs)
A dark and dirty sounding track with another eerie chorus. Baka sounds both melodic and terrifying all in one verse and it works so well. As soon as you see featuring Giggs then you know the track is going to hit hard but this is one of Giggs’ best verses since his most recent album Big Bad. The delay and reverb effects used on his classic ad-libs make him sound even more bad than he normally does, which is hard to do.
AJ Tracey – Elastic
On LinkUpTV’s Instagram post of the tracklist for the Soundtrack, AJ Tracey wrote ‘Had to take it back to real Grime for this one. Only right’ and that is exactly what this track is. A classic Grime rhythm which is something AJ Tracey does best. His MC’ing skills are of a different class and this track is just as refreshing as it ought to be. After his recent success with his Garage-infused ‘Ladbroke Grove,’ it’s great to hear the independent Rapper spitting like this.
This Soundtrack really is a well crafted piece of work. Each track has its own identity but screams London, fitting so perfectly with the style of the show. Make sure to give it a full listen and watch the show; it’s London’s finest
