U.K. Archives - FUXWITHIT

Across The Pond: Munya (Unknown P)

Paul Varndell — Mon, 25 Jan 2021 14:00:55 +0000

If there was one good thing to come out of 2020, it was British-Zimbabwean Comic/Rapper, Munya Chawawa. His characters such as the posh drill rapper Unknown P, started by featuring in Instagram sketches & now they’re in TV adverts and signing to major record labels. So what sets Munya aside from other musician-based comics? To start with – his work ethic. Munya has said himself that sometimes his creativity leaves him losing sleep. If there’s a headline, Munya has already twisted it into a hilarious sketch that pokes fun in a much-needed satire way. Munya’s creativity was first tested at a role he once had, creating content as quick as it happened on air. In an Instagram story, he relayed that every opportunity has a reason for itself down the line and now, he’s pumping out gems on the daily. His many characters allow him to bounce off himself within his sketches, whilst highlighting important issues in a funny and clever way. However, Munya isn’t just a funny man – he can really rap too.

Unknown P (who may or may not have beef with Unknown T) is not only laugh out loud funny, but also one of the best lyricists to drop a Daily Duppy from GRM Daily in 2020. Punchlines come quick to most comedians but to execute it in such a relevant way to the current U.K. drill scene, playing with the latest gossip as always, takes quite the skill. So much skill, that Atlantic Records recently signed Munya’s Unknown P character to the label, with a debut single released at the end of 2020. After a tough year for all, Munya brings light to the madness and a laugh to the music. Here’s just three of his must-see videos to get you started.

Daily Duppy

Arguably one of the best of 2020. The ultimate stage for a comic to deliver his punchlines, whilst they appear visually for the audience to see. Munya certainly took the opportunity to make it his own and show how good a lyricist he really is with lines like “the steaks are high cause I’m in the shard eating fillets” (playing on ‘The Shard’ Monument in London). Every line has a backstory and with each watch you catch another gem.

Ain’t It Different (Sketch)

As with many of the parodies Unknown P has created – the Headie One, AJ Tracey and Stormzy collab comes with originality and lyrics that you may even prefer to the original. To parody a Number 2 single and pull it off to such a degree is quite the achievement. Who else could say “Never been on quidditch pitches, but I’m always chasing snitches?” – Nobody.

Piers Morgan

After a rocketing start to Unknown P’s career, the debut single was always going to be one to behold. The chorus is funny, catchy and clever. The beat feels posh, yet still drill – somehow. The video is absolutely ridiculous. It really amounts to everything you would want from an Unknown P track. The start of a prospering drill career for the graduate no doubt.

2021 is Munya Chawawa’s year. Everything is for the taking. With growing fandom, his TV appearances are becoming more and more regular, his Instagram is getting ever more popular and his talent never ceases to amaze. Whatever the comic creates this year, it’s bound to be brilliant. Make sure to follow his social media’s to keep up to date with all of his work & keep your fingers crossed that maybe we’ll get an Unknown P body of work this year.

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Headie One Drops Genre Defining Album ‘EDNA’

Paul Varndell — Thu, 15 Oct 2020 02:24:31 +0000

Headie One has just dropped what may be the UK album of the year… in October. Fans who have been highly anticipating EDNA the new album by one of Drill’s finest, will not be disappointed. This project is refined excellence and has every claim to be UK album of the year. With so many greats to compare to, there’s a reason why Headie kept this one waiting, fine tuning every angle of the album until it was a rounded masterpiece and he’s achieved exactly that. On its way to his first UK Number 1 Album, it’s set to break records for the artist and rightfully so. Here’s a breakdown of some of the stand out tracks… of which there’s many.

‘Teach Me’ kicks off the album in Headie’s classic ‘Ad-Lib’ style based flow. When the kick finally hits, the hype is already flowing through your veins. Throwing in his differing styles of vocal, tailing off some of his fast deliveries with a sung melody fits perfectly on this song with lyrics that feel heartfelt. Lyrics that feel like Headie took his time writing them, with nothing rushed. Every couple of bars you catch a gem like “they said that I couldn’t, took away the N, T and Apostrophe” which fits so nicely in the flow of the song. A great way to start off the album, showcasing Headie’s vast talent.

‘Bumpy Ride’ features M Huncho, who also recently has had plenty of success alongside the likes of Dutchavelli. Headie made a great call bring him onto this style of beat, it’s perfect for him to smash the chorus. This short and sweet track is a hit. Headie rhymes his whole second verse with the same structure, proving how good he is with his wordplay and when Huncho comes in you want to drop the top and raise the roof. This is definitely a track that could hit the charts as a single.

‘Triple Science’ follows in a more classic to Headie One way. The Drill beat’s sub is wobbling and gliding all over the place, the reversed melody has a great hook and Headie is spitting at 100mph. If you haven’t got a screw face listening to this track’s chorus alone then you’ve not got the track loud enough. As well as being a hard tune, the track would be an autobiography if you read the lyrics without any beat to them. Headie’s storytelling and lyrical content is effortless on a beat that most rappers would just write a catchy chorus to and be done with it. This is class.

‘The Light’ has a similar feel to ‘Triple Science’ and the ‘Only You Freestyle’ with Drake in terms of beat and flow. However Headie leaves room for the atmosphere of the track, especially on the chorus. “My X on my back, is only cause I’m in off white.” Every lyric stands out from the rest which isn’t necessarily something Headie does all too often given his ability to spit fast in different rhythms but with this track it just feels right to. More excellence.

‘Princess Cuts’ is one of the few mainstream tracks, along with the aptly titled ‘Mainstream’, ‘You/Me’, ‘Everything Nice’ and ‘Cold’. Out of the bunch, it feels like the one most likely to hit the masses in the right way, possibly because of the collaboration that has worked so well before. Young T and Bugsey’s smash global hit ‘Dont Rush’ featured Headie and now its time to repay the favour. This is a big hit and the duo nail the chorus. Definitely one for the clubs.

‘Hear No Evil’ may be the most anticipated track since the track list came out. With a Future feature, it could have been a short finesse from the massive star, but this feels like a proper collaboration. Future delivers, but Headie may even outshine him. Headie’s differing vocal styles over the beat intertwine so beautifully and Future adds that classy touch in a way that brings this whole song together. One of the best songs on the album.

‘Try Me’ is not the first time we’ve heard Skepta and Headie collab but this track was definitely saved for a reason. First of all, this may be one of the best Skepta verses in a long while. Secondly, this beat is incredibly dark and interesting, appealing to a wide range of audiences including none other than Kevin Durant who said ‘they left earth’. Thirdly, it’s Headie. He doesn’t miss at this point.

These tracks are just touching on the surface of how great the album actually is. ‘F U Pay Me’ is a quirky beat with an amazing feature from Ivorian Doll who is set to do big things this year and Aitch goes back to back with Headie in a battle of the lyrics which too close to call. ‘Therapy’ is a beautiful release of emotions from Headie that we haven’t really seen before as well. Top to bottom this album is a smash and deserves every bit of success it gains. It could really define the shape and sound of UK rap for the foreseeable future. Thank you Headie.

Headie One · EDNA

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Skepta, Chip and Young Adz Will Keep You Up All Night With ‘Insomnia’

Paul Varndell — Sun, 29 Mar 2020 01:47:00 +0000

In a time where the world needs a pick me up, three of the U.K.’s heavy hitters come together to drop a surprise collaborative album. Skepta, Chip and Young Adz are all well established and successful artists in their own right. While Skepta and Chip have collaborated a number of times in the past, Young Adz is an interesting add to the duo that would normally be spitting over grime beats together. Young Adz, being one half of D Block Europe, is no stranger to chart success. However, their sound shares influences from the more American style auto-tune rap so at a first glance, this collaboration could be very interesting.

In a recent Across The Pond on Chip, we mentioned that he was working on new material but was going to retire soon. Speaking to Apple Music, he stated that Skepta and him had always talked of writing an album but it’s been 10 years and they haven’t. However this time Skepta said “No, I’m serious man, and we need to get Young Adz on a couple of tunes too.” After meeting up the next day and some heavy studio sessions, Insomnia was born.

Despite the intro hilariously being the last song on the album, it sets the tone and texture of this album delightfully well. The beat definitely has that American trap sound to it, but it still feels like it was made in the U.K., albeit from the signature flows the trio roll with, but also the rawness of the style. These three had a clear vision of what needed to come out of this and made it look effortless, despite the album being so quickly written and featuring a variety of styles. That’s what this intro outlines.

On a first run through of the album, it’s hard to pick which particular tunes you want to hear again right away, you may just want to keep the album on loop. There’s tracks that belong in a club and then there’s tracks like ‘Golden Brown’ which has influences of Jazz and ‘High Road’ where you really have to just sit back and take in the message. On ‘Waze’ Chip says “If three man try link up and do an album it’s not gonna sound like this,” and he couldn’t be more right. Each rapper’s style has its own place in every track and apparently there was “no pens, no writing down, just straight off the top” according to Chip; true talent. ‘Sin City’ is a track which most Chip fans probably never thought they’d hear him spit on, yet he executes like he was born to do it. This album is a great listen and definitely something fresh for the U.K. rap scene right now.

spotify:album:3BZyfvmDgZFXqCGJpYt7ES

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Across The Pond: Chip

Paul Varndell — Sun, 01 Mar 2020 14:48:47 +0000

Chip Diddy Chip is one of Grime’s true OGs, despite only being 29 years of age. The Tottenham lyricist first started rapping as a child, when he heard the likes of Dizzee Rascal and Wiley popping off on Private Radio, right when Grime was first taking shape. At 13, he was paying £20 a session to write with his friends in the studio, which became the start of something huge. After he put a track out called ‘Who Are You?’ in 2006 at just 16, it reached new heights in the underground and his name began circling. By 2007, a young Chipmunk and Ice Kid were brought onto Tim Westwood’s Radio Show by none other than Wiley himself. Tim had a huge platform and still to this day is hugely responsible for helping some of the scene’s greats, but this particular freestyle is now considered legendary status. Chip went through some time on the charts after being catapulted into the main stream with a deal at Sony, landing him a number 1 with his track ‘Oopsy Daisy’ and even collaborated with Chris Brown on a track called ‘Champion’. However, after leaving his deal at Sony with some Mobo Awards in his pocket and a whole load of talent under his belt, he resigned with T.I.’s ‘Grand Hustle’ label and dropped the name to just ‘Chip’ as per his new labelmate’s advice.

Chip’s story is one of twists and tails, but after years of major label work at such a young age, he decided the best route would be to go independent and form his own label for the release of his clothing and music, ‘Cash Motivation’ or ‘Cash Motto’. The Believe And Achieve EP series that followed featured BBK’s Jammer, Stormzy, Kano, and Wretch 32, to name but a few top Grime MC’s. It was the start of a new era for one of the most talented MC’s the U.K. has to offer. Chip has been undeniably one of the greatest lyricists ever since his Westwood Freestyle. Despite working with major labels and some fans saying he “went Pop,” no one can deny this man’s raw talent. Ever since his independence, Chip has dropped some of the hardest verses of his career and appears to be in a truly comfortable place, as one of Grime’s best. His story is fascinating and his discography is endless, but here are three absolute must-listen tracks and THAT freestyle.

Chip / Wiley / Ice Kid Freestyle

One look at all three of these acts and you can see just how far back this is. 2007 was the birth of Chip and this freestyle had a huge part to play. Westwood was helping pioneer many young artists into the limelight and when the stage was set, who better to turn up and spray lyrics than Chip Diddy Chip.

Champion feat. Chris Brown

At nearly 10 years of age, it’s definitely a throw back. However, not many artists at the time or even now could say they have a collaboration with Chris Breezy. A more mainstream Chip, but even at this young age his lyrical capabilities were shining through.

One Take

Rude Kid’s One Take Beat was originally for a Ghetts tune, but just like the OG days, every Grime rapper wanted to hop on it. Chip was of course one of them and the product is truly for the barrers out there. With lyrical content and wordplay that is both catchy and delivered effortlessly, it’s all too natural for Chip.

Hear Dis feat. Stormzy

When Bike Mike and Chip go bar for bar, you know it’s going to be a huge tune. No chorus, no hook, just straight rhymes. This song was in amongst a set of disses Chip had been throwing towards Yungen, another U.K. Rapper, but this one even made it to Radio 1 playlisting. The beat is too tough and it allows both artists to syncopate their flows around it, amounting to one fantastic collaboration.

Chip is still doing his own thing, currently releasing with his own Cash Motto label to this day. His Instagram hints new music is on the way, but these days he’s an illusive character and keeps below the limelight. In a recent set of tweets he stated, “I will retire from rap completely by 35. Truth be told… I’m gonna go harder in these last 6 years than I have ever… Do you know why I rapped this whole time? Escapism.” He goes on to mention that he never turned to drugs and music was his way of dealing with his demons. A heartfelt message which also suggests we could be seeing a lot more new Chip coming than previously thought, we shall await eagerly.

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