Steven Louis checks in on the latest UK drops during his recent trip to London, offering a curated look at the sounds currently shaping the scene. Featuring new music from Pozer, 163Margs, and a compelling Dipset flip, this edition of The Rap-Up captures the energy of the British underground.
Pozer and the Croydon Sound
Imagine touching down in London and seeing Pozer out in Los Angeles. This is why “Chicken Shop Date” got cancelled. I’m going to let it slide because Croydon’s chosen one has a hit here. His flow wraps perfectly around a sealed AAAA scheme. The beat, produced by Bg!, KDj and Ra Tha Gawd, splices hallway saxophone wails between the ketamine club up top and the kickboxing gym in the basement. All three levels get blasted with carmine.
I thought that “tryna lick down one of these dunces” was the hardest line. That was until he says “my grandma told me I’m a tough head” two bars later.
163Margs and the Nottingham Vibe
While my countrymen mourn the U.S. Open’s degradation, 163Margs has the Nottingham baddies smashing overheads from his trap house. The full “Serena Williams” video drops next week, but the studio single is already laced up.
While Pozer throws jabs on the last entry, Margs counters on this one with hooks from the semi-crouch. He’s steely without stiffness, insulated by Kosfinger’s tight snare. This is the rare arrangement that demands face covers and high knees at the same time, with a Nico O’Reilly salute for Manchester Derby weekend.
JayaHadADream and the Cambridge Perspective
I don’t care about rap’s grammar conventions—all that went out the window when my teenage self heard Common say “her head was gooder than the music.” Still, it’s awesome that Cambridge’s JayaHadaDream uses slew in closing out this verse.
Other goodness abounds in the 59-second loosie. The shot from Canopy Visuals has sedative, seductive color grading. The beat by Crafty893 is frozen velvet. Jaya sneers at “the dirty buggers, the stupid pricks” with S-tier intransigence. She calls out to Gaza, connecting with both her Irish-Jamaican lineage and her decision to quit teaching criminology.
Reflections on Dizzee Rascal and Tiny Boost
The Boy in da Corner has traveled a long and complicated path. More than two decades ago, Dylan Mills broke through as the youngest Mercury prize winner to date. Without public remorse and reparation on his end, I cannot endorse Dizzee Rascal as the emcee or protagonist of We Want Bass. I just want to acknowledge the album’s dual producers, who deserve better work in the years to come.
Finally, we come to Tiny Boost, who honors the Heatmakerz flip with double-barbell delivery. It might be novel to me right now, but hopping out of the Rolls Royce from the right-side driver’s seat just looks so much cleaner.