Eve Da Silva explains why British rappers are on a par with their American counterparts…
fresh and addictive | social commentators | beyond record company politics

Fresh and Addictive
When I first heard Sway’s album This Is My Demo on a long haul flight to South Africa, I was instantly impressed and knew I had stumbled across something innovative, fresh, and addictive. The last time I was this impressed was when I first heard Kanye West’s Late Registration, and to be honest, I was a little surprised that British hip-hop could make me feel this way. Well, I had so much to learn. British rappers can compete with their American counterparts because for the most part, the ones who succeed have an intelligent, savvy approach to their music and the industry. Don’t get me wrong, some of the American hip-hop fat cats are there for a reason; Kanye, Pharrell, Dre, and Jay-Z to name a few. But what exactly cuts all these artists above the rest? Well, whatever it is that these artists; to take just two British counterparts – Akala and Sway – have it too.
Social Commentators
Firstly, for those of you who may not know a lot about hip-hop there are different genres within hip-hop. You all know 50 Cent and the plethora of hip-hop influenced pop-style, club hits. The lyrical content of this genre is fairly predictable; it is misogynistic, commercial and very likely to refer to either prison (I’m not mentioning names here… ‘Cuz I’m locked up they won’t let me out’) or various parts of female anatomy; ‘Shake it, grind it, ain’t you stacked? He sure wouldn’t mind hitting that from the back.’ Now don’t get me wrong, I have no problem with this more obviously commercialized rap. The lyrics can be taken with a pinch of salt and if you want, you can ignore them altogether and simply enjoy the beats. But if you are looking for something with a little more integrity, then you should probably refer to hip-hop artists who are, as it were, going back to the beginnings of rap. In other words, social commentators, who are just as concerned with their lyrical content as they are with the background beats. This is exactly what you will find in some of British hip-hop’s up and coming stars. They have developed their own style, resisting the temptation to adopt American clichés in their music. Many other national hip-hop styles are simply not as effective because they can’t seem to stop themselves from adopting American slang, topics, or even worse, accents. UK artists are UK and proud of it.

Akala, however, paradoxically reminds me of American rappers like Jay-Z and Kanye West because of his willingness to be innovative. Having won a Mobo award for Best Hip-Hop last year, Akala is skilled at incorporating other music forms into his own. He counts the Red Hot Chili Peppers as one of his major influences and his hit ‘Shakespeare’ is a slowed down dirty guitar rendition of the Tomcraft trance hit ‘Loneliness’. His own explanation for this is that hip-hop is meant to sample, mix and pastiche the best from other genres. In his own words the genre “was once, not that long ago, the most charismatic, enigmatic, energetic, lyrically creative music on the planet”. His approach, not unlike the approach of other excellent hip-hop artists like Pharell is a way of re-infusing hip-hop with the diversity and energy that makes it so charismatic. For Akala it has elevated his music to a level that allows it to be both marketable and of creative value at the same time.

Beyond Record Company Politics
Both Akala and Sway have maintained a large sense of autonomy from corporate record company politics. Akala is vehement in his opinions about commercial rap. As he states in the opening lines of his online biography; “The streets gave birth to hip-hop, and the streets are where it lives. But the corporate world stole rap. Now Akala is stealing it back.” Sway remarkably won the 2005 MOBO award, also for Best Hip-Hop, running against extremely well marketed artists like 50 Cent and The Game without even having released an album through a record label. In the culture of overnight celebrity, it is refreshing to see rappers who have dedicated themselves to their music and who refuse to sacrifice their artistic integrity. This integrity shines in through their lyrical content. Listen to any British hip-hop hit and you will find ironic social comment, from the digs The Streets make at dating culture in ‘Don’t Mug Yourself’ to the inanity of discrimination The Mitchell Brother’s highlight in their song ‘Harvey Nics’.

What more can I say? British rappers can compete with their American counterparts because they are skilled and they are original. We may not hear Akala in Loveshack (in fact the DJ hasn’t heard of him) or Sway when Westwood comes to town; but that is because for the most part British rappers are not interested in ‘everybody in the club getting tipsy’ so that you can’t really hear what they are saying. They have something to say, and they deliver it with wit and style over some great beats.

So if you haven’t done so already give Akala’s album, It’s Not a Rumour and Sway’s album, This Is My Demo a listen. Also, just becuase I wouldn’t want you to miss out on these great tracks, check them out too – Kano – ‘Nite Nite’, TY – ‘Wait a Minute’ and some classics that you should have heard; Dizzee Rascal – ‘Fix Up Look Sharp’, Estelle – ‘1980’, So Solid Crew – ‘21 Seconds’ and Lethal B – ‘Uh Oh’.

Eve Da Silva