Dizzee Takes The Top Spot (Again)

The boy in the corner, Dizzee Rascal has done it again. His current single, ‘Dirtee Disco’ clinched the top spot in the singles chart this weekend. The East-Londoner successfully beat B.O.B’s ‘Nothin on You’ featuring Bruno Mars and Iyaz’s ‘Solo’ to the top, making this his fourth UK number one after ‘Dance Wiv Me’, ‘Bonkers’ and ‘Holiday’.  So it seems that 2010 truly is the year for UK music and it’s not even over yet!

Catch Dizzee on the mainstage at Glasto alongside The Gorillaz, Snoop Dogg and Corinne Baily Rae on 25^thJune.

Snoop And Dizzee At Glasto?

According to some reputable sources at The Guardian, Snoop Dogg will be joining this year’s line-up at the festival of mud that is Glastonbury. If this is true Snoop will be the second rapper ever (after Jay-Z) to perform at the prestigious event.  And it gets better – rumours are also flying around that our very own Dizzee Rascal will also be taking to the stage. Other possible acts have been speculated as La Roux, Kate Nash and MGMT with Stevie Wonder confirmed as a one of the headliners. The already sold out concert will be taking place from June 23 to June 27 at Worthy Farm, Sussex.

[Originally written for MTV Wrap Up]

Team UK Has Finally Arrived

Yesterday history was made. I’m not talking award ceremonies but music. Tinie Tempah clinched the number 1 position with his infectious hit Pass Out, beating American heavyweights Rihanna, Timbaland and Alicia Keys.

A few years ago the thought of the UK artists taking the Americans head on in the charts would have been ludicrous, but 2010 has proved that the UK are now holding their own ground. Tinie was also joined in the top 10 by fellow Brits, Wiley and Dizzee Rascal and over in America the foolishness that is Taio Cruz made it to number 1 in the US iTunes charts. We can finally say that UK urban music  has arrived and it’s here to stay.

Official Charts

01. Tinie Tempah – Pass Out
02. Rihanna – Rude Boy
03. Jason Derulo – In My Head
04. Ellie Goulding – Starry Eyed
05. Florence/Dizzee Rascal – You Got The Dirtee Love
06. Alicia Keys – Empire State Of Mind (Part II)
07. Timbaland – If We Ever Meet Again ft. Katie Perry
08. Wiley – Never Be Your Woman ft. Emeli Sande
09. Boyzone – Gave It All Away
10. Cheryl Cole – Parachute

Shout out to @Teamsupreme and @OnceUponAGrime who are ‘championing’ the #TeamUK movement on Twitter. Lol.

Chipmunk – For The Fun Of It Mixtape

Grime MC turned ‘pop star’, Chipmunk  has released a mixtape named For The Fun Of It, presumably for that reason. Chip has come under a lot of fire lately from hardcore grime fans (just like Tinchy Stryder, Wiley and Dizzee Rascal) who believe that getting signed and gaining mainstream popularity has ‘watered down his content’.

For The Fun Of It follows Chipmunk’s F64 (a freestyle) on SBTV where he spoke out to his critics. I guess that this mixtape can only be described as an attempt to further silence sceptics and show them that he hasn’t forgotten his roots!

As far as I’m concerned, it’s inevitable that once UK urban artists get signed they have to ‘dilute’ their sound in order to appeal to a wider market. It’s just fact. The demographic that buy their records, the majority of whom live outside London, can’t relate to the ‘mean streets’ of Hackney, Peckham or Brixton so artists (and their record companies) have to give them something they can buy into. But I do think that artists like Chip, who probably want to maintain some credibility with the ‘urban’ crowd should simply do what the Americans do and put out ‘undiluted’ mixtapes like this, so good on you Chip!

See the tracklisting blow and download it from here.

1. Ace & Vis (Radio 1xtra Rip)
2. She Likes (England 10)
3. Forever
4. Jumeirah Riddem
5. Hottest in the Hood
6. Take Me Back remix (Tinchy Stryder ft. Taio Cruz & Chipmunk)
7. We Got Dem (Tinchy Stryder ft. Chipmunk)
8. Talking On The Tune
9. Sweet Dreams
10. Suck Yourself (N-Dubz ft. Chipmunk)
11. I Get It In ft. Jazz
12. 2010 ft. Wiley
13. Run This Town
14. Day & Night (Kiss Radio Rip)
15. Morning After Dark
16. Be Cool Remix (Wretch 32 ft. Tinie Tempah, Scorcher, Bashy, Sway & Chipmunk)
17. Masseuse (Jai Amore ft. Chipmunk)
18. My Man Remix (Jade Ewen ft. Chipmunk)
19. Rude Boy (Rihanna…I Love This Song)
20. Want Want Want

Also check out Chipmunk’s F64…

CJ Beatz – The Best Decade of UK Street Music Ever [Audio]

CJ Beatz definately went in (road slang for ‘hit the proverbial nail on the head’) with this mix CD of the greatest UK urban tracks of the last decade. CJ Beatz 85 track compilation features club bangers from each year aof the noughties from artists such as So Solid, Dizzee Rascal, Oxide & Neutrino, Boy Better Know, Misteeq, Akala, Fundamental 03, Bashy, Chipmunk and Estelle to name a few.

This CD has my endorsement, it’s definately a time machine to the good old days and i’ve had a few of tracks on repeat already!

Check out the tracklisting below and download it from here.

1. Intro

:: 2000 ::

2. Artful Dodger feat. Craig David – Re-Wind
3. DJ Deekline – I don’t Smoke the Reefer
4. Sweet Female Attitude – Flowers
5. Gods Gift – MC Tribute
6. Lonyo – Summer of Love
7. Mis-Teeq – Why?
8. Oxide & Neutrino – Bound for the Re-Load
9. MC Luck & DJ Neat – Little Bit of Luck
10. So Solid – Oh No

:: 2001 ::

11. The Streets – Has it Come to This
12. Craig David – Fill Me in
13. Daniel Bedingfield – Gotta Get Through This
14. Ms Dynamite – Booo!
15. Maxwell D – Serious
16. The Masters of Ceremony – Do You Really Like it?
17. So Solid- They Don’t Know
18. So Solid – 21 Seconds
19. Roots Manuva – Witness

:: 2002 ::

20. Blak Twang – So Rotton
21. Shy FX – Shake your body
22. Ms Dynamite – It Takes More
23. Ms Dynamite – Put Him Out
24. Fallacy – Groundbreaker
25. Musical Mobb – Pulse X / More Fire Crew – Oi
26. Heartless Crew – Heartless Theme

:: 2003 ::

27. Dizzee Rascal – Fix Up Look Sharp
28. Fallacy feat. Tubby T – Big N Bashy
29. Dizzee Rascal Vs Asher D – Commander B’s NightFlight
30. Dizzee Rascal – I Luv You
31. Donaeo – Bounce
32. Wiley – Eskimo
33. The Endz – Are you really from the Endz?

:: 2004 ::

34. The Streets feat. Donaeo, Kano & Tinchy Stryder – Fit But you know it
35. Kano – P’s & Q’s
36. Wiley – Wot U Call it
37. Lethal Bizzle – Pow
38. Dizzee Rascal – Stand Up Tall
39. KlashneKoff – Murda
40. Swiss – Cry
41. Estelle – 1980

:: 2005 ::

42. Sway – Intro
43. Akala – Roll Wid Us
44. Terri Walker – Oopsie Daisy
45. SLK – Hype Hype
46. Roll Deep – Heat Up
47. Roll Deep – When I’m ere
48. Roll Deep – The Avenue
49. Roll Deep – Shake A Leg

:: 2006 ::

50. Ghetto – Top 3 Selected
51. Akala – Shakespeare
52. Tinchy Stryder – Breakaway
53. Amy Winehouse – Rehab
54. Bashy – Black Boys
55. Fundamental 03 – Playground
56. Corinne Bailey Ray – Put your record on
57. N-Dubz – I Swear

:: 2007 ::

58. Dizzee Rascal – Flex
59. Skepta – Sweet Mother
60. Skepta – Duppy
61. Wiley – Gangsterz
62. Wiley – Bow E3
63. Roll Deep – Celebrate That
64. Benga & Coki – Night / T2 – Heartbroken

:: 2008 ::

65. Giggs – Talkin The Hardest
66. M.I.A. – Paper Planes
67. Chipmunk – Who Are You
68. Sway – F your Ex
69. Wiley – Wearing My Rolex
70. Skepta – Rolex Sweep
71. Estelle – American Boy
72. Tinchy Stryder – Stryderman
73. Dizzee Rascal – Dance Wiv Me

:: 2009 ::

74. Attacca Pesante – Make It Funky For Me
75. Perempay & Dee – Feel it in the Air
76. Egypt & Fuzzy Logic – In the Morning
77. Fr3e – Tribal Skank
78. Gracious Kay / Funky Dee – Show Me Are U Gonna Bang
79. BBK – Too Many Man
80. Lethal Bizzle feat. Donaeo – Go Hard
81. Bashy – Who Wants to be a Millionaire
82. Chipmunk – Diamond Rings
83. Tinchy Stryder – You’re Not Alone
84. Wiley – Take That
85. Donaeo – Party Hard

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