ON THE LINE – The New Era: The Return of The ‘Rap Show(s)’

So last time I checked in, with my ‘End of an Era: What’s Next for BBC’s ‘The Rap Show’ article, the BBC’s Radio 1, and 1Xtra, Rap Show had no host and previous host, Charlie Sloth, was laying low after getting fired from the BBC. Well a fair bits changed since then.

In November the BBC announced the new host of the Radio 1, and 1Xtra, Rap Show, Tiffany Calver, who was coming over from KissFresh and had previously produced a mix for Drake’s OVO Sound Radio! Oh, and did I mention, she’s the Rap Show’s first female host (something every blog and site touched upon, but it’s 2019, so sex shouldn’t be a big deal. SHE’S A DJ. END OF.!)

Tiffany’s debut show was broadcast on January 5th and was titled ‘The New Era’ (can I just throw in that my article, from 3 months before, was called ‘The End of an Era’! Coincidence? I’ll just leave that here) and featured a nice mix of new, and classic, tracks (it opened with Jay-Z’s, stone cold classic, ‘P.S.A’ for god sakes!!!). It was pretty dope and gives hope for the shows future!

On the flip side of things Charlie Sloth returned to announce his new show with Apple’s Beats 1, ‘The Charlie Sloth Rap Show’, just over a week ago in a move half the world already knew about before it was announced but it was still BIG regardless. His ‘Fire in The Booth’ segment was coming back too and, on January 19th, his first show aired with the UK’s Ambush, Headie One, K-Trap and Blade Brown holding it down on the returning FITB! Charlie still holds the UK down, big time, and proved it with his new worldwide platform!!!

So 3 months ago we had no national ‘Rap Show’ and now we have two (technically Charlie’s show is regarded as ‘worldwide’, but in this case, I’ll put it under ‘national’ as it’s available in the UK)!!! Not bad at all!!!

It’ll be interesting to see how Tiffany will make her show different from Charlie’s. I say this because Charlie has an established brand, with FITB, so what will Tiffany produce to compete (that’s if she even does)? Who knows and who cares because what I do know is that the ‘Rap Show’ hasn’t just returned but now we have a choice of two and that’s good for not just the audience but for up and coming artists to get heard!!!

Side note – Shout out Westwood as well who is still holding it down every Saturday night (for 4 hours!!!) on Capital XTRA! He maybe in his 60’s but he’s still the hardest in the game!!!

Bean Lebouc

Hope Dealers – Fire in The Booth (1Xtra Video)

Can their really be room for Gospel Drill in the world of Hip-Hop? Well after listening to South London’s Hope Dealers the answer is definitely yes!

The Dealers stopped by Charlie Sloth’s Saturday Night Rap Show on BBC 1Xtra and Radio One to do something I’d never believed possible, spit the word of god over some banging drill instrumentals! And better yet still not once did they come across as preachy which sealed the deal for posting this up!

A real eye opener that anyone can do whatever they want to do in this day and age! They also kept it grimy at some points which prove you can praise both the lord and the streets!

If your looking for something a bit different from the UK Hip-Hop scene I would highly recommend checking this out!

Check the video here – Hope Dealers – Fire in The Booth (1Xtra Video)

Also hit them up on Soundcloud here – Hope Dealers on Soundcloud

Litty Lightz – Fire In The Booth (1Xtra Video)

At 13 years old I was making mix-tapes with my best mate hoping that one day I would get some kind of recognition and really studying the game, in general, to understand everything about it! Litty Lightz just dropped a Fire in the Booth, on Radio 1 and 1Xtra, at the same age!!! DAMN!

The 13 year old Grime/Hip-Hop artist, from London, dropped by Charlie Sloth’s ‘Saturday Night Rap Show’ to rip up the mic and show why he’s one to keep an eye on this year!

Also, half way through, Litty gets real about the recent rise in knife and gun crime before getting deep on his final verse about witnessing his brother getting stabbed at 6 years old! Knowledge is power and this kid is using this platform to get his message out! Big respect to Litty!

Check the video here – Litty Lightz – Fire In The Booth (1Xtra Video)

Also follow his on Twitter – Litty Lightz on Twitter

Birmingham Grime Icons ENR Twinz prep new music

No strangers to the music business the dynamic duo behind Birmz Is Grime
Earl and Reiss (ENR) have made a strong name for themselves as producers within the Midlands Grime Scene, from running multiple recording studios, sound recording and production for SOX, Jaekay and many other.