Who Is The UK’s Top Dog In Music Now?

After taking a two-year hiatus since the success of his Freshman album 'Psychodrama', Mercury Award winner, Dave, gifted us all with his phenomenal Sophomore album, ‘We’re All Alone In This Together’ – leaving almost everyone in awe.

Dave

There is an on-going debate regarding who the top dogs in the U.K are – this seems to be judged on lyrical ability, along with the popularity of the artists. So, let’s begin with Dave. As mentioned at the start, WAAITT debuted at #1 spot, and that was down to the different emotions that he laid on the table for everyone to behold. Similar to ‘Psychodrama’, WAAITT seems to have the same prolonged theme where Dave seems to be in conversation with a man who is giving him advice at the beginning and ending of a handful of his songs. This theme is accompanied by Dave highlighting the ups and downs of his success in the best possible way he can – storytelling, and he arguably does it better than anyone. The lyrical ability that he possesses at the age of 23 – let's just make that clear, is borderline genius, 8 out of 10 times you may need a thesaurus to comprehend the lyrics. At a young age his talent was appreciated when rap superstar, Drake, offered his services to create the classic 'Wanna Know' remix in 2016 - with accolades from peers that kept rolling in, possibly playing a part for additional motivation to get him to where he is today.

Now, let’s turn to Dave’s possible previous peer turned good friend, Stormzy. Who would’ve thought, from WickedSkengman to having your own wax figure at Madame Tussauds.

Stormzy

The rise of Stormzy has been nothing short of amazing, having two #1 albums (GSAP & HITH) already under his belt, that alone just says it all. Along with the album success, he has been honoured with multiple awards, which include: BET, MOBO and Brits. Most people's real introduction of Stormzy could've been through his comical video for 'Know me from' or 'SHUT UP', songs that instantly put him on everyone's radar. Now, fast-forwarding to the present, he has taken advantage of his fortunes and has been involved in many exciting projects: Merky Fest, Merky books, and his inspirational Stormzy scholarships that help Black Cambridge students.

With all that being said, the hate he continually receives is inconceivable, but success does bring its unwanted critics. His most recent appearance on a song was actually with Dave, featuring on the boastful hit song, 'Clash' – vocalising how far he has come, it's safe to say that he has mega star quality. An achievement that Stormzy could still accomplish is his highly-anticipated HITH world tour – delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and when the time comes, it'll go down in history.

J Hus

Mr. Fanta with no h'ice, J Hus. An enigma for most of his career, without disappointment when it came to his music. The natural born talent that he possesses is arguably better or on par with Dave's; however, the lack of consistency may dispute this statement. Nevertheless, the raw talent is there for everyone to see and admire – like his counterparts, J Hus also has two albums to his name, 'Common Sense' & 'Big Conspiracy', with the latter claiming an impressive #1 spot on the Official Charts without any tours or promotions, is that impressive or very impressive? Hus is an exciting artist, who like Dave, is still yet to reach their full potential. Not many are able to emulate the buzz that he creates, visibly seen when Drake brought him out as a surprise guest at his 2019, London O2 Arena show.

One other thing that makes him stand out is the effortless manner he does everything in, his cheeky lyrics do well to get the crowd going in most situations. As an example, the 'Zinedine Zidane' freestyle. Knowing what he is capable of, he could easily take the crown.

Honourable Mention: Ghetts

Well, where do you even begin with this veteran of the game? 2021 has been his year and no one can say otherwise. The album. 'Conflict Of Interest'. This was one of the best albums to come out of the U.K this year, with part of its success coming from an amazing Sin City inspired album rollout – the same theme being used for the 'Skengman' video which featured, Stormzy, making the anticipation for COI even greater.

Similar to the ageing of wine, his ability continually exceeds expectations without any signs of slowing down anytime soon.

The accolades have been pouring from every angle you could think of, recently being enhanced by his verse on 'In The Fire' – coming from WAAITT, doing all he can to cement his legacy, and achieving this. Following the ongoing recognition, his album has rightfully been shortlisted for the Mercury Prize.

In conclusion, these four artists are some of the best at their crafts and that may be the opinion of many others too. Time and time again, they will prove to everyone why they should be taken seriously, and rightfully so. In the future, expect them all to bring out more timeless heat and eye-opening announcements to the streets that'll leave everyone excited. Now, let us know who you think the top three is, along with an honourable mention.