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Writer's pictureUK Underground Rap

3 ARTISTS TO WATCH IN 2021

Once again bringing you some of the best-underrated talent coming out of the UK right now, our new article series aims to highlight some of the smallest artists making the loudest noise.

 

TOG:

Managing to stay relatively stealthy thus far, TOG has taken his time this year to curate an immensely poignant and genuine E.P that cuts through the surplus components of society focusing on the effects of love and heartbreak.

''For me, it's always been about just having fun, learning and pushing myself to try different things'' TOG tells us as he balances pinpointing his sound and the tribulations of uni work. With 1 singular previous multi-genre project released, the young musician has so far been extremely experimental with his work.


Back on August 15th, TOG dropped his alternative trap fueled, heartfelt mini-masterpiece. 'FEMME FATALE' reaches just over 10 minutes in length yet manages to take you on a rollercoaster of emotions through the wavy, sci-fi tinged production and murky lyrical delivery. A personal favourite of mine from this year, with a futuristic kick to it.


Up until hearing this E.P, we were fully unaware of TOG's movements and that is a crime in its self. Opening with a glitchy, almost robotic sounding introduction, the E.P wastes no time in transcending you into a hazy ensemble of trippy production. TOG, to my surprise, actually used 'type beats' for this project yet his chemistry with the instrumentals throughout this tape is truly spectacular for someone so early in their career. This is best heard on the second track 'Coldest Goodbye' where he raps;


''Always switching when we call it quits

why you gotta do me like this?

tell me that you need a little space,

then you pull me right back,

tell me this was all a waste of time,

now you want to rewind''

'The Depths' is a more spaced out riddim with dreamy synths to carry you through as TOG flirts between rapping and singing with his vocals pitch distortedly. The project carries enough surprises to keep you on your toes with beat switch-ups, a variety of flows and unconventional samples; all whilst not sacrificing the laid back and contemplative integral theme that gives 'Femme Fatale' it's own personal lane.


The final track is more cinematic again with a reminiscent feel to it courtesy of an eccentric electric guitar sample from TOG's personal friend and talented guitarist Jimmy Latham that works really well with the track. Wrapping the E.P up by flexing his compelling word-choice and lyrical capabilities, TOG raps a solid verse laced voice effects and quote-worthy bars.

''Femme Fatale was my first go at just focusing in on one sort of sound and being more concise.''

TOG is still laying his foundations, he currently has 'no concrete plans' for releasing another project anytime soon yet t warns us; ''expect it to sound different to the last one''.

Describing his first EP ‘PERSONA’ more like a ''look book'' of his different styles and abilities, TOG is definitely heading in a unique direction with his sounds and one to keep an eye out for in the close future...


 

KINGNOAHLY:

KINGKNOAHLY exploded onto the scene back at the start of last year with the release of slick-talking single 'RAMBO'. Yet it was his recent album 'INDIGO CHILD' that caught our major attention. With stand out tracks 'Level', 'Cozart's Interlude' 'Matrix' and 'Running'. Indigo Child manages to wriggle into its own little world with the distinctive melody choices, choice of funky yet intense bass-heavy beats and Kingnoahly's choppy, non-stop flows.


Kingnoahly's music live must be absolutely crazy. The energy injected into each track is enough to blow the roof off any venue.

After announcing his forthcoming project 'Sanctum Hills', last week KingNoahly dropped the first single lifted from the album titled 'FREAKS' featuring DOPEBOIAVI. After speaking with Noah and gaining a deeper understanding of how rapidly the song materialised, it makes it all the more interesting.


During the quarantine, working with closely with his producer and friend '15am' via facetime, Kingnoahly began scheming his next project. After hearing a snippet of an instrumental 15 was working on, Noah had it sent over, a verse and hook recorded and the vocals sent back over within 20 minutes. 15am came through, cooking up another unique, 'dark yet melodic' beat to take us on a sporadic journey through 'Cozart's' mind. The beat subtly crescendos, Noah matching with his flow as he spits his trademark, rapid-fire bars with precision.


He has a stunning ability to deliver razor-sharp fast-paced bars whilst maintaining rave level sonics and this is all thanks to the flow that he has created, Kingnoahly is another artist that we can't wait to see live at a performance as soon as the country goes back to normal.


Talking on his most recent track to UKUR, King Noahly told us:

''The original beat was around 1 minute and 45 seconds so he extended it for me and made it 2 minutes and 55 seconds. My original idea for Freaks was to have 2 hooks (one at the start and one at the end) with one long verse, but I decided that I wanted to let one of my friends shine over this beat with me.''

Initially, Noah reached out to his close affiliate Fimiguerrero for the guest feature on the track, but unfortunately, a clashing in release dates with his upcoming single meant Noah planned to release 'FREAKS' solo. After talking with his friend from across the pond about unrelated things, he offered the spot to talented American trap artist Dopeboiavi.


Dopeboi lays an equally blistering yet slightly more melodic verse. Clearly, someone who can work under pressure, Dopeboi had his bars back recorded and back over within 30 minutes so there was still enough time to mix and master the track as well as meet the scheduled release date.


We'll be staying in contact with Kingnoahly to bring you as much Santcum Hills content as possible in the near future, we can't wait to hear more about that project soon. For now, if you're not already, be sure to get familiar with Indigo Child and run up Freaks via the links below!


 

CP:

Although he's been rapping since he was15 years old, CP has only just started dropping his music with the purpose of making it more seriously. After spending an unsettled time in and out of jail across a 6 year period, CP began dropping a series of precise and tentative freestyles on Instagram to tease his intentions of new music; kicking it off with a hardcover of Klashnekoff's classic riddim 'Murda'. Speaking with UKUR, CP said;

''I think it has really shaped my music and sound.''

Now releasing music on Spotify, CP is showing some 'real rap' potential with honest bars depicting his past life and future targets. He's heavy with the double entendres and wordplay type lyrics, very reminiscent of some old school hip-hop music. I think CP brings a very individual perspective to the table and yet still manages to cover a huge range of topics and phrases with ease.

We've added our favourite tracks of his to our official Spotify playlist. The deep 'Reflection', a profound verse over Big Krit's 'The Vent' and 'Tunnel Vision'. He actually mentioned on a recent Instagram live video that we may soon be hearing a solo version of his hard-hitting track 'Tunnel Vision' so be sure to keep an eye out for that too.

Just last week we were gifted with his most recent drop 'COLD COMFORT' featuring fellow Stoke-On-Trent artist Lady Pulizzi. A conceptual track with relatable themes, 'Cold Comfort' reveals CP's softer side as he touches on the modern-day struggle of juggling a money grind and home life. Lady Pulizzi presents the opposing point of view as the partner in the same situation.

Speaking to UKUR about the track CP told us:

''The general idea of the song was mine, I wanted to get both a male and female's perspective on a situation that’s very common in this generation, I knew I needed a female artist for my idea so I put it across to Lady Pulizzi, she smashed the hook and then both verses flowed from there and the song was born.''

CP has the potential to focus his bars onto any sound, we're looking forward to hearing more freestyles and hopefully some form of project in the near future too! We'll be covering his newest work but in the meantime be sure to check out his socials and Spotify!


 

Words by: Jack Slade @jsld_____ / @sladeisdead

Follow us on Instagram @uk_undergroundrap

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