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At the start of this decade the future of the grime scene looked bleak. Many grime artists who were a part of the genre from its emergence in the early noughties were distancing themselves from it to experiment with more commercial sounds. Also, the likes of artists such as Giggs created a fresh buzz in the underground scene with UK rap which many people naturally gravitated to. Although it never completely faded away, grime’s position within the urban music scene was less dominant than it once was.
Last year however, several events demonstrated a shift in the shape of the music industry in Britain. Kanye West brought out a whole heap of grime artists to perform with him at the Brit Awards. Skepta and Devilman were clashing again. Not only that, but grime artists were having plenty of success in the charts and were being received well in the States without having to dilute their sound. The energy was back and the momentum hasn’t slowed down since. It may have drifted off course for a while but the grime scene is stronger than ever – and it couldn’t have come at a better time.
Similarly to hip-hop, the birth of grime was a result of poor social conditions within inner cities in the UK. The raw, unrefined sound that developed in grime’s early years was a reflection of the grittiness of the environment from which it was raised. Since then, the social landscape of inner cities in the UK, specifically within London, has changed dramatically.
According to a study conducted by Dr Alasdair Rae of the University of Sheffield, the number of deprived areas in London has decreased from 464 in 2004 to 274 in 2015. Although this statistic implies that conditions within the city are improving, the data prompts another topic relating to gentrification in London. Dr Rae believes the figures emphasise the fact that “poorer families are having to move out of inner London boroughs due to housing costs”. The average house price in the capital currently stands at a large sum of approximately £514,000 whilst £192,000 is the average price in England and Wales. Iconic small businesses within certain communities , such as Brixton and Hackney, have also been forced to relocate or close due to the soaring prices of properties in areas undergoing redevelopment.
These situations are not unique to the capital as they are also occurring in other cities across the UK. Despite such changes to inner cities in recent years, the sound of grime today is very much in tune with the underground vibe that emerged in the early noughties. The resurgence of ‘real grime’ is reminiscent of the authentic culture that shaped inner city areas a decade ago. Grime is keeping urban culture alive in a time when much of it is being forced out.
Gentrification is as much a political issue as it is a social one and although the content of grime isn’t explicitly political, its very existence is a political statement. Grime’s aggressive nature completely contrasts with the more reserved and traditional values upheld in Britain. In recent years, the core audience of grime – young people – have been effected by politics and challenges to these changes have not been as persistent enough to reverse them. For example, the student protests of 2010 was a direct response to the announcement that tuition fees were going to rise, which they did, to £9,000 a year. The protest was successful in gaining attention from the media but a sequel of the demonstration has not occurred and the government has continued to pass laws that negatively impact young people.
Through their vocabulary, style and energy, grime artists generally connote a non-conformist attitude and these signs are replicated by their audiences. Because of this, grime has the potential to incite challenges to the system. Additionally, Ghetts’ track ‘Rebel’ and Novelist’s ‘Street Politician’suggest grime has returned with a more political focus that will enable young people to become more aware of current affairs.
Evidently, a lot has changed since the noughties. Having said that, some things have remained the same. Diversity within the entertainment industry is still a massive problem, as exhibited by the Oscars and the Brit Awards in recent weeks.
The talented actor, Idris Elba, made a speech last month in which he expressed the need for more diversity and representation in British films and television shows. The topic of diversity also arose when the nominees for this year’s Brit Awards were revealed. Only three of the nominees were black – and none of which were British.
With many music fans expressing their disgust towards the absence of black British artists with the hashtag #BritsSoWhite, the Brit Award organisers released a statement to address the controversy. They stated that “the artists who are honoured tend to be those who have achieved the very highest levels of success in the charts”. This excuse for excluding black artists is fairly weak as several grime and rap artists achieved high levels of success in the charts without a great deal of promotion. For example, Stormzy’s ‘Shut Up’ peaked at no.8 in the charts, Krept and Konan’s album ‘The Long Way Home’ debuted at no.2 in July last year and their single ‘Freak of the Week’ reached no.9. By failing to acknowledge or award black artists, the Brit Awards is at danger of marginalising young black people even more.
The grime revival, with its growing popularity and achievements, is allowing black artists to inspire young people who may feel misrepresented or under-represented. Following the backlash, Brit Awards bosses have now promised to make the awards ceremony “broadly representative and diverse as possible in line with future social trends”.
As we can see, there’s a lot more to grime than reloads, riddims and raves. Like all other genres, it is a reflection of the society we live in but it also has the potential to influence society too.
I’m not sure what the future holds for the grime scene, but if recent events are to go by, the future looks very promising. Grime originally emerged as an underground subculture but it is well on its way to dominating mainstream culture and entertainment.
Courtney Wynter 