Why Do We Ignore British Rap? - Part One: What You’ve Missed

Sunday marked another year of the Grammy awards, and inevitably, controversy ensued. Tyler, the Creator was frustrated with his album IGOR being placed in the rap category. Lana Del Rey fans protested Billie Eilish’s sweep of all the major categories. 7 by Lil Nas X was nominated for album of the year (okay, this may have been a personal controversy).

Despite all that, this was a pretty good year for the Grammy’s, at least comparatively. Neither Bruno Mars nor Adele won Album of the Year. There was no Kendrick Lamar snub. No one working for the Grammys said anything outrageous about women (at least during the ceremony).

The rap categories have especially improved in the past few years. This is in part due to a review committee being assigned to the genre in 2017. Having a genre-based committee has fended off the Iggy Azalea and Wiz Khalifa nominations that plagued past years.

The nomination process is a bit odd, starting the calendar at the end of the summer instead of following the calendar year (this year’s entry period was only 11 months). This makes it hard to associate traditional album of the year picks with the committee’s choices. Even on the Grammy calendar, this past year was a weak one in terms of rap Grammy mainstays.

Besides IGOR, many of these albums, song-to-song, are very traditional hip-hop albums. I’m sure the committee patted themselves on the back for nominating Tyler’s weirdo work, but the job wasn’t done.

There was no Drake, Kendrick Lamar or Eminem release (yes, they still like him). J Cole dropped a label release of collaborations, but no solo project. This led to many fresh faces in the best rap album category. Tyler won of course, but we saw nominations for 21 Savage, YBN Cordae, Meek Mill (who is becoming a committee favorite), and J Cole’s Dreamville collaborative album. Many of these are good albums, IGOR was a genre-bending work that deserved its win, Lost Boy was a truly impressive debut that followed enough traditional rap conventions to work with this committee, and it was great to see 21 Savage be rewarded for what is definitely his best work to date. Despite the amount of quality on display, there’s a worrying trend here. Besides IGOR, many of these albums, song-to-song, are very traditional hip-hop albums. I’m sure the committee patted themselves on the back for nominating Tyler’s weirdo work, but the job wasn’t done.

In a year where big names surrendered the spotlight, a certain output repeatedly impressed, British rap. We’re a few years past hip hop’s British invasion, led by Skepta’s Konnichiwa and Stormzy’s debut Gang Signs & Prayer. Skepta might be the only artist who’s carved a spot in domestic rap culture, but American rap ears are more aware than ever of the UK’s grime style. It’s an abrasive genre, and many listeners will have already made their decision one way or another on it.

Unfortunately, those decisions can hover over all of Britain’s rap offerings. UK rappers are, by influence, very technically sound. Grime helped shape the skill set of many of the rappers that are appearing in England today, cultivating the ability to rap over high-intensity instrumentals and sharpening rappers’ fast-paced flow to fit those beats. This past year marked a notable success for the post-grime era, and some of the best albums this year brought those honed skills to new soundscapes.

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