It was never going to be easy. Over the past few months, a bunch of Noisey staff, journalists, artists and friends of Noisey who know their music have sat together to bash out a list of the greatest UK MC talent of all time. The results are going to be revealed in a top 30 countdown this week, running through the pioneers, grafters and the odd enigma who've pushed the limits of British skills on the mic – and that's across grime, UK hip-hop, rap and more.
There are some here who've taken their sound overseas, others who've inspired their local scene, and some who've hopped from one genre to the next with little regard for being boxed in. But everyone featured on the list has some combination of skill and influence that helped them pick up the most votes – even if we had to do a bit of shouting to get there.
We're celebrating homegrown talent all week. And as such, we're not just commending great MCs in the traditional sense – lyrical flow, wordplay, freestyle skills – but bigging up those who've created a legacy, stamped in a cultural mark or paved the way for the new breed.
IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER:
- This is a list based on the votes (and compromises) made by our panel;
- We're not saying it's "correct" or definitive;
- This isn't a popularity contest;
- And it's over to you to weigh in with what you think on social media, in the pub or wherever you tell people your opinions.
To kick things off, here are the first in our countdown. Keep your eyes and ears open as we announce the top ten.
THE GREATEST UK MCs: 11 - 30
11) Rodney P
Starting out in the 80s, the man born Rodney Panton launched into his career as a member of London Posse. He'd go on to support NWA, Mick Jones' Big Audio Dynamite and set up his very own Riddim killa label, leaving his mark as one of the early MCs who pulled dub and reggae influences into his brand of UK rap.
12) Giggs
13) Tricky
"During the culturally conservative mid 90s of Brit Pop," wrote music journalist John Doran, "Tricky represented what it was actually like to be British and living in a city. As his music, fashion, entire aesthetic and philosophy was the product of embracing culture clash - we needed him then to kick against the pricks, as much as we need him back now." Watch Doran's British Masters interview with him below:
14) Swiss (So Solid Crew)
15) Ghetts
16) General Levy
The self-described "six-foot rastaman" went from ragga in his early days, to falling out with the jungle scene in the early 90s and ending up as part of an Ali G punchline thanks to his infamous feature on M Beat's 'Incredible': "'Wicked, wicked jungle is massive' is one of those refrains that you know before you hear," wrote Sam Willis for THUMP, "a sound plugged into our collective consciousness like the riff in Deep Purple's 'Smoke On The Water' and the booming chortle of Brian Blessed."
17) Lethal Bizzle
18) Skibadee
One of the original drum 'n' bass MCs, Skibadee debuted his explosive flow in the mid-90s and basically hasn't stopped since. "I have built my success on always being one step ahead of the rest," he's said. "My career has spanned an amazing 15 years, from the very birth of drum 'n' bass, through to its current status as one of the biggest music genres of the day."
19) Klashnekoff
20) Wretch 32
21) Stevie Hyper D
In his relatively short lifetime, Stevie Hyper D managed to not only come up in the drum 'n' bass, jungle and house worlds but informally earn the title of the inventor of double-time MCing. The Next Step, his posthumous 1999 d'n'b album, is considered one of the genre's first major releases. He died in 1998, aged just 30, leaving behind a legacy that would go on to help proper drum 'n' bass into the mainstream years later.
22) Jehst
23) P Money
24) Stormzy
Stormzy was the first MC that grime gave birth to, and as such, has become the genre's golden child. In the past handful of years, the guy's won two MOBOs, had his track "Shut Up" certified gold, and has performed on stage with Kanye at the BRITs – all before releasing a debut album. But, more than that, Stormzy introduced classic grime culture to a broad British audience who may not have been aware of it previously, and for that, he'll go down in history.
25) Nolay
26) Big Narstie
Big Narstie; king of #base and grime's spirit guide, has been around since day one, and during that time, he's helped bring back the flavour of UKG with Craig David, released some of the greatest freestyles of all time, and is the only human in history to have given us grime covers of Britpop classics. He's essentially a one-man creative machine, getting involved in all the fun shit that grime has ever blessed us with, and becoming a national treasure in the process.
27) Sway
28) Chip
29) Akala
People who've never bought an Akala album have probably watched a viral Facebook video of him spitting truth about colonialism, sat on an evening news programme panel. Others may have seen him read his poetry live. Or there's a chance they've seen watched Charlie Sloth lose it completely over Akala's legendary first Fire in the Booth. He's given new depth to the term "conscious rap" in the UK, using his knowledge as a historian to reflect on British society and the wider world, without being anywhere close to a bore about it.
30) Jammer
RIP our mentions.
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