Do British Urban Artists Need Validation From America? - KANYE FT SKEPTA BRITS 2015

[@Phil1994a]

i agree with the girl tbh and i don't care about sales, beck only sold 330,000 copies compared to beyonce yet won album of the year. skepta should have been at the brit awards, it's the award show in the UK, skepta should have performed tbh. Im tired of us being "greatful" skepta has been in this music business since 2001/2002.

[@jamkillumi]

This.

[@stopcommentingshit]

I feel Like an American rapper can get love in the uk faster than an English rapper

[@Drknoble]

Yall in the UK are really trippin if you're saying that Sam Smith & Ed Sheeran are urban music acts. This is pure whitewashing. There is nothing urban about Sam Smith, his music sounds like Josh Groban.

[@DavidRichardson95]

I like Sam Smith but I agree with you. He's like the George Michael/Rick Astley of this decade. But he's now part of the third British invasion of soul music (not to exclude Estelle, Marsha Ambrosius, Daley to name a few) since Adele is taking a lengthy break to raise her child. Because here in the US, R&B and soul music are not in their prime as of now. And of course, All of the Urban UK artists were influenced by American R&B, soul, funk, dance and hip-hop music. Plus he got a major co-sign by Mary J. Blige (whose last album recorded and produced in the UK went largely unnoticed) and Beyoncé. Beverley Knight, MNEK, Shift K3Y, A*M*E, Ella Eyre, John Newman, Jamelia, and Rudimental (all of whom I enjoy listening to) are a little more urban than Sam. Sam is the Quintessential male of British R&B for now. But I get your point though.

[@Drknoble]

Sam Smith doesn't sing like R&B/soul nor are his beats r&b/soul. The same goes for Ed Sheeran. I know what r&b sounds like, and they aren't period.

[@Drknoble]

If start cosigning Sam Smith as r&b then josh groban is r&b too? Not on my watch

[@CallMeFemi]

Snips should've been on this debate

[@jamkillumi]

yup, he usually hits the nail on the head.

[@CallMeFemi]

jamkillumi dats right

[@breea07]

Kye is right. There is levels to this shit and Kanye is waaay beyond Skepta. To give him the mic would be like on Xfactor when they finally get to sing with their idols. Everyone has to pay their dues and Kanye did too when he was just in the background rockin with Jay. It would have made no sense to have Skepta and crew up there with mics.

[@destinedigwe]

The problem with the Brits is it is not representative of music in the UK as a whole.Its not just Grime that wasn't represented British Punk a huge genre of indie music, electropop,indie-pop, new rave etc. Instead it is a competition where the most popular artist wins rather than a celebration of British music as a whole. Why should we seek validation from America when our own country won't validate us.

[@Drknoble]

I'm from the US, so my perspective on why Grime hasn't blown is because the sound isn't good enough. And by that I mean the beats, melodies, club bangers. Also to get big in the US you have to go to the US scene and grind like Slick Rick, Beatles, Rolling Stones, etc

[@youngali505]

Foreal

[@skay6205]

beatles and rolling stones are white. white people like and buy anything a white person does.

[@redkem80]

Why should Skepta perform at the Brits? He tried to go commercial, it was shit music and realised that IMO. Now Skepta is making music true to his identity, and is regaining credibility for it. Also, got to laugh at these Americans saying "Grime is Hip Hop" - No it's not, Grime is Grime. Hip Hop is Hop. If you REALLY want to credit something for starting all this, it's the Reggae/Dancehall/Toasting culture you need to thank!

[@MarcLondonTV]

hmmmm, so the only person who made sense was Lily Mercer, the scene is known by the americans. tbh the call wasn't made directly from Kanye but from Virgil who has more of the relationship with both Kanye and Skepta. Virgil is doing more for our grime scene then Kanye bringing out Skepta and co. This is not to say that Kayne, Drake, or even ASAP Mob's co-sign isnt a big deal, Drake has put Skepta in the credits thanking him and other artists for helping to create 'IYRTITL' mixtape/album. They are all helping to make the scene bigger and more known to their fanbase. As for the Brits, they dont know or care about the 'urban' scene for them to allow an 'urban' artist to perform or even be shortlisted to be nominated. Skepta's album will breakthrough, and you lot need to relax with Tinie being big in America no one cares for his pop crap like that...where is Snips in the debate smh! #idontnormallydothiscommentingshitbut lool

[@FAMEAcademyNY]

This situation is typical. It took Hip Hop from 1973 to 1979 to be noticed and till 1989 to receive it's first Grammy. It wasn't till 2007 the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inducted it's first Hip Hop artist (Grandmaster Flash & The Furious 5). It took years and a war for the East Coast to fully respect the West Coast artists and Southern artists. So yes, its going to take some work and some record sales before UK artists get noticed and it may take help from US artists for that to happen. Everyone in many walks of life must "Prove Themselves". Regardless of the talent one may possess, the guardians of any culture or discipline will make a new comer "Pay His Dues". It’s the same as being hazed to join a fraternity, its just life. The UK has some great artists but yall gotta "Kick The Door In" to be noticed. A few years back, Dip Set had the SAS name popping in America but they fell out...

[@TGFLdn24]

Also England (all races, all genres) have always begged for USA acknowledgement for years and years. A artist seems only to be a "massive star" when they are selling tons in USA. Hate that, but that's the way it is and have always been.

[@DavidRichardson95]

Slick Rick and Monie Love are the only two British hip-hop acts I know that got co-signed by US hip-hop. And I wasn't even born yet. Slick was born in the UK, later moved to the South Bronx, and Monie was Queen Latifah's protégé, and she, before Iggy Azalea, rapped with an American accent. Monie even sounded similar to Salt-n-Pepa in her inteviews. I always check for the British R&B and hip-hop from time to time.

[@LostAquarium]

I don't even understand why kanye would be performing at the brit awards?? He's not British. That doesn't represent British music. And you dont need validation from american rappers if your doin grime because its not their music to rate.

[@youngali505]

Grime is hip hop and we created that now stfu

[@LostAquarium]

Ha Who is this we? Grime comes from UK garage pirate radio days, not from american hiphop. Your thinking of UK rap/hip hop, not GRIME!

[@IAmFuckdaskets]

+toronz ali And the US wouldn't have a culture if it weren't for us brits Us doing something with a few Hip-hop Elements is minor when you would be lost without us

[@eon001]

Kanye has no obligation to put Skepta and co on. It's up to the Brits to push our own artists. And with that being said, the Brits have a duty to sell tickets and generate a buzz. The lower selling acts have to settle for the NME, Mercury, Mobo awards etc.

[@audigreen6906]

Skeptas the best, Kanye did it again by bridging the Gap. Kanye West just being a genius, Love from Canada, we love Skepta now man, i never knew about skepta before kanye shouting him out, ill be real.

[@dineshn]

skepta way ahead of this shit. he building a UK brand that is self sufficient and reps UK culture. americans may like it. uk people may like it. bbk becoming like a uk odd future now. fanbases will hopefully rise everywhere for their unique style and presence. i dont think skpeta cares for america... hes been in the game for long and has seen the detriment of going pop for US plays (chip etc). he even said when he was going poppy he didnt like making music in an interview. he uk kayne. represents and voices a culture / demographic he is from though creatvity. its just that this demographic is not as large as the multiple demogrpahics kanye can represent (growing up in chicago, rich black man in america). this is head by more people. skepta i think understand looking at americans like they above and tailoring yourself to them wont work. so he keeps it brit. right now only so many can relate to this

[@TGFLdn24]

There is so many arguments, debate and issues that came off what happened at the Brits. But we bang on about only 1 or 2 issues and get mixed up. First, make clear if we are talking about Grime, hip hop or all other music, USA acts have been validating RnB/dance/pop acts back in the 80's/90's, it was great then but we should have pushed on from there. So being that grime is a newer genre than a USA act acknowledging is good, but history has shown that this is not a big big deal long term.

[@BearBeatz1]

Something is changing in the music scene with Americans and British artists,skepta said in a recent invterview how I wanted to build the bridge between the music's.The fact that kanye had skepta on stage and announced his name so they have a bond. also lastly kanye and drake have been working more close together recently as kanye said about a collaboration with drake that was to going happen, this probably would of featured at least English artist as kanye used English products on yeezy and drakes instagram is starting to state more English artists.fin.finally ;)

[@juandusse335]

This isn't about numbers. THE ONLY WAY YOU GET ON THAT STAGE IS IF THE PRODUCERS FEEL THAT YOUR BRAND HAS A FAN BASE THAT WILL APPEAL TO ADVERTs THAT WILL BE BROADCASTED. Skepta has a fanbase. Grime has a fanbase. But let's not forget, THIS IS A BUSINESS. I have never known the Brits to be culturally accurate when picking these artists. If kanye didn't ok that he was even performing Skepta or any other grime artist would never be in the conversation. I'm pretty sure 'the producers' of the Brits compromised with that performance; if they didn't greenlight that specific performance, I don't think kanye would have even have performed or even showed up. As far as the co-sign thing, WHY DO WE MAKE IT A BIG DEAL. Skepta is GREAT. If we continue to get hype about these kind of co signs, we will always put U.S. Artist Above OUR British artists. Let's just keep it cool. Do we need their co-sign? No. And you know the fuck why.

[@JamalW239]

When they say 'British urban music' what you are really saying is 'London urban music'. Other genres of music are made by artists up and down the country, the vast majority of grime and hip hop is London

[@snakes57]

There's way to many fanboys/girls on JumpOffUK now.The other thing is that they think Grime music is London only which its not.Grime isn't UK HipHop or UK Rap its just Grime. They also think they know how things went down with Kanye bringing out Skepta at the Brits (Kanye Phoned Skepta) (Their working together) (Grimes gonna be big in the US cause of Kanye) How do you know that? Grime won't be big in the US as there isn't really a market for it. A bit like how UK Garage wasn't big over there either, which Grime derives from.

[@BussedDownCartier]

I'm glad Lily Mercer was there to talk some sense

[@AtlantaMae1]

This is the thing right, we as people of colour weren't in this country after slavery to begin with not like in America. We were either in Asia or the Caribbean people only really started coming in the 60s where as black people in America have been there since the 1800s so as the American culture is more acceptant of this music because it's been around longer and because black people have been more exposed to the upper class. You go out of London and it's almost like a different country. What should really happen is people like Ed Sheeran should be handing over the mic. That's where he gets his inspiration from and only he can bridge the gap. Just for some research a Jamaican man essentially started Hip Hop in America. I think what Kanye did was a step in the right direction but we have to understand here in the Uk we can't just jump on stage etc. there's a way to go in breaking down racial stereotypes it's just that in England. The people who are racist or even ignorant. They aren't as upfront they learnt from America to not be so vocal about their feelings in the public. It's something that is discussed between themselves

[@IAmFuckdaskets]

Agree with that woman, Kanye should have given them the mic and help their career, rappers shout out all sorts of people, he was probably using them to get attention from his british fans

[@Kilamanjaro009]

Unfortunately, UK rappers do need a co-sign because the market for grime isn't big enough to achieve global acclaim. K-POP however has a large enough scene where they don't need america at all.

[@Rav81hiphopgrime]

Wiley should have deffo been up there and whqt the lady said in the last 30secs was totally true

[@Drknoble]

Yes Adele is soul/R&b. But Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran are NOT. So stop calling them what they aren't and whitewashing our music.

[@trepoil899]

To be honest a co-sign isn't that big of a deal if you think about it as an artist the UK rappers & grime artists just has do what comes naturally and they will succeed eventually that how hip hop happen and as an American i think the UK has enuff talent to make it happen

[@Drknoble]

For the last time, Sam Smith is NOT R&B/Soul. there's nothing soulful about his music or the way he sings. His music is pop, it's damn near the same as Josh Groban. You guys are whitewashing R&B every time you say that nonsense.

[@Andre.06.07]

Fact is, kanye had a show in the uk, decided to support skepta and some fellow artists, told to come through. simple. They werent gona perform because this is an award show not a concert where in that circumstance kanye probbaly would have said hey guys do a couple tracks.

[@snoopys14]

Check yourself before you say black people only buy UK urban music I purchased skepta and krepet and konans album I listen to jay h and DVS, Charlie sloth is white. Its not a colour ting, its a music ting.

[@DeeJayShamskii]

I think Brit Awards must be the one award show no one cares about anyway

[@jakefabian]

I don't know why people are getting so butthurt kanye didn't hand over the mic...it was a good look, he didn't even have to have dem man up there... Grime isn't on that level yet relax man

[@DavidMalbranque]

the debates came back because of the drake post a few months back nuff said really.

[@brittdavid8591]

The UK & US Urban Music bridge gap is getting shorter, we have our problems on TV, Theater, and Music as well but only because we have tuned out the status Quo because they don't represent us as (AA) African American's, dialogue like your's on youtube always helps, shows like Empire have turn on the light bulb over here BIG time. cheeseheadslim...............

[@WantTeaBag]

Hang on whats that girl talking about, its kanye performance why would skepta pick up a mic and spray a 16?

[@atanda1219]

The white girl's buff

[@TariqAmazin]

if ur saying skepta cant have a mic on stage with kanye cos he aint sold gold or platinum is pathetic..why d phuck should u have him on the stage then

[@TariqAmazin]

WHAT THE FUCK DOES BEING ON STAGE WITH KANYE AS ESSENTIALLY HIS BACKING DANCERS DO FOR THE GRIME SCENE?

[@eon001]

It boils down to an inferiority complex. Every artist outside of the US suffers from this. EVERY ONE has to break the US. But in reality you can have a perfectly successful career in Europe Asia etc. Funky DL was bigger than Jay Z in Japan. Count your blessings.

[@shahidchoudhury3017]

lol the uk does need a US co sign because the Uk scene isn't big enough. Skepta is the only one that can push it forward because he is making raw music true to the culture. It's the way you do it. Chip tried to do it but because his sound was way to close to the Americans they weren't going to fuck with it. I think people underestimate what a Drake or Kanye co sign or feature can do. Look at fucking ILOVEMAKKONEN. Who the hell was he before the Tuesday remix? Skepta is fine with where he is at now, however he knows he can kick this door down. He knows he's dope loool you don't have Ye and Drizzy looking at you for no reason. He knows people will fuck with this sound. You think that Drill sound that came out of Chicago happened without people co signing? It's died down a bit because of it's lack of depth, but the music Skepta makes won't suffer the same way. Blacklisted is lowkey a classic. Konnichiwa will be dope. US will start to look at the UK in a different way because of this different type of sound. They'll see it as this new wave and people will jump on, especially if Drake and Ye tell them to.

[@rissiexo1760]

The truth is british grime music is wack and so are artists like skepta, otherwise their music would sell its self. nobody over the age of 23 really listens to grime. Grime artists core audiences are largely high school kids. Nobody had to co sign craig david ( arguable the british drake) because he was talented. Skepta is a grime rapper who is now basically trying to kill off grime music and replace it with a us rap sound, so that he can cross over in america more easily.Him and the UK grime scene are selling out the grime genre, and are looking for a pat on the back by americans for appropriating their culture. The UK grime artists are as bad as iggy azelia when it comes to culture appropriation tbh, and i think thats the elephant in the room.

[@shahidchoudhury3017]

Nariscia Sherman how the fuck is skepta trying to replace it with a US rap sound? Did you not hear Ace Hood flow? That's not me? How is that a US sound? Are you deaf?

[@rissiexo1760]

Shahid Choudhury Watch your mouth. Skepta on the track using an AMERICAN artist to sing the hook " it aint safe on the block" is a far stretch from duppy, so dont even act like they are one in the same. You must be deaf. Ace hood flow is a good example of why he needs an american co sign, because the track is something a 14 year chipmunk would have made. These grime artists stay permanently 15, and so does their audience. Thats why they need an american co sign because brits arent even cosign there foolery. skepta and them look up to americans and kiss their asses like gods, and that stage scene with kanye was a perfect example of that. Hes even using the word Nigga in his tracks, when that has NEVER been a part of grime culture or british black culture period, so cut the crap, and keep it real. thats just the tip of the iceberg.

[@shahidchoudhury3017]

Nariscia Sherman so an american artist wants to collab with him he should say no? Did he rap in an American flow? NO. You don't know what you're talking about. Skepta's fan base is very big considering the type of music he creates and the nature of the scene.

[@123cdotk456]

100% co-sign

[@LMAAAAYOOO]

Where's Snips? Also Grime isnt hip hop just so everyone's aware. This occurs not just in music. Who really cared about Idris Elba until he was Stringer Bell? I'll wait

[@DeeJayShamskii]

Aaand he used London guys because it was based on the London riots

[@iBOXRIVER]

As if that's a good thing SMFH

[@Rav81hiphopgrime]

Woo

[@jamesmillar5780]

Kayne has seen whats big in the UK and exploited it

[@youngali505]

Why is that white girl they ...u look lost

[@JamalW239]

Lily Mercer. Do your research and realise how stupid you sound. Although she got it wrong with Ratking/Wiki

[@Andre.06.07]

to one knows uk rappers, i mean on average. I Myself know of the uk scene just because i do research but the vast amount of north americans are unaware. now being from toronto and from canada i can relate to the pride when someone american shouts out local rappers. BUT biggest mistake is for the artists to look at american as gods, more like co workers in my opinion. Biggest staras are not american after all(bieber,drake,rihanna,one direction, iggy, etc etc)

[@JMHx]

tooreal foryou rwdmag.com/exclusive-interview-stormzy-it-used-to-grind-my-gears-but-now-i-actually-love-rap/

[@Andre.06.07]

tooreal foryou agreed, i mean if we had to choose someone to carry the torch then i think skepta or stormzy can make the transition. Americans are not georgraphically inclined thus once they here that accent they go literally cant understand it even if its english. THe hiphop scene in the u,s is a mashup of we are the world artsits, like lets be real. Everyone sounds the same and nothing original. One thing i always liked about the uk scene is that it had its own substance, as history shows, once america latches on it will use all of those new sounding beat etc. We see it with drake.

[@JMHx]

TNT905 rwdmag.com/exclusive-interview-stormzy-it-used-to-grind-my-gears-but-now-i-actually-love-rap/

[@Andre.06.07]

tooreal foryou well yeah but its still a branch from the american slang "tree"

[@SI-cd7xs]

Kanye just used those guys imo

[@danielsimpkins4292]

personally i think u answered ya own questions without knowing....u jus say the name of the us money backe artist like kanye n everyone thinks shitttttt!!!! no different in talent jusa better machine behindthem!!!

[@eon001]

Did Tinie tempah get a cosign? Nope he just made good music.

[@DeeJayShamskii]

Lmaoo as if she said they should have had a microphone? He was performing a song not just freestyling, why would they have a mic for lol that's so dumb Plus imagine MC's on the level of Jammer & Discarda coming on after Kanye 😂

[@DaryllSNeita]

guy in the green hat is annoying

[@biggsleezy]

Look at football for example(real football not the NFL shit), did football need americans to sell, off course not, don't treat the americans guys like god

[@petelouis2359]

oc2k13 i cant believe your compa ring rap to soccer