The British Invasion of Hip-Hop: The Rise of UK Drill

Last week, Netflix released the final season of the popular UK series Top Boy.

For those unaware, Top Boy is essentially the story of two best friends (and drug dealers), Dushane Hill and Sully, who are attempting to regain control of their former territory, Summerhouse.

The show originally aired in 2011, but after a few seasons (or “series” as they’re called in London) it was canceled.

However, that wasn’t the end of the story.

Around 2018, rumors began to swirl that Drake was stepping in to help produce a reboot of the series.

Ultimately he partnered with the aforementioned streaming giant to make it happen, and the show continued in 2019.

Not only was the premiere (and subsequent finale) of “Top Boy” another solid win for Hip-hop, it’s popularity in the U.S. also signals something else:

Hip-hop’s global expansion is reaching maturity.

There was a time when U.S. fans couldn’t appreciate anything from overseas.

Whether it was because of the accents, the slang, or the subject matter, UK musicians and fans have always felt like they were on the backburner.

But the tides have shifted.

Drill is the wave & UK rappers are slowly creeping into our airwaves.

It’s a dope thing to see, so let’s talk about it…

But, First Things First…

It’s important to remember the UK’s ties to the African diaspora.

A lot of the slang, music, and other cultural artifacts that permeate culture over there are the product of the Caribbean, and African influences that helped shape genres like Reggae, Ska, Dub, and Grime, among others.

The influence of these communities is also evident in London's Hip-Hop scene, which is a melting pot of various styles and influences, including American Hip-Hop, Caribbean music, and African rhythms.

Having this knowledge as a foundation sets the stage for us to continue the conversation (and for you to watch shows like Top Boy with a proper lens on things).

Anyway…

Oddly Enough, Our Story Starts In Chicago…

Perhaps the biggest reason behind the British explosion we’re seeing in Hip-Hop is…

Drill Music.

Drill is a subgenre of Hip-hop that gained its footing in Chicago around 2012 and is characterized by its harsh lyrical content, dark & moody beats, etc.

It’s basically Gangsta Rap, depending on how you look at it.

Generally the focus of Drill is dissing the “opps”, aka the opposition, and everything those battles entail.

The founding fathers of the “Drill” genre are widely recognized as the Chicagoans who blew up around that time: King Louie, Lil Durk, Lil Reese, and, of course…

CHIEF KEEF.

Keef’s hit record “I Don’t Like” is largely credited with putting the spotlight on Chicago rap, and a very public co-sign from Kanye West led to Chicago music seeing a boost in popularity that they hadn’t seen since the early 2000s.

For many overseas fans, “I Don’t Like” is one of the first Drill records they heard.

Drake Bridged the gap To UK

A few years after Chief Keef took off in Chicago, Drake began to broaden his sound to include more world music.

He had always shown love to the UK, but In 2016, Drake announced a new project — one that he dubbed a “playlist” entitled More Life.

A. More Life

It was on More Life that Drake prolifically adopted UK slang and an accent on songs like No Long Talk which featured UK rapper Giggs (an OG in the London Grime scene).

He also had records like Skepta interlude f(eaturing & named after the UK legend Skepta), and Gyalchester — a callout to the Jamaican Parish in the neighborhood of Manchester.

B. Top-Boy Revival

We mentioned this earlier, but Drake is credited with reviving the popular UK series Top Boy and bringing it to Netflix.

As part of the revival, he and the team ensured that they shared the spotlight with British talent who were making waves on the scene.

Because of that, people who had never heard of UK rappers Dave or Little Simz (who played Modi & Shelley on Top Boy, respectively) we're able to see them in an entirely new light thanks to the success of the show with American audiences.

Even leading up to the final season, the actors and musicians featured on the soundtrack have enjoyed the crossover appeal that came with being attached to the project.

C. Collabs with Different UK artsts

Drake has continued to support the wave going in 2020s and that particular year he collabed with UK’s own Headie, who’s also considered an early innovator of Drill Music.

On top of that he’s collabed with UK rapper Dave via the remix of “Wanna Know” in 2016, and most recently he dropped an “On The Radar” Freestyle with Central Cee that went viral.

You’ve all seen that freestyle whether knowingly or unknowingly.

Y’all know that Drake meme that’s gone viral?

The “combination” one?

The guy in the background is a UK rapper.

Drill Goes From Chicago to UK

As Drill impacted Chicago and its rap scene reached prominence, the sound slowly permeated the U.S.

By the mid 2010s the sound had begun to make its way overseas, where UK rappers latched onto it.

In the UK, the production was slightly different, and the songs had a different bounce. Despite that, if you listened closely enough, the lyrical content was very similar to the U.S.

Noted pioneers of the UK Drill Movement often include 67, Headie One, 157, and Digga D — and the lyrical content very closely mirrors what you would find with U.S. drill in in Chicago.

As the Drill scene was beginning to take shape in the U.K. something else was happening back in the U.S.

The Rise of Pop Smoke…

Brooklyn rapper Pop Smoke was beginning to catch a buzz in the U.S., and his signature sound was…

Brooklyn Drill

Brooklyn Drill had elements of the original Chicago Drill sound with influences from UK drill, and Pop's music represented both sounds perfectly.

In fact, Dior - one of the most defining records of Pop Smoke's career, was produced by British producer 808Melo.

Dior became the anthem of the Brooklyn drill scene. It eventually gained national and even international attention making Pop Smoke became a star.

With Pop Smoke's success, Brooklyn drill entered into the mainstream, and despite his untimely death, his influenced crossed burroughs and eventually borders.

He helped bridge the gap between UK and US drill, bringing a fresh sound to the American hip-hop scene and gaining a large following in a short period.

That Brings Us to Central Cee…

Central Cee is leading the pack of up & comers in the UK scene who are gaining popularity with Gen Z.

Central Cee’s popularity began to rise around 2021 songs like “Loading” and with the release of

his debut mixtape “Wild West” — an effort that actually hit the charts at #2 in the UK.

That said, the track that really put Central Cee on the map, and opened him up to a U.S. audience was “Doja”.

The video was directed by Cole Bennett who runs a very popular Hip-hop blog that has effectively helped usher in the next generation of Hip-hop stars.

Getting Cole to direct your video & release it on his blog Lyrical Lemonade is a huge co-sign to a new generation of fans.

Doja immediately went viral, and to date it’s amassed over 129 million views. The sample should sound familiar too. Shoutout to Eve. (harsh lyrical content, be warned)

But it doesn’t stop there…

In 2023, Cee dropped the song Sprinter, which he created with popular UK rapper Dave and that has proven to be his most successful record to date.

Sprinter currently has over 100 million views on YouTube, and was Central Cee’s first #1 record on the UK charts.

(Sidenote; Dave is referenced above as the character Modi on Top Boy).

EPILOGUE

With Hip-hop expanding globally, the UK is poised to have a big year going into 2024.

Central Cee already has one hit under his belt, and with the conclusion of Top Boy we might get some more music from Kano (known as Sully on the show).

Little Simz has been killing it for years & her most recent album from this year is more proof that she’s here to stay. And I’m sure Dave is gonna have something in the pipeline.

I highly encourage anyone reading this to check out the soundtrack from Top Boy season 3 (if it’s even available). There’s a ton of slaps on there, and honestly once you get used to the slang, and accents, you’re in for some good music.

One time for Little Simz just cause…

Peace.