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Best Grime Songs You’ve Never Heard: 5 Tracks That Deserve Props
Will Bailey / Alamy Stock Photo
List & Guides

Best Grime Songs You’ve Never Heard: 5 Tracks That Deserve Props

Starting as a UK movement, grime has become a global force. Everyone knows the best grime songs – here are five lesser-known gems.

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Grime has been around for over 20 years now, with the likes of the Godfather Of Grime, Wiley, along with Skepta, Kano, JME, Ghetts, Chip – and many more – championing the sound and helping to create a scene that is now known across the world. The best grime songs have become anthems that allow you to understand what the music is all about: Ghetts’ Artillery, D Double E’s Street Fighter Riddim, Kano’s P’s & Q’s, Lethal B’s Pow and Giggs’ Talkin’ The Hardest (aka the UK’s unofficial national anthem). But there are tons of lesser-known grime songs that deserve recognition. Here are five of the best grime songs every fan needs to hear.

5: N.O.D.B grime set

Birmingham may not get the recognition that it deserves within the grime scene, but you have to give props where they’re due. Including Miles, Maybe, Fist, Tempah, Lil G, Ace1, and Lady Fiasqo, N.O.D.B are one of the first groups to come out of the city’s grime scene.

The variety within the group allowed them to deliver 40 minutes of pure uninterrupted fire in this set. Refusing to hold back, each MC unleashed venom on every beat that was spun, helping to shine a light on overlooked talent in the Midlands area. The more notable names to come out of Birmingham, such as, Lady Leshurr, Mist, Jaykae and Lotto Boyzz, owe a debt.

4: Earz: ‘Lights Out’

It’s unclear why MCs Earz and Lightning clashed – both artists give different accounts. Earz explains his side of the story on the intro to ‘Lights Out’ while Lightning saves his for ‘Earz MC Slew’. For grime fans, a clash is always great opportunity to witness two artists aim to show who’s best over 140bpm. With ‘Lights Out’, Earz delivered a hard-hitting track that, even with the funny lines included, show that he did not come to play.

3: Pinch (feat Trim): All Man Got

Taken from Pinch’s 2000 album, Reality Tunnels, this is the most recent track on our list of the best grime songs you’ve never heard. All Man Got may not be a conventional grime song, but guest MC Trim reveals a potent delivery and lyrical ability that he has continually built upon since he entered the scene. He deserves more recognition within the grime world.

2: Plastician (feat, Skepta, Frisco, Chronik and Tempa T): Real Things

Plastician has produced a variety of styles and genres in his career, among them dubstep and electronic. With this track, however, which appeared on his 2008 album, Beg To Differ, he doesn’t shy away from showing what he can do with grime, while also allowing his collaborators to show off their own lyrical ability. The combinations of these artists flows smoothly, with Skepta taking the reins throughout on a beat that will get you hyped from the get-go.

1: Griminal: Mayhem Freestyle

Freestyles really allow grime MCs to portray their skills on the mic, as Tim Westwood has demonstrated on his radio show, which has seen iconic freestyles from such MCs as Skepta, Chipmunk And Ice Kid and Ghetts, all proving why they should be recognised on the big stage. Broadcasts from SB.TV, Boiler Room and BBC 1Xtra’s Fire In The Booth have also given MCs the opportunity to shine. On It’s Not Just Barz Vol 1, Griminal set the bar high with Mayhem Freestyle, easily earning its place among the best grime songs from the 2000s, despite not getting the hype it deserved.

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