In 2002 on an estate in Tottenham a 17-year-old rapper could be found selling his mixtapes to his friends and anyone else he could generate interest from. Nearly 10 years on the biggest artists and biggest radio stations in music today are spreading his name for him, Wretch 32 is dynamite waiting to explode and the fuse is shortening by the second.
The fuse was lit in 2008 when Wretch’s mixtapes were recognised by Radio 1xtra winning him the ‘Most Street Heat’ award. From then on the tale of the once Sainsbury’s employed rapper to chart smasher began.
“It definitely took a long time but once it got to a certain point it excelled at a very fast pace”, Wretch explains.
After spending nine years pouring time (and money) into his dream, in the last month he has seen the release of his hit album ‘Black and White’ as well as the three singles that have come with it. ‘Traktor’, ‘Unorthodox’ and ‘Don’t Go’ have all risen to the top of the charts and have battled and conquered the number one spot. This October he will be on the road parading his new album for the first time as a headliner. Although his peers have been building him up as a new UK Rap sensation Wretch understands that nothing is a given and it’s all about taking it in your stride.
Competition
He made his name in the London Hip-Hop scene alongside urban music allies such as Devlin, Chipmunk and Wiley and where there were huge amounts of respect for one another there was a fierce rivalry as soon as they got into the studio.
“That’s the beauty of it, it’s friendly competition but as soon as you hear on your marks, get set, go, it’s all about coming first”, so says the 26 year old.
Despite the challenge of competing against one another he admits that they learnt some of their most important lessons together which have stood them in great stead today. “We learnt that whoever cares about being the best tends to get longevity… we’ve never been about just trying to make a quick hit and cash in”.
Parenthood
During his growth into an established urban artist Wretch became a father. Being a guardian and a parent gave him an added impetus and another direction for his music; “having a child is part of my reality and my real life…it’s a massive thing for me and it crops up in a lot of my tracks”. One thing that has allowed Wretch to stand out is h
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is unique and sincere lyricism. Being able to present a particular point of view in his music that can bring together diverse audiences is a skill not many can contend with.
Chart Success
Once he signed to record label ‘Ministry of Sound’ the hits came and came fast. His first single ‘Traktor’ achieved top 5 chart status and became a party anthem in the club scene. For many of his fans this was their first taste of what the Wretch 32 outfit was capable of. ‘Unorthodox’ was the next track to be released from the album which peaked at number two in the UK Singles Chart. The song featured ‘Example’ who had already cemented his name in the UK with hits like ‘Won’t Go Quietly’ and ‘Kickstarts’. The track samples the classic Stone Roses song ‘Fools Gold’ which Wretch had to gain permission for from the man himself, Ian Brown. Wretch states that the inspiration behind this decision was to make a “British sounding rap record”. He went onto say “it was a sample that could relate to a new audience but would also have the respect of the older audience”, no better sign of acceptance than the thumbs up from Ian Brown. It was a return to the more heartfelt side of Hip-Hop that was more regular on his mixtapes that brought Wretch his biggest commercial success. The 3rd single ‘Don’t Go’ entered the charts at number one and announced his permanent arrival in the UK Hip-Hop scene.
With dates this October spanning the whole of the UK Wretch 32’s future looks busy if not bright but there’s still plenty left on the cards.
“For me it’s breaking any ground I haven’t broken yet… I know I’m here to make music and put it out and that’s what I’m going to focus on… whatever crops up in between will make me really happy”.
HOT WIRE 