Black and White
Ministry of Sound

Thinking back on the years when just the mentioning of the word Grime rattled government officials, its ironic that the same young artists who painted descriptions of what was happening in their London ends, have become some of the most successful artists that the UK urban music scene has witnessed in a long period of time. Along with the success of these same artists have often at times been the criticism by Grime fans who have repeatedly accused these particular artists of leaving the Grime scene to do more radio friendly Hip-Hop. Yet there are artists like Tottenham rapper Wretch 32 who, with his clever metaphors and uncanny ability to bring words to life, have always managed to walk the fine line of both musical genres. With the release of his new album “Black and White”, the North London emcee has managed to find the blueprint to commercial success without compromising his ability as one of the most in depth lyricists to emerge from England.

“Black and White” is indeed an album that will more than likely produce a number of chart topping singles for the fact that almost any of the songs on the album are single worthy. Whether it is his smash song “Don’t Go” featuring Josh Kumra or the reflective “I’m Not the Man” featuring Chipmunk, Wretch has clearly unlocked the door to how to make hit records but unlike the many artists whose recordings tends to feel too hand steered by record executives, the tracks on “Black and White” contains a level of humanity and roots that makes them enjoyable, leaving the listener to often want to revisit the album and give it a number of takes because of its mood. Ironically while many tunes do have pop chart potential, there aren’t many so called “club bangers” on the album. Perhaps this is what makes this LP so great to listen to. The beauty of the music, compliments Wretch 32’s poetry that at times, can exhibit a bit of sadness as the lyricist’s states “I used to be a man of my words/now time seems to have got the best of my sentence” on “Forgiveness” featuring singer Etta Bond.

Wretch 32’s “Black and White” is a brilliant portrayal of a young man maturing as an artist and channeling his gift of words into material that will stand the test of time. While this album may have taken the lane of travelling down the route of mainstream success, as a listener, you almost feel yourself cheering for Wretch each stretch of the way.