23 Jan | Written By Cameron Mackenzie

UK drill is a sub-genre of drill music and road rap that has its roots in Brixton, South London. Taking inspiration from famous Chicago drill icons such as Chief Keef, UK drill borrowed heavily from these sounds before diverging and creating its own sound. Originally birthed in 2012 by artists such as Stickz and M Darrg, it wasn’t until 2016 when 67 burst on to the scene that UK drill started garnering major attention. Many would point to 67 pioneering the sound that is most commonly associated with UK drill.

But ever since UK drill started taking off, it’s been constantly surrounded in controversy and tragedy. Crime is a major recurring theme of the genre, with many artists speaking their songs from experience. It’s these type of themes which started landing artists in trouble with the police, with 67 member Scribz, famous for the song Wicked and Bad, being handed an injunction which banned him from creating music due to promoting gang related violence. This one moment in time would prove to be a huge butterfly effect on the whole UK drill scene as Scribz would adorn a now famous mask and go by a new name, LD.

This small move would inadvertently change UK drill forever, with almost all artists choosing to hide their faces in any music videos as to protect their identity. Protecting their identity was a must for these artists as many of them were criminals themselves, rapping about their gang experiences of violence and drugs. LD would continue to create music under the monicker and would be part of some of UK drill’s biggest hits.

Uk drill would continue to see a rise in popularity in the coming years with many groups and artists coming to the forefront of the scene. Groups such as Harlem Spartans from Kennington, Zone 2 from Peckham, 1011 from Ladbroke Grove and Moscow 17 from the Brandon Estate were some of the biggest names coming up in the scene at the time. With Moscow 17 dropping one of UK drill’s most famous songs, Moscow March. Featuring artists such GB and LooseScrew, the song is a hard and grimy tune that sends shots at their gang rivals Zone 2.

This beef between Zone 2 and Moscow 17 would also involve Harlem Spartans as the Kennington group would pair up with Moscow 17. But the line between rap and road would soon be blurred as Zone 2 members would murder Moscow 17 rapper GB in a shooting. This would lead to a brutal gang war which would leave many more dead and would see people die on every side.

The death of Moscow 17 and Harlem Spartans members would prompt Zone 2 into dropping their equally famous and infamous track No Censor. This track would brutally mock the dead and would see major backlash from mainstream media, with the music video being taken down from YouTube by the police shortly after dropping.

The police started actively censoring and removing songs from YouTube following a famous incident that involved 1011 members. The gang were caught by police carrying multiple weapons and soon made the link between the members and the music. The MET soon began to take a stronger stance on UK drill music, actively taking down any videos that promoted violence and gang activities. Obviously this would have a domino effect on the whole UK drill scene as this is what was primarily rapped about.

The systematic censorship of UK drill by the police has severely hampered the scene and has in part contributed to the downfall of UK drill. With shows getting locked off, videos getting removed and artists getting arrested, it was a recipe for disaster. The reality of what these artists rapped about has caught up to most of the scenes biggest names. If the rumours are to be believed, LD from 67 is currently awaiting trial for murder along with other 67 members.

LD wouldn’t be the first artist to recurve a lengthy sentence, there’s been many fantastic musicians lost to the reality of crime and violence. Some of these include:

• Mizormac, sentenced to 9 years imprisonment

• CB, sentenced to 23 years imprisonment

• Loski, sentenced to 7 years imprisonment

• Suspect, awaiting trial for 2 murders

• PS, sentenced to 5 years imprisonment

• SJ, sentenced to 21 years imprisonment

• Gully, awaiting trial for murder

• Young Dizz, sentenced to 23 years imprisonment

There’s plenty of related artists who released a handful of songs who showed talent but eventually fell into trouble also.

A slew of death, murder and violence has left the scene in tatters, with an overarching staleness becoming more and more obvious. Some artists have managed to go mainstream despite the trials and tribulations. Artists such as Headie One and Digga D. The former having been jailed in 2020 for 6 months for carrying a knife. Headie one also had a famous incident where he was confronted at college and harassed by rival gang members. This incident sparked retaliation and many believe it led to the death of Kelvin Odunuyi, otherwise known as Lampz, a member of the opposing gang Woodgreen.

Digga D on the other hand is an artist who seems to constantly be in trouble, having spent numerous stints locked up. Recently losing vision in one of his eyes due to a stabbing in jail. Digga D’s story was extensively covered in the BBC documentary “Defending Digga D”.

Uk drill was an incredibly exciting sub-genre of Uk rap but the reality of the substance rapped about has caught up to many of its biggest and brightest stars. But it paints an amazing image of what life is like for gang members, detailing the savagery and brazen attempts to make the road life work. But as with all things, time always catches up to you.

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