Sorry I missed that what color clothes did you say you like to wear?
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[6.71]
Will Adams: Every moment spent not hearing man I wear black man I wear black man I wear man I wear man I wear black manamana wear black manamana wear black is spent wishing that I could currently be hearing man I wear black man I wear black man I wear man I wear man I wear black manamana wear black manamana wear black.
[6]
Micha Cavaseno: Ian “Donae’o” Greenidge is one of the founders of Grime that never quite seemed to get his due. Early tracks like “Bounce,” “Farmer Yardie” and “People Don’t Know” might not have had the resonance of your “Oh No (Sentimental Things)” or “I Luv U” type bangers, but they were essential in propelling the scene. Eventually his reinvention as one of the leaders of the forefront of the UK Funky House scene at the end of the decade with anthems like “African Warrior” and “Party Hard” brought him the respect he deserved, and since then he’s been a low-key producer, vocalist, and artist of considerable quality. Now on “Black” he returns to grime with astonishing ease for a man of his age and career length without missing a step. And can you imagine, being around people like JME and Donae’o makes washed-up Dizzee Rascal deliver his first acceptable performance since “Bassline Junkie”!? You can’t blame him. The creepy minimal beat is just the right groove and Donae’o’s tongue-twister hook’s simplicity paired with the cypher-like vibe would make an MC twice as washed as Dizzee feel inspired.
[8]
Thomas Inskeep: A straight banger, produced by Donae’o himself, featuring a boomin’ bassline, Donae’o’s own sweet singing on the chorus, and fire verses from JME and Dizzee. It’s especially awesome to hear Dizzee on a straight grime track, but best believe that everyone rises to this occasion.
[8]
Iain Mew: JME’s verse is out ahead by as much as their respective recent work suggests, but the part-fakeout of the clothing-themed rapped hook means that at least Dizzee can get in good lines switching to the other Black and wrap it up nicely. The sung hook sounds even more loosely sketched than the other one without adding so much.
[5]
Ryo Miyauchi: Donae’o speaks wise, lays a nice chorus, but lacks the pop appeal of the featured Dizzee, whose verse runs too shallow of an exercise to complement the main artist. JME, meanwhile, rounds out what each lacks with him pressing meaning to the word “black” as he stretches how its used. “I protect my energy,” he repeats, and his verse shows he’s all about what he’s trying to conserve.
[5]
Hannah Jocelyn: I love how sparse the beat is, especially after everyone from Ed Sheeran to Noah Cyrus have tried minimalism without much success. It gives more room for Donae’o to deliver that melodic chorus, and for JME and Dizzee Rascal to deliver some pretty great lines based on the title (“I’m a black male so you can’t blackmail me” and “A couple man tried play me/I blacked out and went crazy”, respectively). It’s not as cohesive as the Stormzy song from last week, but the laid-back yet tense tone makes for a good listen, especially executed this well.
[7]
Mark Sinker: Style and stance, as a way to manage the world — a uniform, yup, but the test is seeing past it, to the wry dryness, the relaxed lightness of the chorus, the stonefaced repetition that cracks you up if you’re on the right wavelength. Lots of reasons I don’t much love being English currently, but the sub-surface playfulness all over this is one of the reasons I do.
[8]