A Little Deeper

2.5/5 Favorite Songs: Put Him Out It Takes More Afraid 2 Fly Krazy Krush

The last few “Mercury Prize winning” albums I’ve got have me reconsidering my feelings about the award (derogatory)

It's cool. I get why this would've won the Mercury Prize but also be completely unknown in the States.

Ok Some bangers up front, tails off at the end

solid 2000s Hip Hop Album. Never heard of her before.

Got a few interesting moments. Nostalgic for the early 2000s production.... But that's it.

3.5

Wasn't expecting much after reading a few reviews not this is pretty good. It's certainly an easy listen and there's lots of good songs. Maybe not the most innovative and arguably doesn't deserve its place, but not a bad record by any stretch

Pleasantly surprised, surprised ive never heard of her

Uma mistura de ritmos bem interessante e bem executada. É um álbum legal. QoA Adonis New.

Hip-hop driven contemporary R&B. I didn't really like it, but it wasn't poorly crafted.

A Little Deeper was very enjoyable. I will say though, it has It's place in the early 2000s. It even sounds a bit earlier, late 90s American r&b perhaps? The first half of the album is great, had me dancing in my kitchen, but I felt it lost steam around the 2nd half until the last couple of songs, and it went on a little too long.

Fun rap and R&B album. little long in the tooth but enjoyable.

Solid and self-aware and operating at a higher level than most of what 2002 was producing in this territory — Ms. Dynamite's voice is warm and precise, the political consciousness running through the lyrics gives the record genuine weight, and "Dy-Na-Mi-Tee" delivers exactly the soul and reggae warmth the best moments here reach for. The Mercury Prize was earned. The honest ceiling is that British R&B and UK garage have a consistent upper limit in this project regardless of the quality on offer, and A Little Deeper sits comfortably within that limit. Solid without generating pull, accomplished without feeling essential. A respectful three that acknowledges the talent without pretending to a connection that isn't there.

Powerful and I defo enjoyed some of the songs! Still mostly not my style tho

It didn’t suck. But I don’t plan on listening to this again. I could think of 1001 better albums.

Budget Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

An album so stereotypical you'd think it was a joke from The Boondocks

This wasn’t my vibe. The lyrics were mid at best and the instrumental was just okay.

Eh. Nothing I'd return to

An OK album that had no reason to be an hour long or on the list really. I don't think I'd heard Dy-Na-Mi-Tee since 2003, and it's still very annoying, though nostalgia goggles gave me a fondness for it that I didn't have back then. Put Him Out is a better song and I loved the attitude. I genuinely enjoyed the first half of the album but towards the end it sounds like she lost interest, and so did I. Song titles were all like "Spelling 2 Hard 4 U" back then, weren't they?

Well I listened right through until the hidden track. Just a shame the rest weren't hidden too and I might have been forgiven for missing them all. Actually the Dy-Na-Mi-Tee track was familiar and an actual song so a star for that at least. Also interesting to see Keon Bryce featuring on track 3. So that's what he's up to after leaving his Radio 2 show!!😂

No offence to Ms Dynamite but I think even she would agree that this album should not be on this list. It all very 'early 2000s coffee shop', essentially pretty boring

When I started a podcast about reviewing science fiction films my co-hosts and I realised almost immediately we needed some sort of moratorium on adding films to our ranking list, to avoid knee-jerk reactions after being bamboozled by things on the big screen. We settled on a five-year wait. It’s worked well. This album is another great example of why the editor of this book (and the mercury prize board tbh) should be doing similar. Yes, ‘Dy-na-mi-tee’ is a tremendous pop song, with shimmering percussion that still sounds unique, and it pops up on lots of mix cds I made back then. And yes, I had this album, and I didn’t hate it, but also it never reaches the highs of the lead single, and is pretty forgettable. Buuuuut have I heard this in the last 20 years? No, of course not, and I doubt whether many people outside of the Dynamite immediate family have either. If you look at what gets removed from later editions of these books it’s very telling that almost all of the bland nonsense added in the early aughts has been excised by now. But also if you google spoilers for the forthcoming new edition you’ll see they haven’t learnt their lesson - The Wuthering Heights OST?? Seriously? Expect it to be swiftly removed in 2029’s edition.

I’d never heard of Ms. Dynamite, I’d never heard any of these songs before, and judging by how much time has passed since this album came out, I’d believe this is probably the case for a lot of people and A Little Deeper is ultimately doomed to relative obscurity. This didn’t seem like an essential listen, and as others have mentioned, only reinforces the UK bias on this list. That being said, I liked this quite a bit. This is an easy R&B listen. I can’t think of a single situation where this would Be on in the background and anyone would object.

Not too huge into R&B so I was surprised I was enjoying it initially but then, it just kept going and I got slightly bored with it. Not bad though.

Definitely an enjoyable listen. However, apart from a few standout tracks it's not all that memorable

Mrs. Dynamite is a good rapper more not she would need more flow bests where more bangs

This album is fine, it's just kinda like r&b. I've heard better, ive heard worse. If it's british r&b I'd much rather listen to Jorja Smith.

“This album won the Mercury prize” really feels like he padded this list out by adding every Mercury prize winner. Not bad but just like an okay version of a lot of the rnb pop happening at the same time, it’s just British.

Ce n'est pas de la dynamite, kramasla ne termine pas avec une tite finale gansta

So 2002.

Mid

Meh

At first she sounded like a mellow Amy, but at about the fourth songs, creativity stepped in and it became quite interesting. 3.5/5

Pretty good if unoriginal.

Another new-to-me artist and album, and particularly nice that it's sampling of early 21st-century hip-hop-esque from across the pond. I'm not entirely sure why nearly every hip-hop album (at least the ones we've gotten in this album) seems to require at least an hour playtime, especially because so few albums are strong enough to sustain themselves that long, but at least "A Little Deeper" avoids much if any filler/skits/demos. Her style(s) and sound didn't really resonate with me, and at times (like "Put him out") I was painfully reminded of some of the pop albums we've had (like Christina Aguilera's "Stripped"), but in general it seemed fine, although I do wish she didn't sound so much like Lauryn Hill. Highlights are few and far between, but "Dy-na-mi-tee" and "Danger" definitely stand out, with a couple of nods to her big hit "It takes more" and track "Krazy krush". (Funny too how "Gotta let U know" sounds a lot like Justin Bieber's much later "Love yourself", while "Ramp" sounds a lot like a MIA song (or probably vice versa).)

There's an annoying nasal quality to her voice that's a little like Amy Winehouse's when she's not at her best. I think she needs to go a little deeper.

7/10

Completely bog standard R&B. The only thing I enjoyed was Dy-Na-Mi-Tee for the nostalgia but otherwise this was pretty uninteresting, although inoffensive 2.5 Highlights: Dy-Na-Mi-Tee

Yeah this is pretty tepid. What's with the author bias toward mediocre UK contemporary material? It's hard to hear much originality here, nevermind find much genuine interest.

If this was 2002, this would be an easy 5 for me. I loved this album back and listened to it often. Coming back to it 24 years later, I am not as high on the album. I still really enjoy it, but it doesn’t hit like it once did. I’m not sure it belongs on this list, but I’m not mad considering how many actual bad albums are on the list.

Very well produced and thematically positive and poignant, but I didn’t connect with it in any way. Just a tip of the hat as we pass in the dark.

Some beats and some rhymes, From a woman’s perspective; Not without some slurs.

Fine

Apart from the odd banger quite a mediocre album

Better than I expected at first but at some point I looked at how much was remaining and was dismayed at how much was left. A bit frontloaded, much too long. "Brother" stood out in a positive way.

Twenties me would have been very disappointed I didn't dislike this. Nothing great, but a pretty solid R&B album.

It’s different than the hip hop I hear in the US. I’ll give it that.

7.5/10

Lauryn Hill Light

Lauryn Hill dupe but it's solid

As this project goes on I just don’t understand what criteria these authors were using when making this list. Like…. THIS made the cut??? It’s not as bad as some of the other shit but it’s still just slop. What is this???

Meh. Not my thing

Britslop hip hop

Honestly pretty good. I'm pretty skeptical when this list pulls out a random UK artist I've never heard of usually. I know people generally give this list a lot of shit for that exact reason. But this was just some solid neo-soul, with bangers like 'Put Him Out', "Krazy Krush', and 'It Takes More', and pretty heartfelt and personal cuts like with 'Brother'. And a smaller moment, but I really liked the cool jazz breakdown on ‘All I Ever’, super smooth horns there. Sure it feels like a personal favourite from the list creator, but it doesn't make it bad or anything. Ms. Dynamite has the vocal and lyrical chops to keep this record enjoyable, if a bit run-of-the-mill, for its hour runtime. Not much else to say for this one.

Early 2000s R&B music, only it's British(because half the goddamn list is random British shit nobody outside of the UK actually thinks is essential). It's mostly just mediocre, boring songs with no real merit to them. Yes, she can sing, but the songs aren't good at all. They often lack strong hooks and have incredibly poor lyrics. There's not much at all worth your time here, save for the biting critique of gangster rap that is "It Takes More". That song has good lyrics and some catchiness, making it the song that the rest of the album should have been. As it is, there's no reason for this to be on the list. Come on, Britain. This album is ranked #15 of 16 albums for 2002. Other 2002 albums rated by me: Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots(2/16)-5 Sea Change(6/16)-2 Highly Evolved(11/16)-2

not my speed

a great time! i don’t think this is something i’d relisten to but i really enjoyed it. also assigned FOUR WOMEN IN A ROW?!!!!

I had never heard of Miss Dynamite, and I’m sorry for that. In the early 2000s rap/hip-hop changed from its Golden Age Nubian-Goddesses and Gangsters to club rap like Ludacris and Nellyville, or to sex rap with artists like Li’l Kim. This album definitely was neither of those. Ms. Dynamite was methodical in her lyrics and pointed in her message, making this very unique for the time. I really liked the syncopated beats of A Li’l Deeper, especially paired with her very strong R&B vocal background. Sick’n’Tired is also a very powerful song with a very specific point all women would agree with. And It Takes More more speaks directly to the time with a message that contradicts most of the American rap scene. My tracks, though, Dy-Na-mi-Tee and Danger (blazing rap-ggae) were absolutely bangers. At first, I didn’t think that this album should be on this list because she only made two albums, and how can you be great with only two. But then I thought about Lauryn Hill or the author Harper Lee and realized Ms. Dynamite was playing by the same playbook.

Random thoughts: * I've never heard of Ms. Dynamite before. This is one of those cases of 1001 being very British. * This is totally the British version of Lauryn Hill which is cool. * I really liked the intro track and the rest of the music was great too. * I think with a few listens I could pick out some favorites. * But honestly if I'm in the mood for this type of music I'm just gonna play Lauryn Hill. *

..

Better than expected, knowing nothing about the artist or album going in. Even with some lapses into more generic R&B, it was pleasant and catchy for the most part.

Before today, I never once heard of Ms. Dynamite - I think she is quite a talented singer. With that being said, I didn't enjoy this album as much as I think I could have - the overall sound of the instrumentals, along with how she approached her delivery on the tracks just didn't land well on my ears.

great message but bored me a bit.. could easily cut out half the album n id enjoy it the same

I quite enjoyed this album back in the day

This feels like the rough draft of what could have been a really good album.

Nothing wrong with this, I just never want to hear it again

Some of these songs were bangers, but it was slightly forgettable

I wasn't expecting much, but this is quite a good album. 4 stars or B-.

Not bad, but the slurring is irritating after a while. Both of the singles stand out. Probably won't listen again, but got a couple of singles from it.

love this sm it factor

eh. i've heard this album before (not this exact one, but many like it). the inclusion is confusing as i'm not sure what the reasoning is. i wish i had a copy of the book to get some insight. is it the more social commentary aspect? not really my thing. the a capella track is bad.

It's not completely terrible but lyrically it is quite repetitive, sort of sounds like it's one long poem. Not sure how this warranted a mercury prize although it was fairly poor showing that year. 3*

Bit samey but found it pleasant to listen to

Great album, fantastic songs. Of its time.

I can understand why this album's popularity has not endured. Amy Winehouse would release "Frank" the following year (2003), and, let's face it, Winehouse had a far superior voice and better songs compared to Ms. Dynamite. And both R&B and Rap would offer lyrics that are edgier and more socially relevant than "A Little Deeper". If Dimery were to revise his list (yet again), this is one of those albums he should consider dropping altogether.

I had never, NEVER, heard of this lady before this list. A little digging into her career tells me not only did this debut win the UK's Mercury Prize, but that she was given an MBE for her services to music. All this despite her only releasing 2 albums, and the more recent one of them being released 20 years ago! Honestly I'm kind of impressed that someone whose career would otherwise be a footnote in UK hip hop was given as many accolades as her in such a short time. Upon listening to this album cover to cover, I immediately think of 2 things: Lauryn Hill and Destiny's Child. While both are fair and respectable influences given the 2002 release date, it does present a glaring problem: neither of them are Ms. Dynamite. Despite doing her best to make these beats her own, Ms. Dynamite herself unfortunately doesn't stick out of the miry early 2000s R&B instrumental even if she presents something slightly different in her sing-rapping. Lyrically there's a lot of boasting that comes off kind of preachy, which is also the biggest issue I have with Lauryn Hill's Miseducation album. The preachiness is mainly about how much better these women are than their contemporaries, like they've mastered the art of being women artists while the others haven't. Sort of weird impression that I get from them. Anyway, the instrumentals here are all very dated and kind of indistinct compared to the tons of other similarly lowkey hip hop that was coming out (maybe it wasn't as common in the UK?) Though it's fine on its own, the attempt to make this into a seminal album is kind of strange in hindsight; it's as if the critics whose opinions formed this list never got the memo that, in the near quarter-century since this release, Ms. Dynamite has been squarely placed in the Arrested Development section of hip hop history. Key Tracks: Dy-Na-Mi-Tee, Put Him Out, It Takes More

I wanted to hate this, but I didn't

This felt like knockoff destiny’s child. A very not-bad pop/r&b album

Seems to be more of an R&B album that a rap album which is fine by me.

Enjoyed it. Will stay on my listen to in the background list

An ok rap album from the early 2000s without much else to say about it. I recognize the sound, the mixing, the flow as a lot of artists used it around this time. This album didn't stick out to me at all and while not bad I don't really get why its on this list.

It's nice. Not much more I can say though, your average rnb/hip hop album from the turn of the century.

Pretty not bad. 3/5

I gränslandet mellan r&b och rap. Fin röst, bra flow. Inte illa. En stark trea

2,8/5

This alternated between some pretty neat songs, and stuff I just did not care for at all. Put Him Out, It Takes More, Afraid 2 Fly, Danger, and the first half of Ramp (before the minutes of silence and the "secret" song) were all things I enjoyed. The rest is somewhere between "it's there" and actively annoying, especially Watch Over Them. This feels like a strange inclusion on the list because it doesn't really seem like it's doing much of anything super unique or fantastic that it needs to be here over some other albums.

It's typical early 2000s R & B. It's more in an Ashanti way than an Alicia Keys way. It's not very remarkable. Favorite Track: "Dy-Na-Mi-Tee".

Not for me

Well-produced but extremely generic early-00s R'n'B that has absolutely zero reasons to be on this list.

Surprisingly refreshing and conscious British RNB. First half is way way stronger and the album ends up dragging a bit

I mean this is a pretty generic early 2000s rnb album. Nice to see some British rnb get some recognition but this was a bit of a drag at an hour long

Generic British 2000s R&B, in the best and worst way possible at the same time.

Nope, dit is niet mijn ding. Sowieso het genre niet maar de plaat is ook te saai om mij echt te grijpen of het ook maar een beetje interessant te maken. Sick n Tired is een goed voorbeeld. Gewoon een saai nummer. Hele tijd zelfde beat. Zij zingt een beetje verveeld. Zij loopt er blijkbaar zelf niet warm voor. Waarom ik dan wel? 4,5/10

Fun listen. 3.

This is a bit too preachy for me, but the music itself is pretty solid. I just can’t get past the lyrics.

and why is this on the list?

Quite boring to me and probs should not be on the list.

Removed

This feels like pretty forgettable neo-soul. Not that it's bad per se. Just feels like I've heard this same music a million times and I don't even listen to r&b often.

Better than I expected - she at least has a message. The music itself wasn't really my cup of tea though.

This is like completely average UK neo-soul that is now a funny curio because this artist never went anywhere .

Good

느긋한 힙합? 좋네요

Good.

59/100. Not every record needs a flaw to leave you unsatisfied. The opening stretch of tracks didn't do much for me. Thankfully, it improves as it goes along. Once it settles into its stronger contemporary R&B and hip-hop material, there are some genuinely good tracks here. Thematically, the album has a lot going for it. Ms. Dynamite spends much of the record discussing self-respect, self-worth and personal responsibility. Several songs challenge sexism, materialism and destructive behavior. One thing I will never understand, is the hidden-track trend from this era. The final track contains the obligatory hidden track, which is fine, but there is absolutely no reason I need to sit through two minutes of silence to get there. It always feels like a waste of time. It's definitely not a bad record. In fact, there is plenty to admire both musically and lyrically. It just never fully grabbed me in the way I hoped it would. It is a beautifully constructed album that operates with flawless logic, but music is rarely a matter of logic.

Ok but not great

this failed to resonate. haven't had time yet to look her up to see what she's about, 2.5/3 for the efforts?

This album is nickel. Atomic 28. It's durable, corrosion-resistant, and electrically conductive. Like Ms. Dynamite, nickel can stand heat, letting it form them - transformation. She's fundamental.

Sure. Why not? It's music.

Felt derivative. Nothing special. Can think of many better female hiphop artists. Congrats UK, you made one.

Better than Kanye, who was the previous hip hop artist I reviewed.

Niomi Arleen McLean-Daley, die als Ms. Dynamite bekannt wurde, veröffentlichte ihr Debütalbum 2002 über Polydor und ließ dabei zwischen den Aufnahmestudios pendeln: Murlyn Studios in Stockholm, Playpen Recording und Right Track Recording in New York sowie South Beach Studios in Miami. Diese geografische Streuung der Produktion spiegelt sich im Klangbild wider, das UK Garage, Dancehall, R&B und Hip-Hop zu einer eigenständigen britischen Spielart verschmilzt – produziert unter anderem von Salaam Remi, der zur selben Zeit den Sound von Lauryn Hill prägte. Was das Album über die reine Genre-Mischung hinaushebt, ist die Haltung dahinter. Tracks wie „It Takes More" und „Dy-Na-Mi-Tee" verbinden tanzbare Hooks mit unverblümter sozialer Beobachtung – ohne dass die Botschaft den Groove erschlägt oder umgekehrt der Beat die Aussage verwässert. Gerade in dieser Balance liegt die Reife, die das Album 2002 überraschend den Mercury Prize einbrachte, vor arrivierteren Namen wie David Bowie. Nicht jeder Moment trägt diese Intensität gleichermaßen; einige der ruhigeren, balladesken Passagen wirken im Vergleich zu den pointierten Up-Tempo-Stücken etwas blass. Insgesamt bleibt aber ein Debüt, das seine Zeit – das frühe-2000er-UK-Underground-Gefühl – mit erstaunlicher Klarheit einfängt und gleichzeitig persönlich genug bleibt, um nicht im Zeitgeist zu verschwinden. Ein Debüt mit Haltung, das seinen Preis verdient hat, auch wenn es nicht durchgehend auf demselben Niveau bleibt.

This sounded more like the best of american r&b and a little less, i guess, british, than I would've thought after only hearing Dy-na-mi-tee.

Great voice, the slight Jamaican lilt to her vocals is lovely when it manages to shine through. Unfortunately, this is reaching me some 20-30 years too late; this is a sound that went out of fashion long ago, this overproduced R&B meets Hip-hop fusion that was just ubiquitous to the point of tedium. Some tracks do still shine through like "Dy-Na-Mi-Tee", "Brother", "Watch Over Them". Other tracks were nearly there for me: "Afraid 2 Fly", "Seed Will Grow", "Krazy Krush", "Now U Want My Love", "Gotta Let U Know"... Something about the sound profile across these tracks was that bit off for me. I don't know how else to describe why I didn't completely enjoy them. Anything not mentioned track wise was just a no for me. Despite all this, "Put Him Out", I thought, was just another generic song about breaking up with some toxic idiot man, but the section in the middle regarding tolerating violence in the home sending a generational message to a daughter was surprisingly profound; you can only hope Ms. Dynamite managed to get through to a few people over time with this one. Similarly, "It Takes More" calling out the male rap scene on their lyrics and toxic boasting; "Sick n' Tired" after it... her lyrics are all about empowering women more, which is amazing to see release at a time (early 00s) that women were being objectified and commodified more than ever in Western society. It's a shame, then, that it cannot stand the test of time with it's sound, but that's possibly just me. I think nostalgia will do a lot of the heavy lifting for most people who love this.

Holy long album, Batman! There are some excellent songs on here, but I think the album would have been better if they had cut out some of the filler tracks. Ms. Dynamite has a beautiful voice and smooth flow. This was a much needed break from generic dude rock.

There are some good songs on here, but I feel like it could have been cut in half. And there were other artists doing similar work at the time that was executed better.

Some good songs, but not sure why it's on this list

Overlong for how little variety it offers, but it's so smooth and, at times, genuinely affecting. I had a consistently good time with this record. And hallelujah at last something that's not dad rock!

Quality grooves

4/10 Well, it did win the Mercury for 2003, so that does put it forward for inclusion, I suppose. It is more interesting as it is so insipid and boring - it is hard to fathom how the music press regarded it so highly. Fell flat within a year and Miss Dynamite disappeared once the Zeitgeist had rolled on without her. Certainly not a timeless piece of music

2026.06.21-23.

Really solid album, didn't feel as long as it is

This is pretty stinky of 2000s R&B but it is well produced and has a little swag. Not the most embarrassing pick from this era.

Well that was boring

лучше бы Джорджу Смит или хотя бы Рианну вместо нее поставили какой-то проходной альбом

#965. Why is there a greater than zero amount of British rap albums on this list? The entire genre of British rap should be eradicated from the history of mankind. The shit is all just so bad. 2/5: stupid

I remember Dy-Na-Mi-Tee from when this came out; I liked it then, and still do. This album is pretty decent - I also liked Krazy Krush, among others. Another high three.

Sounded fresh in the early 2000s and was surprised to find it stills feels that way 24 years later. It represents the enjoyable side of the UK garage scene. This album is full of catchy tracks that are perfect for a sunny day. It taips off toward the end but the first 3/4s mean this is probably a 3.5/5 but alas it will go down here as a 3/5 for Ms Dy-Na-Mi-Tee

I wasn’t looking forward to listening to this, and I didn’t expect to enjoy it. But it was excellent. I hated “Dy-Na-Mi-Tee” when it came out and, unsurprisingly, I still do. Which is ironic, as that was the biggest hit from the album. However, I think “Put Him Out”, especially, and “It Takes More”, were the better singles and both sound amazing nearly 25 years later. The album tracks were mostly great, none feeling like true filler, although the quality did peel off a little in the last handful. At the age of 10, when this originally came out, I obviously wasn’t listening to the lyrics (which was probably for the best); however, listening now, I find it very powerful lyrically a lot of times. A real surprise for me, this one.

This was much, much better than I expected. The singles from this album were incredibly popular at time of release (in the UK, I assume this is baffling to the non-Brits listening), and I have a massive soft spot for Put Him Out as a result. I had never heard the album though. I think she has a great voice, the production is fun, everything feels pretty catchy and funky. If anything I'm surprised this hasn't had much longevity. I am guessing Di-Na-Mi-Tee might be to blame. A massive song that grabbed the public attention, but was also endlessly parodied, feels like a double-edged sword. I imagine it made her a lot of money, but probably made it very hard to not be the di-na-mi-tee-hee woman. This was probably a 3.5 for me, but I really had fun listening to it, so it's getting a surprising: 4/5

4/10 Was pretty good but not that memorable for me

Another also ran that does little to grab your attention but not really bad.

Not my genre but a great album - some familiar songs and great catchy beat

Some good beats here, but not my favorite of the time period.

Not bad

This was some relatively harmless and tolerable knock-off Beyoncé/Rihanna type R&B . . . until the Britrapping started. Then it became harmful and intolerable.

499/1089 - This is for sure early 2000s British RnB.

Ms. Dynamite (she’s Jamaican/Scottish) is a good stage name for this English rap singer. Are we still substituting “U” for you and “2” for too? Seems like that ship sailed years ago. I see that Ms. Dynamite was the musical guest on SNL way back when, although I don’t remember her. This album was fine for a rap album. I did not care for the long silence before the last track.

I have never heard of Ms. Dynamite. Has anyone? OK, apparently she was on SNL, so that's my bad. This feels very like 90s US R&B, even though it's 00s British "ragga". Case in point: the "U" for "you" and "2" for "to". (I wish 3LW were on here. Or Usher.) Anyway, good for what it is, but again, not my preferred genre (due to being boring AF). Slur count = 8. Highlights: 'Put Him Out' (a classic "girl, dump him" track)

Nije loše a to znam jer me nije smorilo slušati cijeli album, sviđa mi se poprilično i glas i mislim da se to zove flow.

Decent

The good and the bad, in my opinion, that this sounds like any other early 2000s R&B / hip-hop album. Nothing really stood out as innovative. But I caught myself grooving and nodding all the same.

Natural High (Interlude) - 3/5 Dy-Na-Mi-Tee - 4.5/5 Anyway U Want It - 4/5 Put Him Out - 3/5 Brother - 3/5 It Takes More - Bloodshy Main Mix - 4/5 Sick'n'Tired - 3/5 Afraid 2 Fly - 3.5/5 Watch Over Them - 3/5 Seed Will Grow (feat. Kymani Marley) - 2.5/5 Krazy Krush - 2.5/5 Now U Want My Love - 3/5 Gotta Let U Know - 3/5 All I Ever - 2.5/5 A Lil Deeper / Get Up Stand - 2.5/5

Positively surprised! I like the bass heavy beats with a dancehall/reggae vibe to them. The first 5 tracks are strong, the next 5 are quite good, while the last 5 are weak and superfluous.

A good example of how critics are sometimes bad at understanding what will leave a lasting impact. The beats and production are not bad, but she’s not that strong of an rapper and she’s an unbelievably preachy and on-the-nose lyricist.

There are a couple of great tracks on here and I am surprised at how good her singing voice is. Strong opening and then fades away in the second half. Kind of Lauryn Hill wannabe but not quite up to the task. Not sure why this won the Mercury

1.93

Some good tunes on this and she has a decent voice

Good album. Not surprised this doesn't have a high rating on this site as it doesn't involve a white man playing guitar solos. Hey ho, I like her

Some nice songs, not entirely my thing.

No single tracks really stood out on this to me, but it still had pretty good vibes. I enjoyed myself in a non-specific way.

En ymmärrä miten päätynyt tälle listaukselle. Todella geneeristä, en jaksanut kuunnella loppuun. 1,25/5.

No standouts, but not unpleasant

R&B is soooo not my thing so I find this hard to assess. I can't stand it but also appreciate it's well made and a few songs are quite catchy. A generous 3 it is then.

I don't quite understand what this brings to the table. Surely there must have been more interesting early 2000s women hip-hop albums. This just feels like generic light hip-hop you'd hear on the radio back in the day that you instantly forget about afterwards. And still the same to this day.

Some pretty generic 2000s RnB. It was off to a good start with Dy-Na-Mi-Te but then it just started to fade. Although I also thought “Krazy Krush” was ok (glad the trend of using K instead of C faded, god that was cringe). Was going to go for a weak 3 since it wasn’t bad, just pretty generic. However, the runtime is way too long which pushes it down to strong 2 territory. I honestly don’t know what makes this special compared to all the other 2000s RnB out there.

Generisk og kjedelig.

- for lengde. Sterk start men blir veldig repetativt mot slutten. Veldig bra ellers. 3+

Hadde aldri hørt om hverken artist eller album. Satt på albumet mens jeg satt med armene i kors som en trassig onge og var klar for å hate. Ble positivt overrasket og overrekker herved en ydmyk firer.

Jente-hiphop med runde kanter og oppbyggelige tekster. Ufarlig og uinteressant. Må vel forsvinne ut av lista snart? Fint nok til å forsvare en toer, men glemt i morgen.

This isnt bad. It made me miss the early 2000s style of production. My only other observation is that its crazy that this album, 2 Amy Winehouse albums, and other "R&B" albums made in or similar in style made the list but there is no Mary J. Blige albums.

Some good songs, some less than good songs. All in all a nice start to my morning.

Didn't really blow me away or anything. It wasn't terrible, but I was also kinda ready to be done with it before the last song.

I had not heard of Ms.Dynamite before but she sounds very much of that time period. I enjoyed it and listened to it twice. Not groundbreaking or exceptional but very good.

Great voice, strong production, perfectly fine songwriting ... it's good. It's fine. I don't find it memorable or interesting or distinctive. If you do everything right according to the formula, you can make a well crafted generic album. Docked one star for being interminable. This thing is long!

Sure, this is fine. The beats are good, and occasionally the kind that grab my bones and make me dance--thank you. The production is fun and novel. Her voice is good; the lyrics are weak. May you be well, Niomi Daley; what are you up to now?

It felt very awkward

I mean... I didn't hate this. I feel like I should have, but I just didn't. Not sure I would ever listen to this again, but I'm not sad I sat through it.

I really liked this! I preferred the first half to the second.

I liked this. I have never heard of Ms. Dynamite before. A surprise since this album came out 25 years ago. It still sounds super relevant and new today. I didn't listen closely enough so can't comment on the lyrics at all, but the overall vibe and production style sounded well done.

Can someone explain to me why I needed to hear this album before I died? It just feels like generic, modern soul/R&B/hip-hop, which honestly just does nothing for me.

There’s some good stuff on this record. Definitely a touch of TLC/Destiny’s Child. Can’t say there is anything innovative or particularly unique here.

I have such a hard time connecting with British hip hop for some reason, no matter the artist. This wasn’t awful, but I was mostly bored by it, and the album was definitely too long.

It was fine for what it was, I’m just not a fan of R&B. Rating: 1.9

Another album that seems like it's here largely because it won the Mercury Prize. Now, don't get me wrong, I think it's... Fine. Closer to "good" than not, but still ultimately just "fine." I mean, its biggest flaw is that I feel like I could be getting this R&B sound from a bunch of other artists, and much better at that. For what it is, this album doesn't do it badly. But it does nothing to convince me this album isn't here just for the contributors' bias towards UK music and nothing deeper.

Not much on my end to say. It's just a decent R&B album. 3.5 bumped down to 3.

I’m at a 4.5 that I’ll bump down to a 4. This is the closest thing we’ll get to a Mary J. Blige album on the list, and for that, I’m not complaining. Ms. Dynamite’s vocal range channels just about everyone in the hip-hop / R&B space at the time, going as nasally as Amy Winehouse at some point, as deep as Mary J. Blige at others, and sometimes channeling Ashanti & Whitney Houston’s more aged vocals of this era. The early 2000s might’ve been a bit crowded in terms of this general style, but it’s just interesting to hear it comes from the other side of the pond & done as successfully as it’s done here. I genuinely don’t think there’s a bad track here at all, and from going through the original UK version (that means cutting out “Danger” & “Ramp” while listening on Spotify), it’s a pretty breezy hour with a solid enough variety to never get TOO stale. It does, however, get a little stale, and that’s the main reason I’m bumping this down to a 4 as opposed to going up to a 5. There’s a lot of little reasons peppered into that, all of which aren’t super bothersome on their own, but as something that piles up throughout the album, just gets too big to ignore. The most obvious one comes in the outros – a lot of these tracks stagnate for the last minute or so, ending on the chorus repeating a couple of times while the instrumental (which has run its course) just kinda goes on in a way that becomes easy to tune out. This could’ve easily been fixed if the tracks cut out a bit sooner, or if the instrumentals just had some extra progression upon reaching the outros. The instrumentals, however, are the second most obvious one: they just don’t quite hit a consistent vibrancy throughout. They’re all good, don’t get me wrong, & many of them are great, but too many of them settle too early, occasionally feeling a lot emptier on some tracks. This becomes a lot more apparent in the back half of the album, especially on stuff like “Sick ‘n’ Tired” or “All I Ever”. A lot of R&B / pop artists at this time would typically keep lifting a track up more & more, layering it with vocal runs & extra backing melodies to give it some extra pep, but the production work here just doesn’t really do that. It’s there, but it doesn’t do it to enough of a degree to give it the lift it needs. When the instrumentals REALLY hit (see: “It Takes More”), it fucking rocks, but it doesn’t hit like that as often as I wish it did. The third thing is just in a bit of topic reuse; her songwriting is lovely & vivid, able to capture the pain of her harder relationships while being able to capture the love she has for her family. It’s a decently biographical album, and I think her vocals portray that reflection well. There’s some intimacy here that enhances a lot of the tracks. It also makes it stick out when she’s reusing some topics, leading to a slight bloat that doesn’t make the album flow as cleanly as it can. I love her talking so confidently about her self-worth, but when there’s a lot of tracks preaching about that self-worth that don’t approach the topic in a more unique way, it just doesn’t hit as hard on the subsequent tracks. I know I devoted 3 paragraphs to the reason I’m docking this half a percentage point, but I’m just an over-explainer, really. There’s lots to like about this album in particular; the versatility in her flow, the songwriting, & some of the cooler production work. Again, it doesn’t elevate in a way that I’d prefer, but that’s just my tastes talking. Ultimately, I think this album holds up well; sure, it’s not doing anything so overly innovative in a way that might tick some people’s boxes for an album you HAVE to hear before you die, but it’s just consistently good to great. Yes, you’ll get the same general musical diet if you listen to Lauryn Hill, Amy Winehouse, or Missy Elliott, but you can’t tell me that “similar musical diet” isn’t present for other sets of bands / artists on a lot of this list overall. It’s called genres, people. As it stands, it’s a catchy hour that had my head bumping to the beat & my brain impressed by some lines / flows, and that’s all I can ask for from an R&B album of the era. Hence, a 4.5 that I’ll bump down to a 4, though it could get up to a 5 someday.

Decent, never heard of this artist before but I didn't hate it

What a nice surprise! This album is great and I love her voice. Might bump it up to a 5 after a couple of listens.

I'm pretty sure that while I'm on my deathbed I won't be saying, "I'm happy I heard that Ms. Dynamite album!"

i remember hearing about this album when it came out but never got a chance to listen to it. it's good. sometimes, really good. i think it could be cut down to well under an hour and be great. i think she shines best with her reggae undertones, but anytime that electric keyboard plays behind her is pretty damn good

Dy-Na-Mi-Tee instantly took me back to my youth. Such a catchy song with a great hook. The rest of the album is really good. Lots of good, boppy hooks, very easy to listen to and enjoy.

Will listen to this again, really cool.

Totally into this. It sounds like early 90s, but No! It’s from 2002.

A R&B/Hip-hop album from the early 2000s that sounds like an R&B/Hip-hop album from the early 2000s. There are a handful of bops on this album that actually made me like it more than I thought I was going to (see Put Him Out). However, the generic sound coupled with it being over an hour long made me lose interest and prevented me from giving it a higher score. 3.5 rounded down to a 3/5

Some nice r&b vibes on this. Lots of lovely sounds and textures and I enjoyed the reggae influences... None of the tracks really stuck with me though.

UK r&b라는 장르로군,,, 이런거 좋아

Some good songs on this album, and I enjoyed the listen. Not quite Lauryn Hill, but would still listen again Rating: 6/10 Favorite Song: Get up Stand Up

good one. 2.7/5

3/5. I can imagine the hidden track is more impressive when ran on a disc/record, but it made me start troubleshooting my streaming service

Nothing wrong with this album. But there's a reason why we talk about Erykah, Amy, and Lauryn and not Ms. Dynamite.

Not bothered really. It's OK. Heard before ❌️ Listened this time ✅️ Revisit ❌️ ★★★☆☆ (5/10) Total reviewed : 312 Already owned : 69 Purchased : 15 To buy : 4 Nope : 224

Finally a female artist, feels like a breath of fresh air in this parade of old men. Ramp was my favorite, which surprised me later in the album

Boring hiphop

A mixture of R&B singing, conscious rap, and some "men-ain't-shit' style pop; there's a little something here for everybody. I'd listen to a few cuts again, but this isn't really my jam.

Boring

Det här pisset tog väl en massa priser från the streets? Mer eller mindre olyssningsbart. Körde med ljudsystemet och helsike vilken usel ljudproduktion. .

Även om jag inte hört det förut fick jag lite nostalgiska känslor till tiden man lyssnade på radiokanalen the voice of hiphop and rnb. Inte alls min smak längre dock. Ligger väl i gränslandet mellan 2 och 3.

Gillade viben men alldeles för ointressant för att vara så långt.

Ok, ”dy-na-mi-tee” är ju fortfarande en banger. I övrigt ingenting som gör att det här albumet ska vara med på en sån här lista. Helt bisarrt att den är med faktiskt. Inte lika irriterad som av att 1000 album av super furry animals fått plats, men nästan. Det mesta är för jävla generiskt och för jävla långt. Jobbigt att dra igenom hela timmen.

Fet flashback till Fifa 2002(?). Men inte så bra

1. Put Him Out 2. Now U Want My Love 3. A Lil Deeper / Get Up Stand Up hm: Watch Over Them, It Takes More, Brother

Me gustó.

Estoy de acuerdo en que este album se quedo algo outdated pero veo mucho odio en las reviews y no me parece para tanto, esta bastante bien 7/10

Now this is what I’m here for! Banging! New sounds! New environments!

She was so good here. I'll be going back to this one!

This was not great. But when something was good, it was awesome. Lots of hits, but I am not sure I would return to this album. It did feel like the songs went on and on. Probably a 2.5 Liked Songs: "Dy-Na-Mi-Tee" , "Put Him Out" , "It Takes More" , "Sick 'n' Tired" , "Krazy Krush" , "All I Ever"

A somewhat interesting listen but the whole album didnt give me like WOAHHHH, just lacked a lil dopamine I guess! Krazy Krush has some sick beats tho

Phew! This album is boring. It might not be even truly bad, but it's really really dull. It's exactly the kind of monotonous rap with R&B samples from Ableton's default presets that you've heard in countless other productions. I really have no idea what’s so special about it, or why it made the 1001 Albums list. Surely there must be plenty of other rap and R&B recordings out there that sound less streamlined and generic?

This was a fun album that acts as a perfect time capsule into late 90's/early 2000s R&B hip hop. It might not be the best example of the genre but it brought me back in a wave of nostalgia.

An enjoyable listen spanning multiple genres, but not really the kind of thing I would reach for unless I am in a very particular mood.

This is fine, but sounds like a Lauren Hill knock off, without as much depth or production value. That sounds too harsh — it’s not bad, just not noteworthy and a little repetitive. A 2.

After a couple of listens I think this is a great little album. Love the feel, love the voice, love how it feels like a band for a number of tracks. It's a 3.5 for me, but bumping.

This album has a serious problem with a lack of black solo female artists featured, especially black solo female HIP HOP artists. And yet, somehow, this made the cut. Genuinely kind of indefensible. This is truly awful. Not only is the music bland and forgettable, every song features the artist’s weirdly puritanical moralizing, a boring “holier than thou” attitude about sex and violence and drugs that she can’t stop fucking singing about - and her singing is bad and her rapping is mid. Cannot fathom why this is here. Hated every second of listening to this, truly shameful it’s on the list. Probably the new worst album I’ve listened to.

Not bad at all, if I were into black girlie pop. But I’m not. Ms. Dynamite sounds like she’s got something in her mouth. She mumbles. Maybe it’s cool. But I just don’t get it. 3/5

Never been a huge fan of this style of music, but damn this girl has a good voice. I was hooked directly from the intro. Dy-na-mi-tee was great, and I don’t say that lightly. It had good flow, was rhythmic, I really liked it. Any way u want it was a nice duet! I was not expecting a guitar riff out of this, but Put Him Out gave me one. I also loved the lyrics of this one. Brother was really sweet. It takes more was so enjoyable! This is one that I actually might end up listening to outside of this challenge. Sick and tired was a complete bop! Time 2 Fly had a great beat! Krazy Krush had some nice musical moments. All I ever was actually very calming to listen to. A lil deeper/get up stand up was a great closer to a pretty damn good album. Super glad I got this today. Not a huge fan of listening to hidden tracks on streaming, but eh, it’s not a hill imma die on. 4/5 ⭐️ 114/1089

There was certainly nothing wrong with this. But it did not grip me in any meaningful way.

# Album Name: A Little Deeper # Artist: Ms Dynamite # Rating: 2/5 # Comments: This album is poop. # Top Tunes: # Would I listen to it again? No

No longer in the book. Much better than I imagined - a bit generic at times but solid R&B with good production and vocals. Won the Mercury Prize at the time, like every album they added from the early 2000s before promptly removing them.

As someone from the UK that enjoys garage style UK hip hop from the 00's this was always going to be up my street. I think it's a less refined UK version of Lauryn Hill in a lot of ways. I'm a fan.

Я ні на що не розраховувала, зважаючи на те, що вперше чую про цього виконавця, а обкладинка не вселяла довіри. Проте це було дуже добре

I liked this, it was pretty funky, and the backing tracks were tuneful. A lot of it was sung, rather than rapped, and it reminded me a bit of TLC etc. A true seven out of ten... I feel bad rounding it down, but it was a tad long.

A little RiRi, a little Lauryn Hill, I really dug this and there are some real highlights! But like so many of these kinds of records from this time period, it gets overlong and same-y after a while, so I've got a take a star off of my rating of it as an album.

Ms. Firecracker, maybe. Ms. Sparkler? A few good grooves here, but it’s not feeling super-special or essential. She’s pretty chill but also sounds like other artists who move my needle more.

very fun

Great voice

Great voice, great raps, awesome vibes

The album is just decent at best in my opinion. I do appreciate that it's more thoughtful and conscious than many other rap/hip hop albums on this list though and it does stand against what a lot of other rap albums stand for but this genre isn't really my cup of tea. I'd give the album three stars out of five simply for the fact that Get Up Stand Up Is on here and is probably a song we all need to hear.

Some good songs, some duds. Could have been a shorter album, and my opinion would have been higher.

Sounds like a bunch of others that aren’t great either. Not a fan of this one.

How was this not on my radar before, is it because this is a UK sound? I admit I wasn't looking forward to it when I did my superficial reading, but that reggae background and soulful lyrics are pretty tight. It's slightly dated, definitely sounds like the 2000s, so maybe a there's some positive millennial bias. It's not like every track stands out, but it doesn't stop at the obvious banger, it holds firm until it ends. I'm particularly fond of the hidden track on the ending, it wasn't split to benefit the streaming service and it makes the track feel like a bonus. Also, great re interpretation, gotta appreciate the message and the ideas. 3.9/5

Dy-Na-Mi-Tee fikk skiva til å høres lovende ut. Deretter følger en kavalkade av 2000-talls pop som poserer som kul musikk. Hva separerer egentlig Ms. Dynamite fra et Destiny's Child eller Pussycat Dolls? At det er litt mer oomph i bassen? At hun bruker posisjonen sin til å gi anti drug statements? Keiserens nye klær i full effekt.

Ikke så ille som jeg trodde det kom til å være, men ikke helt min stil heller.

Enjoyable hip hop, would listen to again

I had no idea there was such a genre, but this is landfill R'n'B. Some nice novelties surrounded by trite digital production shortcuts. It's a shame because she comes form a sound place, hence not a 1

This was a great album. I'd give it 4.5 stars if possible because I can't Forsee myself coming back often. But I'll round up to a 5.

Nice Album, an unexpected blend of Sounds, but very well put together

I love 2000s era rnb and this sounds exactly like I expected it to

The fact that one of the most popular reviews of this album on this site says it's "standard R&B" should tell you a lot about the user base here. What little hip hop is included on this list is always a pleasant surprise, including this album. Delightful Y2K EK Hip hop. 3.5/5

Just a. Regular r and b record. Can tell she’s British - some points reminded me of Amy wine house. It’s fine but not something I needed to hear. Ah this record featured the classic late 90s early 2000s dead air for seemingly ever then a half minute of a secret track. What an awful trend.

Ms. Dynamite's debut is chock-full of dull, garden-variety lyrics that lack any kind of unique perspective or insight. Her flow is unremarkable, and her singing emphasizes vocal flourishes over fundamentals - it's all frosting and no cake.

It's not my genre, but I did enjoy it. "Dynamite" was good.

well new area to me

Hip hop is on average one of my highest-rated genres except for when I get some bullshit hip hop album from the UK. These albums have no reason to be here. Sorry to gatekeep, but the Brits need to keep their grubby hands off of hip hop music.

Honestly kind of a banger album. I'm going to give this one the benefit of the doubt and bump it to 4 because I think the album had a lot of variety, but all the tracks were bangers, and the vibe was great. Lots of songs from this are going on my slow pour playlist. Favorite track was Anyway U Want It.

If the whole album had been like what the first few minutes promised this could have been fun. Instead it completely changed into boring retreads of already done music.

No worth the vinyl.

Thoroughly enjoyed the first few tracks, some of the latter less so but not bad.

One of several records where I'd be interested to read fella's review in his book, because this feels pleasant but inessential. But I certainly prefer her flows to Southern rap.

This kind of UK garage R&B isn’t really my kind of thing. It’s fine, but I find it quite drab and uninteresting. This also robbed The Streets of the Mercury prize that year.

Me peguei mexendo os ombrinhos por várias músicas

Nah

It's fairly enjoyable, not as bad as a lot of the early 2000s stuff I hate but not particularly worth talking about 20+ years later.

I know I’ve heard the name, but I’m not sure who Ms. Dynamite is. Our friend Wikipedia says she is a British singer and rapper. I might have known that at one time. This album came out in 2002 and won the Mercury Prize, which is given to the best album in the United Kingdom and Ireland. That’s about all our buddy Wikipedia has. So, I’m going in blind with not much to go on. She is English, so that’s interesting. Track 1 is Natural High (Interlude). Ah, yes, the interlude on rap albums. Not exactly sure how or why this trend started, but I guess most rappers think of themselves as comedians as well? At most, interludes on hip-hop and rap albums are meant to be funny. , Miss D has a bit of a Jamaican accent, I hear. Which makes sense as her father was Jamaican. She seems to be anti-drug, which is commendable. Track 2 is Dy-Na-Mi-Tee and the music is very laid back. I’m sure it’s sampled. Oh, snap! I’ve heard this song. This was the second single off the album. She’s kind of rapping, but it also sounds like she’s singing. It’s nothing new or innovative, but it sn’t straight rapping. Good track. It has a sample of Jimmy “JJ” Walker yelling “Dynomite!” in the middle of the song. You whippersnappers can Google that. Not sure the song was released here as a single, but it was a top 40 hit throughout Europe. How do I know this? Track 3 is Anyway You Want and it features Keon Bryce, who I believe is a singer. So far, this album is pretty good. Less rap, more singing. I feel like I’ve heard this song too. It wasn’t a single though. Maybe I listened to this album when it came out in 2002. Track 4 is Put Him Out and it was the third single off the album. I’m really enjoying this album, but it’s not necessarily anything mind-blowing. Oddly, it seems like after one more full-length album and a mixtape in 20025 and 2006 respectively, Miss Dynamite essentially stopped making music. Or she at least stopped releasing it. As I continued to listen to the album, I could hear a bit of an Eminem influence in certain songs. Not necessarily his rapping style, but kind of the playful music that appears in some of his songs. Early on in his career, a lot of his songs sounded playful and fun. Track 6, It Takes More, sounds like it could have been an Eminem track. It was also a single. I’m down to track 10, Seed Will Grow, featuring Kymani Marley, and these middle songs all have a Dr. Dre vibe to them. I pointed out that track 6 sounds like an Eminem track, well, Dr. Dre produced most of his tracks that sounded like that. So maybe they don't sound like Eminem tracks so much as they sound like Dr. Dre tracks. It seems the album was produced by some Swiss guys known as Bloodshy & Avant. Those dudes have a resume featuring a ton of the most popular pop divas over the last 20 years. That may explain why the music sounds pretty good. This album is a pretty good pop album. This album ended up being a fun listen, though I’m not hearing anything groundbreaking. I’d like to know the reasoning for each album's addition to the 1,001 Albums list, but it’s hard to track down a current, affordable copy of the book. Some albums are easy to see why they’d be included, while others, like this album from Miss Dynamite, it isn’t exactly clear why this is a must-listen. For lovers of hip-hop, pop, and Eminem, I think you’d really enjoy this album. It’s about three to four songs too long, but every album these days is like that, it seems. I’m sure a real hip-hop fan will dig this album, as for me, it’s cool, but I doubt I’ll ever hear it again.

Liked it a lot! Maybe with a few listens more I would let it grow even more on me. Loved production, lyrics, vocals, themes. Really Y2K core.

I really enjoyed this album. It’s quite a surprise.

Absolutely amazing it gives ms lauren hill the whole time I was debating on 4 or 5 but 5 is well deserved

Ok. Probably will listen again when in the mood for it…like her lyrics. 3.0

2.5

Naishiphopia 2000 luvulta, eiköhän se tältä silloin kuulostanut. Ei hassumpaa

ok

The R&B songs weren't bad. Didn't like the rap songs.

What an odd album to have on this list. I've never heard of her before and from what I can tell from a quick internet search, she was kind of a flash in the pan (being generous) and was only ever even well known in Britain. Is that the making of an album that everyone needs to hear before they die? We shall see... Well she has a good voice but this is nothing that hasn't been done a million times before. Even for when it was released. The bad thing is that this could be released today and would probably get the same reception, it kind of shows how little this kind of music has progressed. It's not my thing, I tired of this quickly and started to tune it out subconsciously. And that's not what you want. 2/5

The single has a really catchy hook - "Ms Dynamite-ee-ee", and there are some pleasant moments on the rest of the album. Overall, though, this is not essential listening.

Really good rap/r&b album. She has a great voice, delivery and flow. Really enjoyed the album overall. Lyrics are good and meaningful.

This was nothing more than fine.

Extreme recency bias. I'm assuming this one was struck from later editions of the book.. but then I'm just generally uninterested in this genre to start with.

Alright bit not sure why on list.

Ok but diminishing returns album

Great production and pretty decent songs

a couple incredible standout tracks but the rest of the album didn’t do much for me

4.5/10 - This feels like an odd inclusion to me. Maybe this was really big at a certain time, but it didn’t have staying power. I know this list skews towards UK/US albums, but even so I think there are a vast number of more influential hip-hop or RB albums that would have made more sense on the list.

It's too long and is bloated. It's nothing offensively bad but there isn't a song on here that I would visit again. 4/10

Too long, not my thing. 2.9/5

I've said it before, and I'll keep saying it until the day I die: Britons should not be making hip-hop or anything hip-hop adjacent. It just never actually sounds good at all, and this album is no exception.

Never really thought about the idea of middle of the road rnb/hip hop, well now I have. Definitely Amy Winehouse sounding vocals, which is a surprise as not everone from London sounds like this, and this predates her, wonder why this is less well known? Mmm, less tabloid interest, less pale? Personally think this is a better record too. is in and of itself kinda okish, nice enough listen but it’s stuck in low gear and well all the fun that brings, you get there, and some nice scenery on the way but not too thrilling. As another review puts, quiet pedestrian. It's OK, it's nice enough, don't know I needed to definitely hear, but I haven't not sure essential but there you go. 3 Star

En 2002, le Mercury Prize fait office de baromètre de la coolitude absolue, et voir Ms. Dynamite (Naomi Arleen McLean-Daley pour l'état civil) rafler la mise devant l'auguste David Bowie ou les Doves a fait l'effet d'une détonation. A Little Deeper, c'est avant tout un concentré de ce qui se passait dans les sous-sols moites de Londres à la fin des années 90 et au tout début des années 2000. On y trouve ce mélange bâtard et fascinant entre le UK Garage, le Dancehall, le R&B et le Hip-Hop. Mais là où beaucoup se seraient contentés de balancer des beats basiques pour faire bouger les têtes en soirée, Ms. Dynamite a eu l'audace de vouloir y injecter du cerveau, du cœur, et une dose massive de conscience sociale. La production est confiée à des orfèvres comme Salaam Remi (celui qui a sculpté le son de Lauryn Hill et d'Amy Winehouse), et ça s'entend. Il y a une rondeur dans les basses, une chaleur organique qui tranche radicalement avec les productions synthétiques et froides qui commençaient à saturer les ondes à cette époque. Dès les premières secondes, ce qui surprend, c'est ce débit. Ms. Dynamite ne chante pas seulement, elle assène. Son phrasé est hérité des MCs de Garage, cette urgence verbale qui ne laisse aucun répit. Elle a cette capacité rare de passer d'un toast purement jamaïcain à une ligne de chant soul veloutée sans que l'on crie à l'imposture. Elle incarne cette génération multiculturelle qui n'a plus besoin de choisir entre ses racines et son environnement immédiat. Le contenu lyrique est, lui aussi, à des années-lumière de la vacuité habituelle du R&B mainstream. Elle parle de la réalité des cités, de la violence, de l'absence des pères, mais aussi de l'émancipation des femmes. Elle pointe du doigt les dérives matérialistes du hip-hop ("It Takes More") avec une verve qui ferait passer bien des rappeurs à grosses gourmettes pour des enfants de chœur. Le gros problème de l'album et qui justifie sa note. C'est qu'il est parsemé de titres "trop" R&B, des morceaux qui semblent avoir été conçus pour brosser les radios américaines dans le sens du poil. Sur ces pistes-là, la rugosité disparaît, la tension chute, et on se retrouve avec une soupe un peu tiède, certes bien produite, mais qui manque singulièrement de la hargne qui fait le sel du reste de l'opus. On sent la patte des labels qui veulent transformer la "Camden Girl" en star globale formatée. Ces moments de mollesse sont d’autant plus flagrants qu’ils contrastent avec la brillance absolue de titres comme "Dy-Na-Mi-Tee" ou "Put Him Out". Quand elle s'égare dans la ballade mielleuse, elle perd son identité, elle devient interchangeable avec n'importe quelle autre starlette du R&B de l'époque. C'est la raison qui empêche le disque d'atteindre le statut de chef-d'œuvre intemporel et indéboulonnable. Malgré ces quelques scories commerciales, l'album reste une pièce maîtresse pour comprendre l'évolution de la musique urbaine britannique. Sans Ms. Dynamite, pas de Lady Sovereign, pas de Little Simz, et peut-être même pas d'une Amy Winehouse qui aurait eu plus de mal à imposer son mélange des genres. Ce disque a une authenticité qui transpire à travers les haut-parleurs. Même dans ses moments les plus lisses, la voix de Niomi garde ce grain, cette petite fêlure qui rappelle qu'elle n'est pas là par hasard. Elle porte sur ses épaules tout le poids d'une jeunesse qui veut s'en sortir, et elle le fait avec une dignité impressionnante. Le travail de production sur les morceaux phares est un cas d'école. On y entend l'héritage du dub, la structure du reggae et l'efficacité de la pop. C’est un équilibre précaire qui, quand il fonctionne, produit des étincelles. A Little Deeper est le témoignage d'une époque où l'on pensait encore que le succès commercial pouvait rimer avec intégrité artistique et message politique. Sa présence dans la bible de Robert Dimery est totalement justifiée. Non pas parce que c'est un disque parfait (on a vu que non), mais parce qu'il capture un instant T de l'histoire culturelle. C'est l'album qui a prouvé que la scène UK pouvait produire quelque chose de massif, de pertinent et de radicalement différent du modèle dominant US. En résumé, A Little Deeper est une aventure audacieuse. C'est un voyage dans les rues de Londres, avec ses zones d'ombre, sa violence, mais aussi sa beauté brute et sa lumière. C'est l'œuvre d'une artiste qui avait des choses à dire et qui a trouvé le moyen de les hurler avec classe. On pardonnera volontiers les quelques écarts vers la variétoche R&B pour ne garder en mémoire que cette énergie explosive, cette dynamite qui, vingt ans plus tard, n'a toujours pas fini de faire des dégâts dans nos oreilles.

Not normally my genre but she was pretty good 3.5/5

Dy-Na-Mi-Tee It Takes More

If you like Amy Winehouse or Jill Scott you’ll enjoy this.

Really good! British Lauryn Hill!

This is very same-y to a lot of other female rap and R&B artists that came out around this time. Nothing really exciting here. Not bad, but definitely not noteworthy. What's more noteworthy is that I've never heard of this artist before. I'm guessing this is one of those Brit-centric artists that never got airplay in the US.

nice

New to my ears, never heard of her …across the pond and never had another album …loved it, super energetic effort!

Unlistenable trash. Maybe you might like this record if you prefer women who sound as if they've been ruffied. Ctrl Alt Delete

The main song is alright, but the records fairly bland.

1. high - 0 2. dynamite - 1 3. uuant - 1 4. out - 0 5. brother - 1 6. more - 0 7. zick - 0 8. fly - 0 9. uuatch - 1 10.grow - 1 11. Crazy - 0 12. Love - 0 13.know - 1 14. Ever - 1 15. Deeper - 1

жесть я обалдела с песни dynamite! Крутой альбом

It's like fine. For a english album, has absolutely no bullshit vocal style comes from across the pond, which is a very positive attribute. A very American R&B sounding album with nods to reggae and dancehall sounds. But without context its largely forgetable, somewhat ignorable. Stylistically bold and executed very well. But in '02 we got an Ashanti and a Missy Elliot release. So this is gonna be a pretty far down the list in female rap/r&b albums.

I was surprised this was on the list, so I looked into it, and it didn't surprise me to find out that it was removed from the 1001 list later. Also, I read a pretty good review of this album on rateyourmusic from someone in the UK, and they explained why it was so big at the time but has since not aged well and seems less significant. Basically, it was before The Streets, Dizzee Rascal, and many other Brit rappers that come in just the few years after and actually did something more "new" and significant (even for people that don't like it), whereas I just feel Ms. Dynamite sounds generic.

What is this and why am I getting it. I am not interested in this. This album has a song on it called “krazy krush.” What the fuck. I’m going to London today in other news. Uhh I’m not finishing this. This is insanely boring. Just like I cannot even stand how boring this project is. I’m not finishing this, no. Disappointed in this site. 3.4/10

Surprisingly modern RnB music which does not sound 25 years old.

Great production, but otherwise unremarkable from a modern perspective. Ignoring the effect it may or may not have had at the time.

at least i could finish it

Don't really see what makes this special. In hindsight it seems to fit right in with the rest of the good early 2000s RnB, but doesn't stand out to me in any way.

started really interessting but sadly turned out way too boring. Especially the tracks without instruments and just singing were not good at all.

Fun album, feels much fresher than its age.

Yessss