Konnichiwa

Sayonara.

I'm glad that's over. At first I thought, ok, I can get through this, it's not too horrible, but as it went on I started hating it more and more. I don't enjoy rap to begin with but something about British rap just makes me cringe. 2 stars for the effort.

The ting goes skrrrahh (Ah) Pap, pap, ka-ka-ka (Ka-ka) Skidiki-pap-pap (Pap) And a pu-pu-pudrrrr-boom (Boom) Skya (Ah) Du-du-ku-ku-dun-dun (Dun) Poom, poom You don' know

Constantly amused by American adhering so closely to their stereotypes in these reviews! Absolutely deserves it's place on this list because: 1. It's fucking awesome 2. It's took grime to the next level commercially, creating space for the UK rap derivatives that are still dominating the UK charts to this day 3. The list is not an American list.

Grime is a fun genre and this is a good album. As with most rap, I really don't need the skits. I get it, it's a fundamental part of the genre. But really, I cannot imagine a single person on the planet earth who is like "oh yeah I loved that skit off that rap album" CUT EM OUT OF ALL RAP ALBUMS

Lyrics were meh, British accent - noice

Absolute trash that this album is on here and many American hip-hop/rap albums are missing. I don’t need to listen to it just because it’s British. Such a biased author. It’s disgusting how biased this list it towards British albums that are average at best.

Made me feel like I was in a Guy Ritchie movie

This style of music is just so uninteresting to me

I could not wait for this to be done. Not only bad. Intrusive. Obnoxious.

At first, I was like, "Hey, that's different and interesting" and then I was like, "hmmm, these are all starting to sound the same" and then I was like, "Skits? Really? I thought we were past this as a genre." Overall, it was exactly alright. The good balances the bad and averages out to a "meh" 3-star score.

Guess I don’t like this flavour of rap, either.

I really forgot how amazing this album is. Soooo nostalgic for me. Bangers on bangers on bangers. Amaze!!!

This shit hit hard as fuck. Definitely going into the rotation.

Fond memories of Chad putting this on at a veeeeeery deep point of the 2016 splendor session. TRUST ME DADDY

Classic grime, definite high points with Shutdown and That’s Not Me but every song slaps.

This is one I’ll have to sit in and give another listen later. I’m not super up on my Brit rap, it’s a different style, different rap scheme. I never cared for some of the other Brit rappers, but I do like this guy. The American rap influences are present with talks of gangs, bitches, drugs and arrogance. Themes I think are week and cliche, but Skepta makes up with a lot of this with nuanced skill and expertly crafted beats. I really liked Numbers. I think others would grow on me.

HE SAMPLED QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE

I listened before bed and didn't really care for it. Too much bass. But I listened again (and on a different speaker system) and liked it more. Gonna try it the next time I drive somewhere

I mean… meh? I find it very confusing that the album title is Konnichiwa but then it’s full of very British rap. I like the album cover though.

Why do all Brit’s sound like wussies

Ihan laadukas setti, mut tyyli ei mitenkään erityisesti puhutellu

Flunssahuuruissa meni enemmän kuin ohi. Pari kertaa yritin pyöräyttää uusiksi muttei vaan tarttunut. En tiedä kummassa oli vika lopulta.

It was interesting, not really my style. One song made me stop listening to it and go find Queens of the Stone Age.

Hab aktuell keine Motivation, gute Sachen hier zu schreiben. Fand es langweilig und eintönig. Britischer Rap klingt aber oftmals cool. Hat mich leider nicht abgeholt.

"Two plus two is four / Minus one that's three QUICK MATHS"

I really don't understand why this is on the list, it adds nothing that wouldn't be added by any other mid-10s trap album. The songs are average at best and downright cringey at worst. I don't usually agree that albums get added to the book purely because they're British, but I can't really disagree in regards to this album. I'm probably biased because I don't like the Roadman subculture which, to me, just seems to be British youths pretending to be what the American gangsta rappers of old actually were. "Trying to not get killed by police" bruh you live in London, not fucking LA.

This album was awesome. I didn't know about grime, grateful to have the chance to learn about it. Really catchy hip hop, with the songs focused largely on social commentary and internal reflections. That's spot on my taste for hip hop. 4.5 I'd say, rounded up this time.

Damn, this was a vibe. Really dug this one

woooooooooooo

Кайфово было. Качало. Переслушал еще раз. Numbers заела в голове.

OK. I guess I like grime? I very much like the rhythm of the words and the backing tracks and definitely the dialect.

So so good. Ended up listening to Skepta and other english rappers all night.

Love grime!

Heel dik album

Rating: 10/10

Hard as hell, one of the greats of the grime scene, amazing guest spots, important and good (not just one or the other!), absolutely brilliant

Gosh this is so good. I just love the way that UK hip-hop went from being the most cringeworthy thing in the world to stuff like this, which is so raw and feisty and just such an insight into that world and culture. "Shutdown" is amazing. Scary that this is getting on for 10 years old now! I am so old.

Dope

шаг в перед. нью-йорк, я работаю в закусочной, но танцую в команде, мы мечтали, хожу в джинсовых шортах, гавайской рубашке и катаюсь на скейте и у меня всегда проводные наушники. и мне хорошо.

very cool

Wagwan fam, can't lie man was loving the first half of this album fam, but some of the talking parts were proper cringe blud you get me? Man took a star off for it fam, but then Shutdown and That's Not Me came on and man couldn't not give 5 stars fam, see what I'm saying fam? Big man ting.

Dark, clever, refreshing.

Gewoon echt goed, dikke beats, vette raps en echt anders dan wat ze in de VS maken.

muito bom

It was easy to listen to. Refreshing to hear different country rap music. Although British accents are hard to understand for me, a lot of time I had no clue what he was saying.

I guess I didn't realize this was its own genre (grime). I always associated this sound with "UK Hip Hop/Rap". I like it.

Gorgeous sound with nicely flowing raps.

I was set on giving this only 2 stars after the first listen, but I got into it a lot more in the second round. Toward the end the songs were less engaging, and then that grime rhythm that is all over this album got a little boring.

Gritty, but ultimately catchy and infectious grime, Skepta repping for the UK.

moet meer grime luisteren. Mooi album mss iets teveel skits

shutdown hype

If you were to show people what grime was, this is one of the best that the genre has to offer. It isn't saying much considering most of the genre (and anything coming from UK garage) is pretty trash, but this is really decent. Fast beats and dark bass lines make it danceable and take influence from contemporary genres like dubstep, but it has a very modern production and style that aligns it more with modern hip hop. I could see the influence it would have on trap. I admit it was a bit hard for me on my first listen, but I once started paying attention all the production techniques, from the industrial effects to his over dubbing to his hilarious lines and overly British accent, it really started to grow on me and I found something to like out of every track. Had a very strong start with two aggressive tracks, then we get some tracks mixing catchy lines with intricate melodies, then we get the major hits. There were a few skippable tracks, and the skits were hardly audible and boring of what I could hear.

- Pretty bangin British rap - Great production quality, the bass is nice - Skepta's voice is so cool to listen to - Ladies Hit Squad, It Ain't Safe, That's Not Me

A too-rare rap project which respects its runtime and manages to grow steadily better without a particular frame narrative. Konnichiwa is packed with hits, easy to listen to, and presents its sound in a slice where repetition is density. Hooks and features; Who needs more?

Some incredibly dope grime, but too many skits really takes it down for me, which is unfortunate

I've loved That's Not Me since it dropped, and I'm glad that the rest of the album holds up to it; I just wish the skits were shorter.

Actually enjoyed — wasn’t sure I’d like grime. The production is nice, and there are some catchy songs in there. I’d have to go through the lyrics again but overall I liked the music. I understand this is a fairly influential record in UK grime scenes so I’m gonna give this a 4.

In some ways (the skits + "turn up my headphones," for starters), this album sounds like it's 15 years older than it is. It still goes, though. This is the second London rapper I've really enjoyed, which makes me wonder if there's a Geordie rapper out there that should be on the list. I'll investigate. Best track: Shutdown

Cool grime record, cool samples.

You know what I really enjoyed this, much more than I thought it would. The beats and samples are great, much more tuneful than expected. His flow is great, and some niche shout outs including Hublot watches. Needs a relisten so giving this the benefit of the doubt.

J'aime le style. C'est aggressif et ca déménage. Le mélande de hiphop avec des beats vraiment intense. Ca s'écoute super bien. c'est vraiment un bon album. 4.5

I remember coming across Skepta’s name a good few years ago and disregarding it because I thought it was dubstep (which is silly because I did end up caving and enjoying dubstep later). Since then, I guess he hasn’t come up on my radar again so I never thought to listen. But today that will change! Songs I already knew: none Favourites: Crime Riddim, Shutdown This was pretty great. Skepta has one of those voices in hip hop that makes it sound easy as he seems so natural with it. The lyrics are mostly fantastic, but I’ll be honest and say that a lot of the roadman talk went straight over my head. I can’t help but cringe when people call each other “fam”, just as much as people describe workplaces as a “little family”. It’s all the same level of ridiculous to me, but I could digress about that for longer than I’d necessary here. Anyway, this album is good. Give it a listen.

Solid

Finally a hip hop album with a bit darker beat and atmosphere. I like this style of music and additionally Skepta's style and flow was pretty inclusive for fans of different genres. A real positive surprise, I would be happy to check the rest of his discography.

My first grime album, what a place to start.

8/10

HL: “Numbers”, “That’s Not Me”, “It Ain’t Safe”, “Lyrics” Nothing dates something to the mid-2010’s like the airhorns in “Lyrics” (see also: “Hold Up” by Beyoncé), but as a full-length introduction to grime, Konnichiwa impressed me. Approaches something menacing in some tracks, while others are more offbeat & jovial. I know my biased self would give A Moon Shaped Pool or Blackstar the 2016 Mercury Prize over this, but on the other hand it goes to show how much good music came out at the same time. October 2, 2023

Skepta låter bara så sick man... shoutz out. Och alltså det här är ett av få album på listan från 2010-talet som inte är av en gammal artist eller tillbakablickande trash indie. Bra pick!

Hmmm, I was leaning towards a 3 to begin with, but it won me over as it went on. It's a very distinctive sound he's got - the inclusion of "Ladies Hit Squad" which is much more than slowed down US sub-genre I don't know the name of really highlights how different the rest of the tracks are to standard US fare... Content-wise I'm a bit ambivalent - prefer my hip-hop to be of the more conscious variety, and this has made me realize there's no Roots Manuva in the list, what the hell is that about! Fave track - "Man (Gang)" maybe, or "Shutdown"

Enjoyed this album. Not something I would normally listen to but very good.

This started out very strong for me, but I got a little bored and annoyed by the end of it.

British grime rap? I'm in. Solid 4

This is the 3rd British rapper I've gotten in only 2 weeks of doing this. And this was the best yet. It seemed more composed than the others (no names mentioned - this isn't about them haha). It was thoughtful, well produced, strong performance, good mix of other genre influence, and an all around bop.

Pretty good stuff actually, felt the beat and got pretty hyped

I probably need to listen a few more times to really appreciate it.

Great grime album

Very listenable. This is not the type of music I would normally listen to, but I really enjoyed it. I liked the phone calls/skits that were near the ends of certain songs.

one of the best grime albums ever. bonus points for putting a recording of a cod lobby on a track

Can I get a pic for the gram? Great album. I liked the background music, energy, wished I had been listening on something that had a little more bass.

Bangerz

If I listen to hip hop, it is usually 90s. But I liked this. Would listen again

I'm generally dismissive of grime and UK rap in general after discovering some of the most horrendous rap I have ever heard from those genres. But this one actually slaps much harder than I expected.

British rap that still sounds fresh

This really goes hard. I loved this.

lol was not expecting to see skepta on here. I got hip to him bc he was featured on a carti song. never listened to this whole album but it goes unreasonably hard. shutdown is an absolute banger

I would have preferred JME's "Integrity" on this list 4+/5

It reminds me of early trap music where the beats were basic but the energy just felt different. It makes me want to watch top boy to see what this London trap is all about.

ewa blood fam, ik vond het gaaf!

ja ik heb stiekem toch een ding met britse en franse rap

Uk rap or uk grime, ik ben hier fan van. Minder wel door die telefoontjes tussendoor..

It's good, obviously, but I feel like "Man's Not Hot" ruined any chance of me taking this kind of stuff seriously

- Grime holt mich einfach ab. Diese düstere Atmosphäre, dieses häufig breite elektronische Bett unter diesem ARSCHGEILEN "Dialekt" und dann sind die Texte häufig auch einfach richtig gut geschrieben und heftig geflowed. - Stichwort elektronisches Bett: Manchmal fehlt mir in diesem Album was die instrumentalisierung angeht etwas an Abwechslung. Und ab und zu wirken die Beats auf mich etwas outdated. - Skepta flowed aber die Scheiße aus dem Beat und reitet über die Bars wie ein absoluter Madman. - Im Gesamteindruck fehlt mir aber, wie gesagt, doch etwas Varietät 3,75

- Ich finde Grime ist die spannendste Bewegung im Hip-Hop der letzten 15-20 Jahre. Während ich mit Trap und Cloud Rap wirklich wenig anfangen kann, rückt Grime wieder eine gewisse Härte und vor allem lyrisches und technisches Können in den Fokus. - Skepta war mir bisher aus meiner Grime-Liste ein Begriff, ist in meiner Wahrnehmung aber neben Genregrößen wie Wiley, Stormzy, Bugzy Malone, oder Dizzee Rascal irgendwie untergegangen. - Das Album gefällt mir extrem gut! Mit "Konnichiwa" geht es nach einem schönen Intro direkt in die Fresse. - Die drei folgenden Songs halten das Level - Mit "It Ain't Safe" und diesem Synthie, der klingt wie ein Kröte, und der eher langweiligen Hook, konnte ich eher wenig anfangen - "Ladies Hit Squad" mit dem möchtegern-Drake A$ASP NAST und "Numbers" mit Pharrell zeigen wunderbar was mein Problem mit US-Rap in den letzten Jahren ist: Langweilige und ultrablangenlose Lyrics, nicht mal besonders gut gereimt oder gerappt mit einer nervigen "Melodie" oder nervigen Beats. Man merkt, den Einfluss der Amis in diesen Tracks -> Grime geht hier gänzlich verloren. - Mit "Man" geht's dann zum Glück wieder geil zurück in die gefühlte Londoner Unterwelt. - "Shutdown" kannte ich aus der Grime-Liste und würde ich auch als einer der stärksten Tracks des Albums bewerten. - Die letzten Songs ebenfalls wieder cool Rating: 3,5-3,75/5

Innit

Love grime. Love Skepta. Great production. 4/5

There are a few actually good tracks, and the rest are at least entertaining. It could be the British accent making them sound deeper and simultaneously funnier, but here's 4 stars anyway.

I remember first listening to this album when there was a bit of backlash to it winning the Mercury Prize over Blackstar and A Moon Shaped Pool among others. I’ve never really got into grime, and much prefer the US hip-hop aesthetic, so didn’t really know what to expect but was very pleasantly surprised by this. Revisiting a few years later it’s still got back to back bangers and is just an incredibly fun listen - the beats are all super catchy and Skepta’s energy and mic presence are next level. Blackstar may be more my thing and was a very fitting ending to an illustrious musical career, but Konnichiwa is a better time capsule for the British music scene in 2016 and really captures the spirit of what music awards should be about

Excellent, Skepta viens montrer a Dizzee Rascal qui est le meilleur rappeur britannique du générateur, le maltraitant sur ses propres Dizzee Rascal Type Beats

Dizzee Rascal walked so that Skepta could run. Weird to get two grime albums so close together, but I think it helps me to see how much better this album is then the other one and how the genre progressed. Its also funny to hear all the British slang Drake took for his own use later. Unlike most albums we listen to here, I would have been happy if it kept going a little longer. Would do a 4.5 if possible, but it does't deserve a 5.