Kano is Grime. Kano is London.
- harrypd21
- Jan 8, 2016
- 2 min read
Updated: Jun 28, 2019
Last night, without much warning from either artist or DJ beforehand, Mistajam spun Kano’s new track: ‘3 Wheel Ups’ ft. grime-Veterans Wiley and Giggs. This track kicks off a year that will see Kano drop Made in the Manor (March 4th) and tour the UK. The song itself is the new benchmark set by Kano’s recent scene-smashing singles: Hail, New Banger and GarageSkank; and like the latter features some incredible production with classic screwface-inducing skippy KA.
I may well be biased considering that Kano is one of the few artists I actively follow on social media outlets, but the East-London grime artist has been on it since Risky Roadz and that Wiley clash and keeps giving with an album sure to surpass his previous levels while offering a host of names on features and productions (i.e. Zeph Ellis a.k.a. Dot Rotten). Maybe it’s the fact that he used fan footage for his video (nothing particularly new), or his respect for other artists without trying to claim the scene away that makes him a cut above the rest.
‘Pussy and rum, that’s a rider for real MC’s’
Maybe it’s his alignments with only real heavyweights like Wretch 32, Mike Skinner and Ghetts since day one that have never seen him tag along to trends (even his inevitable foray into “pop”, minus ‘Rock’n’Rolla’, produced listenable work), that sets him apart. Perhaps it’s because, as Mistajam maintains, it has been 10 years since the lofty heights of the Home Sweet Home EP and we’re still hearing a dedication to art seamlessly entwined with absolute bangers from a vetted, fairly untouchable MC.
More likely, my appreciation and excitement for this tour/album is due to the opinion, held I know by some of my peers, that Kano not only lives and breathes grime but also London itself – literally, musically and in his solid acting appearances. I urge anyone to revisit the lyrics of his last four singles to peep both Kano’s journey from the genesis of Grime music evolving genres before it, and his understanding of London life as more than which ends you trap in and shouting out a few postcodes – something the scene has always needed, and still does now more than ever.
(Also, he dropped the ‘3 Wheel Ups Vide’ on the sly straight after:
Made in the Manor/3 Wheel Ups available on iTunes and Amazon now.
Kommentit