Artist: Sway: mp3 download Genre(s): Rap: Hip-Hop Discography: One for the Journey Year: 2007 Tracks: 7 This Is My Demo Year: 2006 Tracks: 14 Derek Andrew "Rock" DaSafo is a British hip-hop creative person of Ghanaian origin wHO gained attending through a serial publication of on an individual basis released mixtapes ahead winning a 2005 MOBO (Music of Black Origin) award, which positioned him as ane of the in the lead hopes for U.K. rap. Born in London -- albeit accidentally, when his mother was on a way station betwixt Amsterdam and her native Ghana -- and largely elevated at that place as easily, DaSafo hails from Hornsey, a North London locality positioned in 'tween posh, bourgeoisie Murray Hill and the slum area Wood Green. His carefully constructed whack character reflects this polarity by combination a literate, reflective approaching shot with a savvy, street smart sensitivity. Together with his broad, cagey sense of humour and often nervously energizing delivery, it amounts to a fascinatingly complex and undeniably charismatic fashion, comparable to an intellectual Ludacris or a more than reflective Twista -- it's not hard to hear why he generated an subway system buzz that developed promptly into wider cognisance. Scorn his unique and entrancing talent on the mic, DaSafo's initial centering was forthrightly on production. He got his start in London's resistance hip-hop, at age 15, by making beatniks for other rappers, ahead his peers encouraged him, on the strength of his struggle freestyles, to try his hand at writing rhymes. A geminate of mixtapes that he recorded on his home data processor and released through his own Dcypha Productions -- This Is My Promo, Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, released in 2004 and 2005, severally -- garnered airplay on London's plagiarizer wireless stations of the Cross and, eventually, the BBC's urban-oriented digital station 1Xtra. He captured the world eye in September 2005 when he was named Best Hip-Hop Act at the ten percent yearbook MOBO awards -- a surprise upset over 50 Cent and the Game -- disdain being unsigned and before he'd level released an album. Despite the sheer of mark offers that predictably followed this gloat, Sway chose to stay supreme, merely his proper debut album did go far the following year, after the vexer single of "Up Your Speed" (a posse-cut remix of a track to begin with featured on the Promo mixtapes), with the release (by DCypha in co-occurrence with the indie All City Music label) of This Is My Demo. Its title is a continuation of the overarching meta-conceit to Sway's body of work; as he explained it: "my whole calling is sledding to be based on my life history." All did non go quite according to plan (merchandising successfully enough to pave the way for a major-label spill of the eventual, hypothetical This Is My Album) -- as Demo stiffed at number 78 on the charts, falling to number 152 in its arcsecond week -- though it did breed a handful of underground hits including "Flo' Fashion" and Little Derek" (a bottom-of-the-Top 40 hit) in plus to "Up Your Speed" (the reggae-tinged "Products" and the humourous, anti-file-sharing "Download" were besides released as singles). However, it was critically hailed, making the shortlist (of 12) for the 2006 Mercury Prize, and lED to some other MOBO nomination and a BET awarding for "Charles Herbert Best U.K. Hip-Hop Act." Sway supported the Streets on their 2006 U.K. circuit and appeared alongside Mike Skinner on the Mitchell Brothers' single "William Harvey Nicks," simply he has likewise been active in the world hip-hop community beyond the U.K. -- collaborating with Lupe Fiasco, Chamillionaire, and Small World (of Ludacris' DTP crew) -- and in euphony beyond hip-hop, on the job with ska veterans Madness and electronic duo Stanton Warriors. In 2007, Sway sign-language with Akon's Konvicted label; released the One for the Journey EP, a harder-hitting aggregation than his debut that featured several of the said collaborations (and came clearly tagged: "This Is Not My Second Album"); discussed collaborations with Akon, Doug E. Fresh, Mark Ronson, and Pharrell; and proclaimed plans for The Signature, to go far in 2008. |