I know there are plenty of people out there who think that England's incapable of producing good hip-hop, but I'm here to tell those people they're wrong. Plan B's a UK-based rapper and actor whose new single, "Ill Manors," has been hailed by the UK's Guardian newspaper as "the first great mainstream protest song in years." It's the lead single from the soundtrack to a film of the same name, which is due for release this summer. Written and directed by Plan B himself, the film is a crime drama based around the Forest Gate neighborhood of London. Plan B's been working on the film for years, but the song "Ill Manors," as well as its accompanying video, were created in response to last summer's England riots, which were touched off by the murder of a black man by police. The song derives a dark, ominous tone from its dominant string sample, taken from Russian composer Dimitri Shostakovich's Seventh Symphony. That sample is laid over a heavy percussion sample that's derived from the legendary "Amen break," the drum break upon which the entire drum and bass genre was built.
The song's sarcastic lyrics satirize the unsympathetic media portrayal of England's urban poor: "We're all drinkers, we're all drug takers," Plan B declares with a snarl. "Keep believing what you read in the papers--'Council estate kids, scum of the earth'." The chorus blasts back at the contemptuous rich: "What you looking at, you little rich boy? We're poor 'round here, run home and lock your door." The video mixes shots of Plan B performing the song's lyrics on the streets of London's council estates (what they call housing projects in the UK) with footage taken from both the aforementioned film, Ill Manors, and last year's London riots. It can be tough at times to tell which is which, which adds a further power to the video's portrayal of the unrest caused by the recession in the UK. It just goes to prove that the tough times are hitting people hard everywhere--and that great art can come from hardship not only in the cities of America, but anywhere.
If you're as into this as I am, you can grab the single off iTunes HERE. And if you watch this video and still don't think UK hip-hop has anything to offer, I seriously don't know what to tell you.