We’ve been touting the potential that West London’s Central Cee has in making UK drill rap a fixture across Stateside for a minute. The dude is pure flow and attacks the mic like his life depends on it. It’s evident throughout his new album, 23, and especially on his latest one-off single, “Doja.” Cench will have a chance to show us in person when he embarks on his first ever US tour in October, but he’s already spending time in California to generate buzz. Yesterday, he hopped on Power 106 to drop an official LA Leakers freestyle and hoowee! Cench didn’t come to play.
Hosts Justin Credible and DJ Sourmilk introduced him as “our brother from across the pond,” and no sooner after the beat dropped did Central Cee get to work. Wrapped in a blue Brazilian soccer jersey and his diamond-studded 23 necklace, there was no “check, check,” there was no “yo yo, yo, yo…” the beat dropped and he went in.
For most of the three-minute maelstrom, he freestyled about different slang in America vs. in England. The further he went in on the flow, the more complex the lyrics got. “We say, ‘cash, P’s, racks, G’s, we don’t really call them bands / In LA it’s Escalades, in the Ends it’s Mercedes vans.” The more it went on, the more it felt like nothing short of if Big L had dropped “Ebonics” as a freestyle.
Check out Central Cee’s LA Leakers freestyle above.
London drill rapper Central Cee’s ascent into North American rap consciousness is bubbling up. Last week, he dropped the video for “Doja,” directed by Lyrical Lemonade’s Cole Bennett, and now Cench just announced the Still Loading World Tour, which includes the Shepherd Bush rapper’s first official appearances in the US and Canada. He’ll be supporting his latest album, 23, which debuted at No. 1 on the UK Official Albums chart.
The tour stops begin on October 12th at Chicago’s Bottom Lounge, before Central Cee makes his first ever Canadian appearance at Toronto’s Phonenix Concert Theater. He’ll make stops in New York City, Boston, Oakland and then wrap up the North America swing at the iconic Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles on October 23rd. From there, he jets back to Europe for a month of appearances throughout the continent.
Check out the full list of Central Cee’s Still Loading World Tour dates below. Tickets will be available here.
10/12 — Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge
10/13 — Toronto, ON @ The Phoenix Concert Theater
10/18 — New York, NY @ Gramercy Theatre
10/19 — Boston, MA @ Brighton Theatre
10/21 — Oakland, CA @ New Parish
10/23 — Los Angeles, CA @ The Roxy Theatre
10/31 — Madrid, ES @Sala La Piqui
11/01 — Barcelona, ES @ Razzmatazz 2
11/02 — Milan, IT @ Fabrique
11/04 — Zurich, CH @Komplex 457
11/05 — Lyon, FR @ Le Transbordeur
11/07 — Paris, FR @ Le Trianon
11/08 — Esch Alzette @ LU, Rockhal
11/10 — Amsterdam @ NL, Melkweg
11/11 — Antwerp, BE @ Trix
11/13 — Berlin, DE @ Heimathafen Neukölln
11/14 — Copenhagen, DK @ Vega Main Hall
11/16 — Oslo, NO @ Rockefeller
11/17 — Stockholm, SE @ Fållan
11/20 — Dublin, IE @ 3Olympia Theatre
11/22 — London, UK @ Alexandra Palace
By the end of the day, Central Cee’s new video for “Straight Back To It” will already be touching a million views. That’s because the West London rapper is the next big thing in British rap and just dropped the wildly-anticipated mixtape 23 today.
The follow-up to last year’s breakthrough Wild West, a mixtape that saw Cench nominated for three BRIT Awards, 23 showcases a rapper firing on all cylinders. Singles like “Khabib” and “Cold Shoulder” have Cee leaving haters in the dust and rising in the ranks over sleek drill production. “Straight Back To It,” is no different. A track about fighting back when you get knocked down, it’s an apt display of the rapper’s commitment to the grind. “Done a graveyard shift last night, woke up today and got straight back to it / Took me an L, no problem / I got on my grind, got straight back to it,” he raps.
The track is produced by longtime collaborator Young Chencs and it’s another highlight from the immediately essential British hip-hop release.
Watch the video for “Straight Back To It” above and check out the 23 album artwork and tracklist below.
1. “Khabib”
2. “Straight Back To It”
3. “Ungrateful”
4. “Bunda”
5. “Retail Therapy”
6. “Eurovision” feat. Rondodasosa, Baby Gang, A2Anti, Morad, Benny Jr, ASHE
7. “Cold Shoulder”
8.” Mrs”
9.” Air BnB”
10. “No Pain”
11. “Terminal 5”
12. “Obsessed With You”
13. “8 Ball”
14. “Lil Bro”
15. “End of The Beginning”
23 is out now via self-release. Listen to it here.
Central Cee is no doubt the next man up in British hip-hop and he knows it. Named one of Uproxx’s “Artists To Watch” for February, the West Londoner is coming off three nominations at this week’s BRIT Awards including Best New Artist and Song of The Year, for his PinkPantheress-sampling “Obsessed With You.” Now as he gets ready to drop his next mixtape, 23, he’s shared the sweeping video for the new single, “Khabib.”
Cench is a straight up grinder. He’s killing it with multiple songs currently on the UK charts and wants to impart advice on “Khabib,” saying “I keep on telling the young bulls grind, don’t quit cause it’s all about timing,” over a thick drill beat. The clip was filmed on the desolate cliffside woods of Snowdonia, Wales as he flexes his literal and figurative ascent. “They done man wrong, where are they now? Nowhere to be seen. The power’s strong, where am I now? I been on the charts for 18 weeks.”
The track is named after the polarizing UFC champ Khabib Nurmagomedov, and a famous speech he made to a booing crowd is sampled on the outro to “Khabib.” It’s Central Cee shooting his shot at anyone who doubted him up to this point and it just sets a triumphant stage for the impending release of 23.
Watch the video for “Khabib” above.
23 is out 02/25 via self-release.
In this new monthly column, we’re taking a look at five artists who are steadily rising and positively need to be on your radar this month. Our February picks are from across the musical spectrum, touching on hip-hop, pop, soul, jazz and R&B from all across the globe. These are artists who made their presence felt in January, have more in store in February, and genuinely merit your attention.
A welcome Indian-American voice in R&B and pop, Raveena recently announced her major label debut, Asha’s Awakening, out February 11th. Whereas 2019’s Lucid, saw her sweet voice shining over shimmering, sugary bedroom R&B, she’s exploring new artistic horizons in pop on the new release. She further embraces her roots on “Rush,” a cinematic Bollywood-inspired song that came to her on a psychedelic acid trip through a museum. On the sexy “Secret,” she’s joined by Vince Staples for a provocative turn, on a tabla and sitar-soaked beat. And all her accompanying visuals have been can’t miss as well.
Chances are you’ve likely heard Bakar’s hit “Hell N Back,” with it’s jazzy upbeat soul swing that’s tailor-made for the happy-go-lucky moments of the Euphoria generation. The Camden native said he’s “always wanted to be an alternative for the Black kids who don’t fit in,” and his approachable and uniquely energetic tunes have cross-cultural appeal no doubt. Speaking of Euphoria, Dominic Fike even collaborated with Bakar on the wistful “Stop Selling Her Drugs,” but it’s his latest output that hint at the bright road ahead for him. There’s the anthemic, “The Mission,” the reflective “Build Me A Way,” and the hopeful latest offering, “NW3,” that show the promise of his upcoming debut album, Nobody’s Home, out February 25th.
Atlanta’s Nicole Wray is living a new life. In the late ’90s she was discovered by Missy Elliott (as “Nicole”) and scored a modest hit with the Elliott-featured sumptuous R&B jam “Make It Hot.” But life is anything but linear, especially in the music industry, and she is now re-born as Lady Wray. On her latest album, Piece Of Me, Lady Wray is a muse of sorts for the dynamic canvases laid down by retro soul producer Leon Michels (El Michels Affair, The Carters) and it’s one of the coolest, purest expressions of soul music you’ll hear this year. “Through It All” is uplifting soul nostalgia perfection and “Come On In” is tinged with gospel a lean that lets Wray’s booming voice soar. She performed the latter on Colbert last week and it sure as hell felt like the full circle moment she’s worked towards for over 20 years.
Central Cee is poised to be the next big UK rapper in the shape of Dave and AJ Tracey. This past November, the West Londoner got a major look, hopping on FKA Twigs’ “Measure Of A Man,” for the film The King’s Man. His breakthrough track, “A Day In The Life,” got a shout out from Big Sean when it first dropped in 2020 and now he’s high up on the newly announced lineup of the Parklife festival. His style has morphed from grime to drill as he spells out his rise in the ranks. “Take that risk and go independent, I just turned down six figures /
On the phone you was loud, now we’re in real life and you’re soundin’ timid,” he spits over drill bass and East Asian strings on “Pinging (6 Figures).” He’s been building a steady catalog, including 2021’s excellent Wild West mixtape as he continues to drop tracks from the upcoming 23 tape, out February 25th.
LA jazz and R&B trio Moonchild make distinctly warm and embracing tunes, led by Amber Navran’s angelic voice. They’ve been able to break through artsy jazz circles through collaborations with Robert Glasper and Rapsody in the past, and now have a stacked slate of guests on their upcoming album, Starfruit, out February 11th. On “Tell Him,” Navran and Lalah Hathaway dazzle on a beat awash with breezy bass, keys, and synths. Theirs is music to fall in love with, fall in love to, and make love alongside. Beyond Hathaway, the new album features Alex Isley, Tank & The Bangas, Rapsody, Ill Camille, and more.
Some of the artists mentioned here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.
