The art of Grime Clashing is alive with the release of LORD OF THE MICS VOLUME VIII, a legacy that spans almost 20 years

After months of anticipation, Lord Of The Mics shut down The Curtain Hotel, Shoreditch in celebration of grimes hottest release, Lord Of The Mics VIII. The star-studded evening saw the likes of Skepta, JME, Frisco, Shorty, D Double E, actor Will Poulter, plus the nations favourite tea-drinking, no-nonsense Grime Gran in attendance for the exclusive performances and screening, whilst outside, Curtain Road was littered with the most prestigious line up of cars including Rolls Royce.

The game-changing grime platform began as a DVD box set that saw established emcees stepping up to clash – think of a lyrical boxing match – and it’s now etched in grime history. Home to the most iconic clashes such as Kano vs. Wiley, Skepta vs. Devilman, Footsie vs. Scratchy, P Money vs. Big H. it is also widely renowned as being a platform to launch an emcee career from and has seen chart hitters Jaykae and Tinchy Stryder also feature on its line ups too.

Fans such as Drake, Tre Mission and Wiley closely watching the art of battling being passed to new generations. This year’s Lord of The Mics is packed with 9 clashes, 18 emcees; the most to be featured on any LOTM to date. Highlight regional talent the emcees span the length of the country, from Bristol, Birmingham, Essex, Leicester and Hertfordshire, hand selected for their lyricism, vivacity, and determination to succeed. Having released a series of Hype Sessions over the last two months via the LOTM YouTube channel, where each emcee lyrically draws out their opponent, gearing up ready for the clashes, the day is finally here to see the main event and see the public crown their next Lord Of The Mics.

Synonymous with grime, Lord Of The Mics has a legacy that spans almost 20 years. Born before the genre even had a name, the brainchild of Jahmek ‘Jammer’ Power and Chad ‘Ratty’ Stennett, Lord Of The Mics provides a platform that seeks to elevate underground UK street culture and the artists within it. To coincide with ‘Lord of the Mics VIII releasing, LOTM are officially taking over the Grime Shutdown playlist on Spotify for a week, you can catch the playlist HERE.

Lord Of The Mics VIII via iTunes/Spotify/CD/DVD

Lord Of The Mics VIII
Clash Tracklisting:
Reece West Vs F.O.S
Jafro Vs Dialect
Funky Dee Vs Mischief
Yizzy Vs Micofcourse
Logan Vs Armz
Jay0117 Vs Tommy B
Rawza Vs GEN
T Roadz Vs SBK
Ten Dixon Vs Tana

RUNDOWN:
TOMMY B Vs JAY0117

Tommy B is the Essex boy ready for war! He may be from a small town called Molden but he’s looking for a big win and he’s not scared to show people what he’s capable of. If you want to know what he’s about musically then check out the Silencer produced ‘Martian’ freestyle.

Jay0117 is the FIRST Bristolian to represent on LOTM to bring humour and a fresh face. His biggest tune to date is ‘Bristol City’ prod by Oh91 featuring Dimpson. He’s hitting LOTM to be seen by a wider audience, showcasing himself and the Bristol grime scene.

TEN DIXON Vs TANA

Ten Dixon is bringing raw energetic entertainment back to London grime clashes. His latest tune is ‘Only one/Mans Outside’. His biggest accomplishment is putting energy and the hunger back into people stomachs for ‘Real grime’.

Tana is from Birmingham, the historic Invasion Crew and he’s ready to war! Honing his craft supporting the likes of Mist, Jaykae and AJ Tracey on tour, his music is hitting 100K plus streams and he’s got a headline show in the pipeline. He’s ready to collect the body and bring it home for Birmingham.

RAWZA Vs GEN

Rawza has real grime energy and a high level of barring. Considering himself the underdog he feels he will deliver the shock factor from as soon as the clash starts. He currently has an EP out called ‘Code Name’ which he dropped in 2018, there’s another project dropping at the end of April with a number of singles ready to drop. Rawz also had an Urban Music Award nomination for the One To Watch 2019 category

Gen is another representative for Essex and is a lyrical MC with a technical approach to writing full of similes and metaphors, he’s not a one liner MC! He’s been putting the work in up and down the country and he’s dropped a number of singles and freestyles. His debut EP will drop after LOTM8 and his current single ‘Nottingham Trent’ is currently on the Apple Music ‘Grime’ playlist.

LOGAN Vs ARMZ

Logan is debuting on LOTM after just 2 years of working his craft. He’s looking to bring Energy, Versatility, Style and Bars. He’s hoping that LOTM will bring a bigger audience to his music and is looking forward to dropping a joint EP with fellow LOTM alumni Micofcourse later in the year. Logan’s enjoying being acknowledged by the likes of Jammer and other MCs he grew up on.

Armz is bringing his A-Game to LOTM8. He has passion, style, lyrics, flow and experience as he’s been doing this for +10 years so will have a young OG perspective & approach. In 2017 he dropped a project called #52Armz where he released a track every week for the entire year. This year Armz is working on an Album entitled ‘Tark Rite’ which is 100% grime with features such as Wiley (The Godfather) & other established grime emcees. His biggest achievement is his craft and the longevity of his artistry.

T ROADS Vs SBK

T Roadz is bringing talent to LOTM8 to show that no matter how old you are or where you come from you can still get Shelly on the mic! His stand out single is ‘T 2 Da roadz’ which is out in all digital platforms. T Roadz biggest achievement was creating Blackbox history by being the youngest and only one to get a wheel up every time in the history of the freestyle series.

SBK is bringing style and pure grime energy to LOTM along with his personality. SBK is multi talented as he is also a producer, his biggest tune to date is called ‘Get Up!’ and is self produced. He wants you to know he’s here to win LOTM

YIZZY Vs MIC OF COURSE

Yizzy is bringing a performance like you’ve never seen before. “It’s more than a clash its not just about what i say but also how I say it. When i diss the other guy I’m dissing him with lyrics, with body language, with everything I possibly can.” – He has a song out right now called “Yeah” produced by Grime legend Mr. Virgo, the remix features 2 Australian Grime artists called Shadow & Nerve. A relative newcomer Yizzy’s biggest achievement so far has been performing to a sold-out O2 Brixton Academy.

Micofcourse says LOTM is a massive opportunity for him and clashing is something he loves and was part of his come up. He loves the unfiltered approach. His biggest achievement was travelling to America to do radio shows and hitting the studios out there. ‘Of Course’ is his biggest single and he’s performing at Eskimo Dance in March.

JAFRO Vs DIALECT

Jafro is a new artist from Leicester and part of a new scene building there. He’s currently putting together an impressive body of work with an album and a few singles planned to follow his LOTM debut. To find out more about him you need to listen to the ‘Style and Grace Remix’ that he features on alongside Namesbliss, Melvillous and Prez T.

Dialect is bringing what it is to be a grime MC! He considers himself one of the best grime clashing MCs in the UK and has been rapping since grime became a thing. He brings experience and authenticity. He’s in LOTM8 because he wants people to know about grime. It’s the only music that inspired him to write a lyric and it’s been the main genre that has kept him going as a lyricist.

REECE WEST Vs F.O.S

Reece West is from Alexandra Place (London) and is already an established emcee with a profile. Of late he has been doing touring and performing a number of shows overseas including New York. He’s bringing his unique flow and style to LOTM and he’s looking to win! Reece is hoping that LOTM will push him on to bigger things. The tune that best sums him up is called ‘Walk on Water’.

F.O.S is bringing back the passion and energy to LOTM and to grime. His biggest musical achievement has been performing with Grime Veteran D Double E. F.O.S says his single ‘Pro’ is the one you should check out to get an insight into what he does.

FUNKY DEE Vs MISCHIEF

Funky Dee is no stranger to the grime scene and is about bringing all-round entertainment and some positivity to LOTM 8. As an artist his biggest achievement was his monster hit that saw him gain success throughout Europe. For a slice of what he’s about, check out ‘Move With The Times’ featuring Wiley.

Mischief is from Hertfordshire and has been MCing since 2004 but he’s pulling out all the stops this year with LOTM8. He’s bringing flows, passion and venom to his clash and says he’s been training for this the whole time. To get to know Mischief’s style, check out his own favourite freestyle ‘Noizee’.

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