Five rappers set to tear up festival season 2017

Image: Loyle Carner

In recent years, the big dogs of hip hop have slayed main stages up and down the land with a tonne of fire bars, big beats and bags of bravado. Who could forget, Jay Z's headline slot at Glastonbury back in 2008, or Kayne's triumphant show seven years later. Both, needlessly, were treated with a pinch of discomfort as the normally guitar heavy events were punctuated by something out of the ordinary.

However, the likes of Leeds & Reading have looked upon rappers as the way forward for some years with Cypress Hill headlining in '94, Eminem in 2000 and then again in 2013 and once again this year. 

World beaters aside, there's heaps of young blood coming through the ranks with fresh ideas, new rhythms and bags of stage presence. Be it grime MCs or old-school purveyors, the flow is strong with this bunch of hip hop newcomers, set to tear up festival season.

Stefflon Don

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London's new grime queen, Stefflon Don, dropped the Real Ting mixtape late last year. With quick-witted bars, Jamaican patois and a certified swagger the Birmingham-born Londoner is a thrilling performer and has the tunes to back it up. The likes of 'Real Ting' and '16 Shots' are fiercely exhibited in their studio release and makes the rapper's Sunday slot at Wireless Festival 2017 a truly exciting prospect. The rapper also comes to The Great Escape, Baltic Weekender, Common People, Parklife, Bestival and MADE Festival. 

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Dave

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Following a massive Fire In The Booth performance in spring 2016, Dave has gone from strength to strength. With an unnerving ability to squeeze out the maximum amount of words of any bar, the London rapper has demonstrated his rapping prowess via his Six Paths EP, featuring the ruthless 'Wanna Know', which was later remixed by none other than Drake. He's also worked with another top class newcomer, AJ Tracey, on the seismic 'Thiago Silva' so be sure to catch him at Wireless, Reading and Leeds this summer. 

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Topaz Jones

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With a true gift for storytelling and hooks aplenty, the young singer and rapper is a seriously versatile talent. His 2016 studio effort Arcade pays homage to the funky brand of hip-hop that is many adored, and sounds as fresher than ever with a contemporary twist. He's joined the likes of Travis Scott, Ty Dolla $ign and Future on stage in the past and is set for an all-conquering set at Wireless this summer. 

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Loyle Carner

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Benjamin Coyle-Larner has been knocking on the door of the UK hip hop scene for a few years now. The likes of 'Ain't Nothing Changed' and 'Stars and Shards' displayed his fondness for the sounds of Slum Village and A Tribe Called Quest but with a wholly anglicised interpretation in the early days. His debut Yesterday's Gone dropped last year and was widely revered for breathing new life and meaning into British rap and Loyle is poised to take on Kendal Calling, Parklife, Latitude, Field Day and Tramlines this summer.

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Nadia Rose

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Croydon rapper and cousin of Stormzy, Nadia Rose was on the shortlist for BBC Sound of 2017 on account of her witty wordplay and no holds barred delivery. A record deal with Sony spells good news for the up and coming star and surely festival performances at Annie Mac Presents Lost & Found, The City Sound Project, Common People and Tramlines will give her the perfect chance to unveil brand new material.

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