The rap and hip-hop culture in the U.K. and greater European area has been expanding since the early 2000’s. This has resulted in an extensive number of sub-genres, such as grime rap. Grime was a backlash against the commercializations of the hip hop industry in the U.K. The genre got its start in the London Underground and pirate radio stations across the U.K. The list goes on including road rap (similar to grime but embodying the dark “gang related” aspect of the genre), and U.K. garage. The result of all this is many different rappers and hip hop artists who pull their style from a multitude of different genres. Rejjie Snow is an artist who is a great example of that.

The rapper’s given name is Alex Anyaegbunam and he grew up in the city of Dublin, Ireland. Rejjie Snow  is only 22 and has been making music for a short period of time. He has been rapping since 2013 and has released a mixtape named Rejovich followed by a few singles. Most recently he released two songs on April 15th, 2016. Fans have been anticipating another work of his, “Dear Annie” for much time now.

Growing up and shaping his sound during the golden day of Grime, his sound is comfortable with electronic influence and this is seen throughout his raps. But compared to both road and grime rap, there’s less vocal anger and intensity in his songs. Even though what he’s saying isn’t necessarily more passive than other rappers, it feels much more comfortable. Yes, he does rap about his “hatred for the piggies” and references things such as auto theft, and his experience with the abuse of various substances, however, his music makes you feel at ease. Imagine finally sitting down after a really really long day. When you wake up the next morning you’ll have to do it all again, but for the moment what you have is peace. That’s what Rejjie Snow’s music feels like, even despite the injustices he raps about, there is still comfort in his words.

In my personal opinion, Rejjie Snow accomplishes something that very few artists do, he makes music that sounds good and makes you feel a certain way, but he still has a lot to say about the world we live in. You can tell this man has a strong message before you even hit the play button. The cover of his first mixtape depicts two blind people sitting on a bench with their arms around each other, the man on the left is wearing the unmistakable robes of the Klu Klux Klan while the woman on the right is black. He manages to tell us love is blind and preaches acceptance to us before we even hear him speak. The theme presented on his album cover is continued throughout his music, he seems to criticize society as a whole for it’s violent nature. Some may not feel so strongly about Rejjie’s music, and it may take a few listens to really appreciate it, but I think listening is well worth your time.