Dizzee Rascal wants to know: where's my MBE?
The rapper sat down for a chat with Julie Adenuga on her Beats 1 show, with the show going out earlier today (October 10th).
The face to face chat with Dizzee Rascal contains a few home truths, as well as the odd revelation or two.
Asked about his rise, he reflected on the indie-dominated landscape, and said certain things "would've been easier if I was white…"
He said: "From the beginning, because I came up in the time when the indie bands, were running it. We got the black fuel. Yeah, our friends are lot. Or I had to do more to prove myself at festivals, like that."
"It's tough because I know real racism, like blatant racism. But you know real racism, so I have to know about this. Yeah, there's definitely been things that would've been easier if I was white."
The host asked Dizzee Rascal about his appreciation for his blackness, and whether he felt 'black enough' sometimes.
"Are we talking about being black? Or acting black?" he asked. "Because sometimes there's a big discussion about that, whether you're black enough. I don't know. I don't know what's the criteria? In 2019, I don't know."
The conversation turned towards recognition, with Julie Adenuga if he'd like an MBE, too – especially given that Wiley picked his up last year.
"I invented grime as well, y'know? Disrespect, disrespect. I'm sick of it," he joked. I don't even get no offer. What do I get? What do I get? Nothing. Your brother got offered one. Everyone got offered one. No one offered me one. I was there, I did some bits."
Wait. Julie's brother? So one out of Skepta and JME – and it's probably Skepta, to be fair – was offered an MBE.
In fairness, Dizzee was asked which award he would like to win: "I want an Oscar… for acting like I give a shit! Sick of it…"
Here's the clip.
Join us on the ad-free creative social network Vero, as we get under the skin of global cultural happenings. Follow Clash Magazine as we skip merrily between clubs, concerts, interviews and photo shoots. Get backstage sneak peeks, exclusive content and access to Clash Live events and a true view into our world as the fun and games unfold.
