NEW SINGLE RELEASE – COURTNEY ‘Early Morn’ ft. YB Fordy
27 September 2023
Over the past few years, under the smokey Luton sky, one of the most exhilarating voices in UK rap was being forged. Throughout BXKS’ rise within the uk rap scene – leading to endorsements from Skepta and a show at Boiler Room Amsterdam – the Luton-hailing rapper has taken on the scene with a sure-confidence, despite its historical fixation on her male counterparts. Now as she enters 2024, BXKS is not only honoring her music as a space for experimentation but undeniably crafting a new stage for female UK rappers to thrive.
Since her inception, BXKS entered the rap game with power. Having looked up to legendary grime artist Skepta in her youth, the sound she showcased in her debut performance – her 2018 Mixtape Madness freestyle – comes as no surprise. At the time BXKS was revealing her prowess as a new-gen ‘drill artist’. However, following the performance’s success, she took some time away. She tells The Face “My entry point into music, though, was church” even beginning her journey with music wanting to sing. Drill wasn’t a genre she wanted to be confined to; BXKS had other plans for her sound.
Six years later, in 2024, the Luton-born artist has cultivated a catalouge full of heavy, gritty basslines, fragments of smooth, spectral, jazz and shades of high-tempo dance influence. And with her self-assured flow – that’s almost cocky in the best way – she seems to have found her sound.
With a list of high-grade releases and a host of collaborations that call for rejoice from any UK underground fans – such as Joe James, P-Rallel and Bawo – there’s been a level of excitement surrounding BXKS’ name this year. Which brings us to last week and the release of her eight-track EP titled ‘One Time’, which is nothing short of a masterful depiction of her artistry. BXKS takes centre-stage, telling stories of the come-up and her experience of the London scene through her slick storytelling, inviting Joe James and vocalist Sie to feature.
The project is a cohesive collection of tracks spanning grime, alternative, electronic-club and jazz-fusion with BXKS’ signature hard-hitting flow and gritty basslines in tow. A clear showcase of her ability to break sonic-boundaries within her area of the scene. The mid-point of the project perfectly highlights this, with a transposed sample of Radiohead’s ‘Everything In Its Right Place’ playing as BXKS’ relays the chilling realities of being a woman in London. While track two, ‘Excuse Me’ with Joe James, is a classic jazz-infused alt rap release that’s reminiscent of the saxophone smoothness in a CowBoy Bebop episode. BXKS continues to show the multifaceted nature of the project with ‘Back It Up’, a pumping club-inspired track full of choppy vocal samples and a vibrant bassline.
The ‘One Time’ EP is a unique and exhilarating journey for UK rap fans to embark on, and an exciting starting point for new listeners of BXKS. In the heart of the UK rap scene, BXKS is already carving out a distinctive space for herself, defying the narrative for female rap artists.
