Guide Note:
London rapper Dizzee Rascal has emerged as a star of the growing UK garage/grime music scene. He won the 2003 Mercury Prize for his debut album, Boy in da Corner.
Fast Facts:
- Real Name: Dylan Mills
- Born November 1, 1985 in London, England
- Record Labels: XL Recordings, Matador Records, Dirtee Stank, Definitive Jux
- Played a drug dealer in the crime film Rollin' with the Nines
- Former member of the Roll Deep Crew
- Youngest Mercury Prize winner in history, at age 19
- Sponsor for both Ecko clothing and Nike sneakers
- Arrested as a teen for robbing a pizza deliveryman
Career Overview
Dizzee Rascal, real name Dylan Mills, learned how to produce music on a computer at his high school, and started his career as a pirate radio MC at age 15. His debut album, Boy in da Corner was released in August 2003, when he was 19, to near-universal acclaim, and made him both the youngest artist ever to win the Mercury Prize and only the second rapper (after Ms. Dynamite). In early 2004, he embarked on his first-ever American tour.
In the Fall of 2004, Rascal released his second album, Showtime. The first single, "Stand Up Tall," would become his most popular song to date. His third album, Maths + English, was released in America in April of 2008.
Rascal set up his own record label, Dirtee Stank, dedicated to helping artists with "social problems" that might prevent them from being signed to other labels.
