| Wretch 32 | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Jermaine Scott |
| Born | 9 March 1985 |
| Origin | Tottenham, London, England |
| Genres | British hip hop, grime |
| Occupations | Rapper |
| Years active | 2006–present |
| Labels | Ministry of Sound (2010–present) |
| Associated acts | The Movement, Bashy, Chipmunk, Ed Sheeran, Skepta, Wiley, Double S, Tinie Tempah, Example, Lowkey, Skyhigh |
| Website | wretch32.com |
Jermaine Scott (born 9 March 1985),[1][2] better known by his stage name Wretch 32 (three-two), is a Black British rapper and former Grime MC from Tottenham, London where he grew up the son of a local reggae DJ in the Tiverton Estate.[3] He was a member of the grime collective "Combination Chain Gang", before forming The Movement with Scorcher, Ghetts, Devlin and Mercston. The world and online community including the UK music industry especially, first set eyes on Wretch 32 when 32 was given the opportunity to appeared on RMC TV Artist Spotlight back in 2005 around the same time as N-Dudz drummer BreakBeat. Wretch 32 - The Beginning! [4] Needless Beef a short film based on UK street life and gun crime starring Wretch 32 was first edited and broadcast exclusively on RMC TV, which later inspired MTV’s Dubplate Drama Series. [5] He is also often associated with the TMT crew, also from Tottenham, due to his close relationship to fellow Tottenham rapper Cell 22. The pair have made several songs together. He released his first single "Traktor" in January 2011.
2009 Mp3 Music Awards announced that Wretch 32 was nominated for an Mp3 Award alongside Chipmunk and Haringey Independent [6] and Channel U / Channel AKA published the story. [7]
On 6 December 2010, the BBC also announced that Wretch 32 had been nominated for the BBC's Sound of 2011 poll[8] and MTV named him as a nominee for MTV Brand New for 2011.[9]
Contents |
Born in March 1985, Scott grew up alongside crews Combination Chain Gang and The Movement, the latter of which featured Scorcher, Ghetto, Mercston and Devlin, Lowkey & Wretch 32 In My Lifetime part of the Soundtrack To The Struggle. Continuing his MC career in 2006, Scott under the name Wretch 32 released a series of mixtapes, including Teacher's Training Day - which featured guest appearances from Ghetts, Bashy and Scorcher. [10] After coming to the attention of BBC Radio 1 Xtra's DJ Cameo, Wretch went on to win a 1Xtra Mixtape Award.
Wretch 32 got his first big break when he performed at the first annual MP3 Music Awards in 2007 alongside signed US recording artist Chenelle, signing her chart single “I Fell In Love With The DJ” in front on a live crowd and industry audience that included the likes of the BBC Head of Music Mark Cooper, PRS Chairman Ellis Rich and various other individuals from EMI, Sony, Warner and more. After performing at MMA 2007, his album was released. Wretch 32 Punctuation Live and a Wretch 32 Live Accapella at MP3 Music Awards 2007 on youtube.
The movement into mainstream began when Wretch 32 appeared at Radio 1's Big Weekend on the BBC Introducing stage in 2009. His debut studio album, Wretchrospective was released in the United Kingdom during 2008, prior to Wretch's signing with record label Ministry of Sound. Wretch 32 and Chipmunk were both nominees for the UGG Awards, Urban/Garage/Grime category at the 2009 Mp3 Music Awards followed by Haringey Independent Press Release. On 6 December 2010, Wretch 32 was named as one of the nominees for BBC's Sound of 2011, an annual poll which predicts artists that will progress during the upcoming year.
Wretch then continued, releasing his debut single "Traktor" on 16 January 2010[11] through Ministry of Sound as both a digital download and a CD single. The track saw commercial success, having been selected as BBC Radio 1's Reggie Yates Weekend Anthem on 19-20 December 2010[12], before debuting at number five on the UK Singles Chart as the third highest entry of the week[13]. The release was succeeded by second single "Unorthodox", which featured British rapper Example. The song, which sampled The Stone Roses' 1989 hit "Fools Gold" debuted at number two in the UK, also topping the R&B chart and independent releases chart; having been selected Jo Whiley's Weekend Anthem on 26-27 March 2011[14].
On December 11 2011 Wretch 32 released the single "Forgiveness" featuring Etta Bond (artist who is signed to Labrinth's record label Odd Child recordings) from the album Black and White.
| Album Title | Album details | Chart positions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [13] |
UK R&B [15] |
IRE | SCT [16] |
||
| Wretchrospective | — | — | — | — | |
| Black and White |
|
4 | 1 | 86 | 7 |
| Single | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [13] |
UK R&B [15] |
UK IND [20] |
IRE [21] |
SCO [16] |
|||
| "Traktor" (featuring L) |
2011 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 45 | 8 | Black and White |
| "Unorthodox" (featuring Example) |
2 | 1 | 1 | 32 | 3 | ||
| "Don't Go" (featuring Josh Kumra) |
1 | 1 | 1 | 39 | 2 | ||
| "Forgiveness" (featuring Etta Bond) |
49 | — | 4 | — | — | ||
| Single | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [13] |
UK R&B [15] |
UK IND [20] |
|||
| "Hangover" (Starboy Nathan featuring Wretch 32) |
2011 | 92 | 29 | 13 | 3D - Determination, Dedication, Desire |
| "Teardrop" (as part of The Collective) |
24 | 7 | — | Non-album single | |
| Year | Single | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2007 | "Punctuation" (featuring Scorcher and Bashy) | Teachers' Training Day |
| 2008 | "Be Cool" (featuring Wizzy) | Wretchrospective |
| "Me and You" (featuring Haydon) | ||
| "Ina Di Ghetto" (featuring Ghetts and Badness) | ||
| 2009 | "Superhero" | |
| 2011 | "USA Let's Go!" |
| Year | Single | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | "In My Lifetime" (with Lowkey) | Dear Listener |
| "Ransom" (with Bashy and Scorcher) | Catch Me If You Can | |
| "Let It Out" (with Donaeo and Double S) | ||
| "Skinny Sort" (with Ghetto and Scorcher) | ||
| "Good Morning" (with Scorcher and Kay Young) | Concrete Jungle | |
| "Trend Setters" (with Scorcher, G-Frsh and Mercston) | Concrete Jungle | |
| "Lights On" (with Scorcher and Mercston) | Concrete Jungle | |
| 2010 | "History" (with Chipmunk) | I Am Chipmunk |
| "Run" (with Baby Blue) | No Smoke Without Fire | |
| "Sometimes" (with Maverick Sabre) | The Travelling Man | |
| 2011 | "Nightmares" (with Ed Sheeran, Random Impulse and Sway) | No. 5 Collabroations |
| "Armageddon" (with Chipmunk) | Transition |
| Year | Organisation | Nominated work | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | BBC Sound of 2011[8] | Wretch32 | Sound of 2011 | Nominated |
| MTV Brand New[9] | Wretch32 | New for 2011 | Nominated | |
| 2011[22] | Mp3 Music Awards 2011 | Unorthodox Ft Example | The UGG Award | Won |
| 2011 | 4Music Video Honours | "Traktor" (featuring L) | Best Big Beats | Nominated |
| 4Music Video Honours | Wretch32 | Best Breakthrough | Nominated |
|
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