Drill…
A word we’ve all heard a lot in the last few years in the music industry.
But really, what is it with this genre that is just so captivating? It always makes you want to either spill all your emotions on a blank piece of paper, get in a fist fight with everything that moves, get hyped with your crew or even get lost in your thoughts walking alone at night.
Drill was born in the U.S; more specifically southside of Chicago around early 2010’s. UK drill was born around the same time in Brixton South London.
Now. Here’s the real conversation starter; did UK drill come first or did Drill?
Some will say that UK Drill was a long time in the making in the underground scene of England. When it finally came up it appeared in Brooklyn and influenced Drill. Others will say that drill created waves that influenced many overseas and in result created UK Drill.
Please feel free to share with us in the comments.
One thing is for sure, Both Drill and UK Drill made their marks. Being greatly influenced by the Grime genre and pushed and refined by names such as King Louie, Waka Flocka, Chief Kief, 67, Pop Smoke and many more greats.
Wherever it came from, Drill was a language.
Historically, Drill was used as a way to let out anger since the areas where it was most popular were most commonly violent and oppressed areas. Drill was filled with violent lyrics and cold statements about often times the reality of the writer. Nowadays these basic fundaments can still be found in new releases.
It seems as if there is still a deep respect and understanding for the pain and culture that drill emerged from.
The lyrical aspect is typically fused with a monotone and natural flow and very little auto tune which in the end really gives all the space to the text and beat to breathe together.
Drill is known for its raw and aggressive feel. Bass is the most important and present element which will carry the rest of the elements so a classic Grime 808 is the way to go. The second most important feature is the Open or closed hats which will give us the classic beat and melody. The BPM will generally be found between 60 and 70 or in some cases, producers will prefer to work double tempo for easier workflow in that case the BPM will be around 130-140.
It is really a decisive period in time for the drill genre… we saw a peak but now a lot of us are wondering when will the next great of drill/UK drill emerge? Who will take on this beast and take it to the next level? While we have many amazing artists right now, aren’t we all a little bit hoping for a new drill hype surge or even subgenre?
Who knows where this ‘’drill train’’ will take us… but looking behind, damn… it has gotten us far.
Sound Bath – Hear Your Knowledge
Popular Songs
DIOR by Pop Smoke
Dior by Pop Smoke R.I.P – Released on July 26th 2019 – Album : Meet the woo – Produced by : 808MeloBeats – Written by : Andre Loblack and Bashar Barakah Jackson (Pop smoke’s birthname) – Recording engineers : Jack Baxter and Vic Wainstein – Mix and mastered by : Jaycen Joshua and assistant mixer DJ Riggins, Mike Seaberg, Jacob Richards – Certifications : Triple Platinum (for now 2021) U.S.A , Silver U.K , Gold AU – Fun Fact : The crew behind the scenes and Pop smoke did not think the song would be a hit, they actually did not like the song.. in the end it ended up being the song that put Pop smoke on the map for most people!
BODY 2 by Tion Wayne x Russ Millions ft. Arrdee, 3x3E1, Bugzy Malone, Fivio Foreign, ZT, Darkoo and Buni
Body 2 (remix of original song body) by Tion wayne x Russ Milions FT Arrdee, E1, Bugzy Malone, Fivio Foreign, ZT, Darkoo and Buni – Released on April 22nd 2021 as a single – Produced by Gotcha – Written by : Tion wayne, Russ Milions, Arrdee, E1, Bugzy Malone, Fivio Foreign, ZT, Darkoo and Buni – Recording engineers : Unknown – Mix and mastered by : Sean D – Certifications : unknow or none as of now (2021) – Fun fact : the song went viral thanks to social medias and more specifically TikTok. Since Remixes cannot officially chart the original song Body by Tion Wayne and Russ Milions went number 1 on the UK single chart in begining of may 2021 becoming the first ever UK drill track at the top of singles chart.
WHOOPTY by CJ
Whoopty by CJ – Released on July 30th 2020 as a single – Album : Royalty over everything (2021) – Produced by : Pxcoyo – Written by : Charalambos Antoniou (Pxcoyo), Mithoon and Christopher Daniel Soriano JR. (CJ) – Recording engineers : MixedByTheBest – Mixed and mastered by : MixedByTheBest – Certifications : Platinum U.S.A , Gold U.K, Platinum AU, 2x Platinum CAN, Gold DE *all based AS of 2021* – Fun Fact : Whoopty was CJ’s first ever Drill track.
DRILL FR 4 by GAZO x Freeze Corleone
DRILL FR 4 (part 4 of a series of 5 so far) by GAZO x Freeze Corleone – Released on June 17th 2020 as a single – Produced by : BSB Production – Written by : GAZO and Freeze Corleone – Recording engineers : Unknown – Mix and Mastered by : Flem – Certifications : Gold single (2021) – Fun Fact : GAZO is probably one of the most affluent French artists in Drill. Mostly because of his 5 part series Drill has gained popularity in French countries.
Writer’s Favorite’s
HOME by Knucks
Home by Knucks – Released on Februrary 18th 2021 – Album : NRG 105 – Produced by : Knucks – Written by : Ashley “Knucks” Nwachukwu – Recording engineers : Unknow – Mixed by : Dukus – Mastered by : Ludwig Alemeza – Composer : Knucks – Saxophone : Vena – Certifications : Unknown or none as of now (2021) – Fun Fact : This song was recorded with live Saxophone by the artist Vena. This really gives the raw and the authentic feel to the track.
ARE YOU MAD by Yxng Bane x K Trap
Are you mad by Yxng Bane x K Trap – Released on April 27th 2020 as a single – Album : Quarantime: The Lost Files – Produced by : AoD, The Elements. – Written by : Gustyone Menga (Yxng Bane), Devonte Perkins (K Trap), Keven Wolfsohn (The Elements) and Paul Bogumil (The Elements) – Recording engineers : Unknown – Mixed by : Shaun Barrett – Mastered by : Naweed – Certifications : Unknow or none as of now (2021) – Fun Fact : Are you mad was released as a teaser for Yxng bane’s album Quarantime: The Lost Files and the response on social media was very positive. At that moment the world was still going thru sporadic quarantines due to Covid-19, something no one had never seen before. The song and the album brought happiness to many who needed it in difficult times.
DIX/10 by LA F
Dix / 10 by LA F – Released on June 24th 2021 – Album : The no Face 3 – Produced By : 691Records – Written by : La F and Elouan Tabar – Recording engineers : Unknown – Mix and Mastered by : Unknown – Certifications : Unknown or none as of now (2021) – Fun Fact : In this track you can find that the artist makes multiple references to the producer in his lyrics. We love to see a good relationship between the rapper and producer.
Feeling inspired ? You can get started now by choosing in our Drill selection.
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