7 Wretch 32 tracks that have blown us away

For those that don’t know – Jermaine Scott Sinclair, better known by his stage name Wretch 32, is an English rapper and former grime MC from Tottenham, London. He was a member of the grime collective Combination Chain Gang, before forming The Movement with Scorcher, Ghetts, and Mercston, and subsequently achieving mainstream success as part of the UK’s urban music scene. He is known for his remarkable wordplay and his lyricism is second to none. His third album ‘Growing Over Life‘ is released on Friday and to celebrate the occasion, we have put together our list looking at 7 of Wretch’s tracks that have blown us away… 

1. “Can’t Say Sorry” [2006]

Wretch 32 dropped his debut mixtape back in 2006 with the aptly titled project, Learn From My Mixtape. Looking back (hindsight is a wonderful thing!), the fact that we value Wretch so highly within the scene and many other artists have tried to emulate his success, shows that he is still teaching. “Can’t Say Sorry” is one of standout tracks from the mixtape and tackles the issue of guilt and being “sorry”. Learn From My Mixtape boasts an impressive roaster with Ghetts on a classic with “Itching to See us Fall“, whilst Scorcher and Mercston help create one of the best tracks of 2006 which was a ringtone anthem across the UK, “Used to Be“. 

Teachers Training Day, Wretch’s 2007 project is one of our personal favourites, down to the shear honesty and raw emotion throughout the project. From “The Youts” (alongside Bashy) and “This Road”, to “Fed Up Of Grinding” and “Thoughts For The Day”, the project almost served as an outlet for Wretch to let loose and speak his mind on a number of subjects. One example of this is “Nothing Lasts Forever”, which looks at the idea of a failing relationship and what difficult it can be. A dreamy and hypnotic sample lends a perfect backdrop for Wretch to drop his wordplay.  

Wretch 32 has proclaimed himself to be an Edu-tainer, spreading entertainment, blended with a serious message. Continuing down the path of literary music lessons for all, Wretch 32 was keen to teach us about “Punctuation”, which is peppered with profound wordplay. His knowledge of grammar is impressive enough but the way he uses it within his verses was an early highlight of his unique wordplay. The remix [banger!], which features Scorcher and Bashy contains all of the original music, which is a montage of strings and piano-led samples, tightly woven around Southern snap beat drum patterns.  

Whilst many of acts achieve “success” in all areas, there are only a few whose wordplay prick our ears due to the magnitude of their lyricism, and by 2008, Wretch was certainly a name to know. His 2008 album debut Wretchrospective sported some of the biggest hits of that year, as well as the most in-depth verses to come from the UK in recent times. As a shortage of such artists was evident, this made each Wretch release an anticipated one, and his track “Ina Di Ghetto” was well received due to its originality within the UK scene and it’s social commentary undertone.  

In the build up to his 2010 mixtape ‘Wretch32.com’, Wretch dropped a number of tracks to build anticipation for the project. One such track was his “Reebok Classic Freestyle”, which blends a perfect mix of humour, wordplay and lyricism which showcases Wretch’s love for the game. Without any hesitation, Wretch hurdles straight into the lyrical arena, attacking the track with a pacy but controlled flow which provides the perfect setting to cause anarchy over. Containing freestyles, remixes and some new material, Wretch32.com saw the rapper provide a barrage of witty and wicked lyrics over the majority of the mixtape, most prominent when spitting over hip-hop and grime beats.  

Wretch 32 has been long known for his honesty and his 2012 mixtape Wretchercise displayed a hunger in his voice that remains desperately apparent as when he was first struggling as an up-and-comer on his debut effort, Learn From My Mixtape, back in ’06. Alongside tracks like “Hold Me Back (Evian Christ Freestyle)” and “Action Man“, one of the standout tracks was “Alter Ego” which also featured Mercston and Kano. The track, and the project as a whole, is an example that being at a level of success of which you are constantly surrounded by the temptation to ‘sell-out’, doesn’t mean you actually have to do so.  

Bringing it all the way round to 2016 and Wretch still shows why he is one of, if not the, most incredible lyricist in the UK today. Released in July of this year, “Liberation” tackles the very current issue of police brutality and racial stereotyping. Impressively, with such an emotionally-charged subject that is incredibly close to home for some, Wretch steers clear of the purely emotional clapback and opts to go deeper into the problem to highlight the futility of the situation and the lack of options victims are faced with. His way with words again impresses and it shows Wretch’s ability to stand up and speak on sensitive issues.