Over the past two years, Kenny Allstar has built up a highly influential platform for upcoming UK artists and has rightly earned the title of ‘The Voice of The Streets’.
This platform being the Mad About Bars freestyle series on Mixtape Madness which has seen some of the best UK talent pass through it’s doors. From celebrating the sound of the London streets to those further afield in cities such as Northampton, Liverpool and Birmingham; Kenny has become somewhat of a household name in the urban music industry whilst also landing himself a specialist show on BBC Radio 1Xtra.
Below, we have curated a list of some of the most popular and celebrated Mad About Bars freestyle, from those recorded on Kenny’s radio set to the recent collaboration with Spotify, we take a look at some of the UK’s best talent.
1. Skengdo X AM
A classic – for an artist to have a full freestyle recited back to them at any performance they do is a rarity, but Skengdo X AM delivered such memorable lyrics and hard bars which allowed them to do so whilst also throwing some French into the mix.
2. Unknown T
This Mad About Bars created the hype and excitement around the Unknown T name which arguably resulted in the success of “Homerton B”. As Kenny said, “It seems like you got the streets talking bout you and ain’t even put out a record yet”.
3. M Huncho
We’re used to hearing drill and trap on Mad About Bars, but M Huncho switched it up with his signature wavey rap style. Following the success of “Come Up” and “Elevation”, Huncho rightly received a respectable eight million views on this one.
4. Berna
Berna is highly appreciated for his constant use of punchlines. A freestyle in which every bar is a play on words is hard to believe, but Berna did exactly that. Be prepared for a lot of punchlines to go straight over your head in the first listen, but the constant element of surprise every listen is a talent in itself.
5. Tremz
The scouse accent seems to have the same reaction as Marmite, you either love it or hate it. But, Tremz went in hard on this one with inevitable energy and bars, causing an instant liking to this freestyle.
6. Abra Cadabra
If you’re looking for greaze, Abra is always the man and here he shows more aggression than ever. Although this freestyle is criticised for being only two minutes long, it proves that Abra is a rapper in his own lane in terms of uniqueness and a signature style.
7. RV x Headie One
RV and Headie One have really took over the game this year, from club anthems to shutting down shows, the whole country has shown a high level of respect to both, especially when they join forces to showcase music at such a high level.
8. AJ Tracey
Throwing it back to the first days of Mad About Bars in 2015 and the early days of AJ Tracey’s career, this is one that we definitely can’t forget. Spitting over each and every classic grime instrumental , AJ justifies his place in the rap game.