Having released one of the most highly anticipated debut albums from a UK artist in recent times, Stormzy duly delivered with Gang Signs And Prayer. In fact you can even say he exceeded expectations, boldly integrating grime and gospel together to conjure what will surely be considered one of the finest albums of the year.
Yet, following his latest Instagram post last night, Stormzy has left fans in a frenzy as it has emerged that Dizzee Rascal could have been on the album. The post itself is of a vision board in Stormzy’s studio, exhibiting the vast strategic planning that goes unnoticed when constructing an album, particularly of the album track listing itself.
Gang Signs And Prayer is perfectly balanced with the right fusion of faith, ferocity and love, and perhaps this goes a long way to explaining as to why the Dizzee track did not make the album. Maybe the song would have distorted the balance and flow of the album, although that is not to say that they do not have a banger on their hands!
The case may be that they have plans to release the song as a single in time for the summer. It would make sense, especially when you consider that Dizzee usually releases a summer anthem every year, and both artists are expected to shut the festival season down anyway.
The original plans also revealed the rumoured collaborator and teenage prodigy Deno Driz was set to appear on “Blinded By Your Grace (Pt 1)”.
Time will tell if Stormzy and Dizzee have greater plans for the single but for the sake of the scene, it would be incredible if they were to bless us with the track.