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chantelle fiddy

@chantellefiddy

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Visual Dir 🎥 // 20 year Rinse Fm veteran DJ - Est 1994 // The Grime DVD pioneer // Glamma Gaurd Sound System - Est 1991

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Grime built its own image before anyone else was going to build it for them. No commissioning editors, no broadcast slots, just camcorders, pirate radio and a generation who filmed the scene because nobody else would.

This Saturday I’m hosting some of the people who held those cameras: @rattylotm @troyaplus @riskyroadz @timandbarry

Each of them is bringing two pieces of footage: the one that means the most to them, and one no one’s seen. It’s an honest conversation about what they were building, one tape at a time, and what’s still sitting in a box or on a hard drive because nobody’s asked until now.

Rewind: Grime on Camera
Saturday 10 October, 7–9pm
@vam_east, Stratford
Free, booking required

With thanks to @cbmc_uk @josephine_bsmall @orubensalgado 🎶 by @chantellefiddy

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7 days ago

🚨 Ding dong. Another V&A East Museum exhibition linked public event is calling. 🚨

This Saturday, October 10th, the foundational chroniclers of Grime's visual identity will be in conversation with @chantellefiddy, THE music journalist, broadcaster, writer and youth talent advocate who was the first to commit the word 'Grime' to print in relation to the grenade that had been detonated in East London.

Rewind: Grime on Camera will see @rattylotm, @troyaplus, @riskyroadz and @timandbarry_ address and visually illuminate two provocations that will catch all up on the history they cultivated: from the rap battles in @jammerbbk's basement and around clubland; the 'practice' hours of rhyme performances around housing estates, on the rooftops of pirate radio stations, in record shops in crowded front rooms, kitchens and bedrooms.

The evolution of individual styles, the formation of venomous freestyles; how and where declarations of societal failure(s) were revealed and the use of humour and ambition were all captured. Sold and exchanged on DVD, broadcast on Channel U and AKA, this material contributed to Grime's cottage industry and through the vision of the late (and adored) @jesbtrust, an online one stop shop established appointment visuals that made many an A&R's career easy.

What these men ultimately captured was more than a snapshot of a scene in emergence, it was the activation of a NEW age and way of executing automous performance, multi-media promotion and cultural memory. All against a backdrop of marginalisation from mainstream AND specialist media. The same mainstream and specialist media that would circle back in need in years to come.

You can read Ratty's recollections of this period in the Grime chapter of the exhibition catalogue (which unlike its precedent chapters is focussed on the media dissemination of the genre). Also featured in the chapter: @djtarget and @djslimzee.

Join us on Saturday from 7pm.

It. Is. FREE.

#music #Grime #media #eastlondon by @chantellefiddy

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9 days ago

A Plus: Practice Hours

Practice Hours, created by one of Rinse FM’s original DJs, A Plus, stands as one of the most important DVDs within the Grime scene.

Inspired by how the US documented Hip-Hop culture on DVDs, and equipped with a camera gifted by a former partner, A Plus realised he had everything he needed to capture his own scene. He began by filming early studio sessions with Pay As U Go Cartel, unknowingly documenting the birth of Grime.

As the genre developed, his relationship with PAYG member and “The Godfather of Grime”, Wiley, became pivotal. Wiley invited him to film at the now legendary Eskimo Dance, footage that quickly circulated and sold out on blank DVDs.

Around this time, DVDs became a key way for fans to consume the scene and its music, transforming listeners into viewers. Titles like Risky Roads and Lord of the Mics helped define this era. Seeing the potential, A Plus elevated the format with a more polished, professional release, this was the birth of Practice Hours.

The nearly two hour DVD offers a raw, unfiltered look into Grime’s early days, capturing pivotal moments such as Crazy Titch vs Dizzee Rascal and Wiley vs Lethal Bizzle clashes on Deja Vu FM, alongside parts of the Stormin (RIP) and Trim conflict.

It also features interviews and exclusive freestyles from key figures and crews, including Meridian Crew, Ruff Sqwad, Roll Deep, Kano, Jammer and SLK. The variety of MCs, DJs and producers gave insights into every aspect of the scene.

Smaller details further add to its legacy—like the adverts for the iconic Dee Cee’s record shop on Roman Road.It is also interesting that Dubstep pioneer DJ N-Type designed the cover.

Practice Hours remains a vital piece of Grime history. A raw, unrestricted window into a scene that was still forming and, in retrospect, an essential record of its foundations.

ID’s in comments. by @chantellefiddy

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6 months ago

📟 F Tizzle - Practice Hours 2 Freestyle (2006)

Tim Lawson, also known as F Tizzle, came up on the Oldbrook estate in Milton Keynes. By the time this freestyle was filmed he was just 18, but already three years into making music, having started crafting beats and writing from 2003.🎧

His first breakthrough arguably came about after producing the beat for Crazy Titch’s 2004 track ‘Singalong’, which marked an early sign that his ear for production carried real weight within the scene.😮‍💨

Before that, he had already built local momentum, winning a talent competition at Stantonbury Campus three years in a row, establishing himself as one of Milton Keynes’ most promising young artists. Eventually, a deal with ODD Entertainment followed and F T laid the groundwork for his debut album’, One Boy And His Music’ in 2006. 💽

The project reflected both his range and his network, with features from Lady Fury, Dogzilla, Flirta D, Jammer and Tinchy Stryder, positioning him firmly within grime’s active infrastructure. 🧨

It is F T’s musical versatility that distinguishes him within the industry. Also an ex-drummer, F Tizzle moved seamlessly between classical-influenced R&B and the sharper, upbeat grime sound he became known for, refusing to confine himself to one lane.🥁

In 2007, that diversity led to an unlikely collaboration with David Sneddon on ‘A Different Time’. Reflecting on the track, F Tizzle said, “It’s a weird combination of artists, David Sneddon and me. He makes pop and I make urban, but the fusion works well”. The session symbolised grime’s growing dialogue with the mainstream, even outside London.🌃

In later years, F T balanced life as an IT analyst by day and music producer by night, with the dream being to pursue music full-time. In 2013, he appeared on ‘Come Dine With Me’, telling viewers, “Every hood has its own chef. In the hood of Milton Keynes, I am that chef”.🤣

Milton Keynes may not headline grime’s origin story, but unique and locally-driven talent like F T’s proves its place within it.🔦

Follow @grimewatchofficial for more grime content🔍

#UKGrime #England #GrimeMusic #GrimeScene #GrimeCulture by @chantellefiddy

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8 months ago

📟 All In One- Practice Hours Freestyle (2004)

Bow MC Lee Brown, better known as All In One, came through at the heart of grime’s early–mid 2000s wave. Known for his skippy flows, he quickly carved a name for himself across the rave and pirate radio scene in East London- the birthplace of grime.⚡

Before fully committing to music, All In One was a former West Ham United Youth Team player.⚽

The Bow MC briefly linked with God’s Gift’s crew ‘Mucky Wolfpack’, moving within East London’s competitive circles as crews shaped the emerging sound. Pirate radio became his proving ground, where a clash with Wiley at Beats II Battle in Southend solidified his respect and status in the scene.📡

During this run, a cameo appearance at an early Eskimo Dance awarded All In One with an instant reload, proving talent and stage presence that instantly commanded the respect and attention of the crowd. 🔁

Beyond freestyles, his 2007 mixtape ‘Off The Rail’ showcased his craft in recorded form. Featuring collaborations with pioneers by the likes of Danny Weed, Wiley, Scorcher and Target, it quickly received widespread acclaim across the grime scene. 📀

Manga insists, “He perfected it. How he wrote was immaculate,” a testament to the skill and flow that made him a well-respected figure in early grime.

🎙️ @allin_0ne

Follow @grimewatchofficial for more grime content🔍

#ukgrime #London #grimemusic #grimescene #bow taken in Bow, London E3 by @chantellefiddy

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8 months ago

HERITAGE: Darkside pioneer and Cold Blooded member Terminator delivers a brutal ‘PHTV’ freestyle for @troyaplus over the menacing “Way Down Da Road” (prod. by @onlyscorch), 2007 😤

Once again, we find ourselves dipping into the endless goldmine of mid-2000s DVDs from the mind of Troy ‘A-Plus’ Miller. This time, it’s the first issue of ‘PHTV Life Style DVD Magazine’ and a freestyle from Hackney-born MC Terminator of seminal grime crew Cold Blooded (alongside the likes of Scorcher, Dolla Da Dustman, Cookie and more). ‘PHTV’ was essentially a DVD magazine version of Miller’s legendary ‘Practice Hours’ series and featured some very early appearances of Akala, Lady Ny, Ms. Dynamite, Kano, Skitz Beatz, the late Esco ‘Big Bars’, Sir Spyro, Gully Gang and plenty more besides.

Terminator, if you didn’t know, also had a healthy football career at one point—playing for QPR, Watford, as well as youth teams for Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur and the England U16 squad. Whether you know him as football player Shabazz Baidoo, grime MC Terminator or the ‘Darkside Pioneer’ (a subsect of grime that was a lot slower and darker), or if he’s a completely new name to you, this ‘PHTV’ freestyle is worth your attention.

➡️ #trenchheritage by @chantellefiddy

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9 months ago

HERITAGE: Grime DVD legend @troyaplus heads down to @jammerbbk’s iconic basement to capture this energetic freestyle from @jmebbkinsta, 2006 😮‍💨

Jamie Adenuga has been fearless from day dot. Part grime MC, part maverick, part shrewd businessman, he has etched out a lane for himself unlike most in the genre, making the times change with him rather than the other way around. From the day the first batch of BBK tees became the streets’ hottest commodity, to every defiant cry of independence on record, the scene has forever known that this North Londoner was about moving on his own terms.

As early as 2006, on “Serious”, Jme was breaking down the science of being an underground star navigating through the industry, woke enough to warn tough-guy rappers that they’ll get nowhere with their content. As the years have flown by, Jme has fine-tuned his principles while retaining the aura of an everyman—a normal, nerdy, driven MC, ever present yet somewhat distant.

➡️ #trenchheritage by @chantellefiddy

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a year ago

HERITAGE: Two of grime’s leading ladies, @lioness and @queeniesaidso, bring through emerging talent and set pace in this cold freestyle for @troyaplus’ ‘Practice Hours 2’ DVD, 2006 🥶

Once again, we find ourselves dipping into the goldmine that is ‘Practice Hours 2’. This time, we’re highlighting a segment that focused on Lioness, Queenie and some of the emerging talent at the time. Filmed around the time loads of young women from across LDN came together for “Grab The Mic” (including notable appearances from NoLay and Lady Fury), this fast and furious freestyle from Queenie and Lioness was an early indicator of just how talented they are. All hail! 👑

➡️ #trenchheritage by @chantellefiddy

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a year ago

“How was I there?” 🤷🏾‍♂️

@troyaplus shares how traveling far and wide helped him capture iconic moments that became a part of the culture.

With @iglooceo pushing him to check out other talent, always being ready to film key moments like @jammerbbk legendary birthday set or for raves like Young Man Standing, Troy was always in the right place at the right time.

Episode 2 of The ELMNTRY Show is available now on Spotify & YouTube. by @chantellefiddy

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a year ago

“Two of the biggest” 😤😤

@troyaplus reflects on filming @iglooceo vs @lethalbizzle. He dives deep into the roots of clash culture, breaks down the fundamentals, and shares why this moment holds so much pride for him. Plus, get the inside story on how it all came together.

Tune in now on Spotify, YouTube, and all major podcast platforms! by @chantellefiddy

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a year ago

“On that day I could feel the tension” ♨️

@troyaplus recalls the intensity of the Conflict DVD clash between Dizzee Rascal and Crazy Titch. He found himself questioning whether to keep the cameras rolling or shut it down. But in that chaos, history was being made raw, unfiltered grime at its most explosive.

Episode 2 of The ELMNTRY Show is available on Spotify, YouTube and all podcast platforms. by @chantellefiddy

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a year ago

“I made a lot of DVDs” 📀📀..

@troyaplus runs through the iconic grime DVDs he’s filmed and edited. Documenting classics that helped shape the culture alongside breaking down a timeline of grime DVDs.

He credits @djtarget for the late-night graft on the ‘Aim High’ DVDs and gives props to @riskyroadz as another pioneer in capturing the scene.

Episode 2 of The ELMNTRY Show is available now on Spotify, Youtube and all podcast platforms. by @chantellefiddy

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a year ago