Last night DJ Semtex hosted another sold out Arrival in London, which has fast become the No.1 stage in the U.K for debuting some of the most uncompromising hip-hop artists of the moment.
Before heading down to Arrival scheduled as part of the new festival, Community LDN, DJ Semtex hosted a panel at a GiffGaff Happenings event at the Ace Hotel joined by Austin Daboh from 1xtra and UK Rap and Grime MC’s, Fekky and Big Narstie. The subject of the evening was how to get into the Grime and UK Rap game, and trust us the snapshots from each of the panelists was entertaining as they each illuminated on the life and times of the U.K music game. As questions opened to the audience, one question resonated in a way that extolled the virtues of how Arrival itself is driven. Semtex was asked how aspiring artists should get their music to him and his answer was simple “You don’t need to get it to me, if it’s banging I’ll find you.”
That statement certainly rang true for the House of Pharaohs and the journey that got them onto the Arrival stage last night as one of the acts on the bill alongside Kojey Radical and Vince Staples. From hearing murmurs on the streets of South London, to reading about House of Pharaohs right here on Nation of Billions; to inviting them into his 1Xtra studio, DJ Semtex has caught onto something in these rising MCs that defines what discovering the ‘next big thing’ is about.
It’s a rite of passage in this game, and whether you like it or not, to break through every artist needs to step infront of a crowd that isn’t waiting to see them. Being a support act gives you a chance to create new fans but its a deadly challenge that can also kill the spirit in the best of us. There’s only one intention House of Pharaohs had when they made their debut ARRIVAL and that was to ‘Massacre‘ the crowd, because fact is, no one saw them coming.
Spitting verses back to back from their ‘Southern Stamp‘ EP with such animated energy, it’s safe to say their performance caught the crowd unexpected as their EP came to life, raising goosebumps and eventually raising arms in the crowd. While the theme of the night was the rage about the 90’s that Vince Staples had raised up from one comment, for those who witnessed that era first hand, there were glimpses to be seen of the spirits of stalwarts from a time before any of the House of Pharaohs had even been conceived.
Whether through lyrical style or that uncanny energy, the bars from each MC were thrown down with a sheer ferocious confidence that took things to another level. For the crowd that did catch their support performance last night, the murmurs have started spreading wider as no one was second guessing that the House of Pharaohs had made their Arrival – Nyshy Bandanna, AJ Young Soul, Danny Stern, Kevin Taylor, Sam Wise and Blaze Track have got their ‘Southern Stamp’ of approval from us.
