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May 10, 2016Konnichiwa is a landmark in British street music, a record good enough to take on the world without having to compromise one inch in the process.
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May 10, 2016Whether or not grime loses its threat in the near future, Konnichiwa will still stand tall as a hard-hitting soundtrack to unfulfilling life in cruel Britain that's achieved by giving a microphone to voices that otherwise wouldn't have been heard.
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Aug 24, 2016A strong album and potential watermark moment in both Skepta career and grime’s history.
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Jul 15, 2016Konnichiwa isn’t just the sound of young Britain, but a bar-raising example of just how creative UK music can be.
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Jul 7, 2016Lines aimed at authority, competition, and bottom feeders all shoot clean through.
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Q MagazineJun 6, 2016Konnichiwa is not just hit-packed, but almost flawless. [#361, p.115]
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May 20, 2016Skepta and UK grime’s resurrection has been one of the most exciting musical sounds of the past few years, and rather than being the climax, you get the feeling that Konnichiwa is just the start of something special.
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May 12, 2016For all that the album self-evidently has one eye fixed on the States, you never get the sense of an artist subjugating his own personality to succeed abroad. It’s not just that the lyrics throughout are dextrous and sharp and funny, although they are. It’s that even his most virulent braggadocio is underscored by a very winning, very British kind of bathos.
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May 11, 2016With Konnichiwa, Skepta hoists grime to another level. It’s not just a case of his lyrical prowess, which goes some way deeper than most of his peers; it’s the way that he has fiercely retained control over his own destiny, overseeing everything from mastering to merchandise through the Boy Better Know collective.
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May 10, 2016The album pulses with nervy energy. None of the new tracks outshine those we’ve already heard, though Numbers, produced by Pharrell Williams, comes exuberantly close.
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May 10, 2016Konnichiwa is proof of not only Skepta's skill on the mic, but also of his ability to put together a strong, solid album. As Grime continues to rise, its leaders are well worth watching.
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May 16, 2016Konnichiwa is as nakedly vulnerable Skepta has ever been, and it represents a tantalizingly wide-open door for grime. It’ll be our job as listeners to step through and discover what we’ve been missing.
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May 16, 2016Konnichiwa isn't perfect, but it mostly accomplishes the goals Skepta set for himself, and is certainly one of the best grime has seen so far.
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May 13, 2016Reclaiming his own identity, Skepta is now properly equipped to amplify the sound just above its dank, underground incubator.
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May 10, 2016Skepta has learned to remain steadily himself in the face of hurdling success, while delivering one of the most vital albums in the history (and for the future) of globally accepted grime.
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May 17, 2016Skepta manages to craft his best yet with Konnichiwa. A concise project that focuses on taking him past his south London ends and into Hip Hop’s mainstream. ... But if he really wants his career to truly win over the Yanks, some of those subpar lines need to be cleaned up.
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May 13, 2016Konnichiwa confidently struts and showcases the emcee’s vibrant, exciting personality traits perhaps more than pretty much anyone else in Britain, grime or otherwise. Skepta’s music inhabits the good, evil, and the delightful grey areas in between.
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May 10, 2016"Lyrics," "Crime Riddim" and "Man" show him at his most convincing, taking aim at MC battle culture, police profiling and post-fame loyalty respectively, delivered with force no matter how vulnerable the subject matter or how jokey the punch lines might be ("My mum don't know your mum / Stop telling man you're my cousin.").
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 85 out of 97
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Mixed: 7 out of 97
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Negative: 5 out of 97
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May 12, 2016
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May 17, 2016
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May 28, 2016