A household name who’s been influencing British music culture for longer than most of our undergrads have been alive: Mike Skinner is topping the line-up at UCL’s first Summer Festival.
The London-born and Brum-raised rapper is probably best known for The Streets; the musical project – ruminating on such British cultural institutions as drinking, smoking, and scrambled eggs – produced six albums over the course of a decade, and was responsible for many a laddy anthem including ‘Don’t Mug Yourself’ and the classic ‘Fit but You Know It’. Despite calling it quits in 2011, 2020 saw a new album featuring a dozen collaborations, most notably with the post-punk riot IDLES and indie icon Tame Impala. Skinner also graced Amelia Dimoldenberg’s Chicken Shop Date in 2020 (it was over Zoom though because, you know, 2020).
Away from The Streets, Skinner’s record label (The Beats) has catapulted the legends Professor Green, Example, and The Mitchell Brothers, to fame, while Skinner’s hopped behind the desk to write and produce with London rappers Kano (‘Nite Nite’) and Giggs (‘Slow Songs’). Skinner has also released a handful of his own singles, including 2015’s ‘The Car That Drives Itself’; he’s remixed ‘M.O.N.E.Y.’ from The 1975’s debut album and, in March 2023, appeared as a feature on ‘Mike (desert island duvet)’ by dance music’s latest obsession: Fred Again.
On the festival circuit, Skinner’s live DJ sets have brought effortless blends of grime, garage, and Streets top hits to the likes of Leeds, Lovebox, and 6 Music. It’s no surprise that he’s worked extensively as a producer: from watching his sets, it’s clear he has such a great knowledge of, and care for, the tunes that he’s mixing. We can’t wait to see him bring that same energy to UCL’s Main Quad, and play out the Festival with some properly crowd-pleasing bangers.
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