Rizzle Kicks. I bet you weren’t expect to hear that name outside of the early 2010s. The hip hop duo, well-known for their hits “Down With the Trumpets”, “Skip to the Good Bit”, and “Mama Do the Hump”, are back – and they’re back with a bang.
With two new singles taken from their highly anticipated album and a tour that kicked off in London on November 8th, they’re not entering the music stratosphere quietly.
The duo, whose real names are Jordan Stephens and Harley Alexander-Sule, broke up in 2016 after issues with addiction and mental health. They have since produced music individually over the years, but it is their return, together, that has got people talking.
Their two new songs, “Gumdrops” and “Javelin”, have not yet had much success breaking into the UK charts, but their tour dates are almost all sold out and, when the full album is finally released, I’m expecting a triumphant comeback for the pair.
“Gumdrops”, which touches on the lad culture that shaped their childhoods, seems as much a reminiscence for them as it is for us. The youthful renaissance of their music evokes nostalgia in listeners, instantly transporting them back to the tunes from over a decade ago, when many were just starting their teens. Javelin has a much more motivational upbeat to it, but is an equally as satisfying listen.
Rizzle Kicks were well known for their collaborations, most notably with Olly Murs on “Heart Skips a Beat” and Ed Sheeran on a remixed version of “You Don’t Need Me, I Don’t Need You”. With a new generation of artists hitting the stage, I’m looking forward to seeing who they’ll work with next. In an age when genre-blending and musical reinvention are also popular (see Post Malone taking on country), I wouldn’t be surprised if Rizzle Kicks explore new styles as well. However, their music was so good in the 2010s that I don’t think there would be any complaints if they stayed loyal to what they know.
As Rizzle Kicks return to the stage, it’s clear that they’re ready to remind us why we fell in love with them in the first place.
“IMG_9471RizzleKicks_1500” by macskapocs is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.