Richard Cowie, better known as Wiley, is the East London MC and producer widely credited as the "Godfather of Grime" for the stark, syncopated "eskibeat" instrumentals — starting with "Eskimo" — that gave the genre its sonic blueprint in the early 2000s. He founded Pay As U Go Cartel and then Roll Deep, and later co-founded Boy Better Know, mentoring the generation of MCs, including Dizzee Rascal and Skepta, who carried grime toward the mainstream. His 2008 crossover hit "Wearing My Rolex" remains one of the few grime-adjacent records to reach the UK Top 5.

the sound in question

2008

Wearing My RolexWiley