It all started with a voice note. Back in 2019, Victory Lap founder Joseph McDermott was on a trip to New York with his pals – a mix of skaters, MCs and producers. They’d spent the evenings pulling up to local radio stations and, as the trip wound to a close, they needed a name to upload the recordings under. Sitting in their AirBnB, the group flipped on their voice recorder and started brainstorming. Out of that conversation came Victory Lap, and, six years later, the platform has found itself at the forefront of the UK’s underground rap sonics.

“I think what makes Victory Lap special is that it’s built on genuine community and friendship,” McDermott tells Dazed. “I’ve known a lot of these artists for a while so it feels as if we’re growing side by side. We aren’t a collective, we are an ever-growing community that wants to bring new artists to the forefront and create opportunity.”

It’s this community spirit that makes Victory Lap sets so compelling to watch. One needs to look no further than the Spring 2025 Dazed cover itself to see this camaraderie: despite the stark differences in genre, drill leading light Chy Cartier, chill rap pioneer Ashbeck, jerk rap-reinventer YT, grime-influenced singer-songwriter Jim Legxacy and the others all stand shoulder-to-shoulder, pointing upwards at the future they’re creating together.

For Victory Lap, it’s an approach that pays homage to the platforms that came before them. “I was inspired a lot by the likes of SBTV, Lord Of The Mics, P110, Tim & Barry, [as well as] hardcore punk channels like hate5six and skating channels like Crailtap and Berrics,” explains McDermott. “Being internet kids, it felt like we saw it all.”

This inspiration came full circle when none other than Dave and Central Cee dropped by the Victory Lap show in late 2023, going bar-for-bar with rising names like Kibo and Rushy and creating one of the most celebrated UK rap moments in recent memory. But Victory Lap’s significance extends far beyond the star-studded names – at its core, the platform remains committed to celebrating the up-and-comers that are dominating the playlists of tomorrow. 

“What I love about what’s going on in the UK right now is the diversity of sounds – even if you look at the artists on the cover,” sums up McDermott. “Everyone has their own lane, their own sound and is diversifying what people expect from the UK. Whatever the next sound that someone takes off from is, I hope it’s something that I can’t see coming.”

Below, Victory Lap founder Joseph McDermott creates an exclusive guide through the sounds featured in Dazed’s UK underground rap cover story. 

BXKS “BACK IT UP”

Victory Lap: This one probably got spun at every motive I was at last year. It’s a crazy dance floor filler that can bring any motive to life instantly. “3.5 in pack, I’m in the dance, where you at?!”

BXKS “EVERYTHING”

Victory Lap: BXKS is hands down one of the best rappers in the new generation and her 2024 project, “One Time”, displays this track after track. This one has percy, dizzying verses, no hook, just bars and a Radiohead sample – yuck!

CHY CARTIER “YO”

Victory Lap: Arguably the song of the year from 2024 – it has unlimited quotables and a hook that will have you walking around all day every day repeating ‘yo yo yo yo!’ in your head. There’s also a heavyweight remix with Headie One, which represents Tottenham, North London properly.

CHY CARTIER “SHUSH”

Victory Lap: The bars for this were previewed and popped off on our first Victory Lap session in our new studio, so this one has a special place for me. Chy came down and shelled it differently. 

NIKO B “WHY’S THIS DEALER?”

Victory Lap: Most people probably know this one and have seen it on TikTok next to the bouncy Yaris that comes with it. It’s a proper British wobbler.

NIKO B “TRESPASS COAT FT. DEXTER IN THE NEWSAGENT”

Victory Lap: I DJ for Niko and this is always the first song we play on the set after a dramatic intro, so this one is one of my favourites ever from him and a great taste of what to expect on his debut project dog eat dog food world. Also love Dexter, always – shout out to Dexter.

YT “BLACK & TAN FT. LANCEY FOUX”

Victory Lap: Another contender for song of the year 2024 and also easily up there for music video of the year (shout out to Lauzza). This song broke the internet worldwide and it was heartwarming to see the reception even from people outside of the UK, I feel like it was a cultural shifting point with how the rest of the world viewed the UK ‘underground’ scene (shout out again to YT and a young modern legend in Lancey for changing the narrative).

YT “#PURRR FT. 5EB” 

Victory Lap: YT really found his feet and his trademark future jerk sound with this project #STILLSWAGGIN. The Lady Gaga sample, the shutter shades and iPhone 3G on the cover – it’s 2008 and we’re at a college house party but the references and lyrics are in 2024 somehow. The whole project laid the foundation for the amazing stuff he’s doing now and is well worth a deep dive before his next project, Oi, drops next month.

KWES E “JUGGIN”

Victory Lap: E has been a long time Victory Lap guest and one of my favourite rappers so I was really happy to see him get the flowers he deserves with this song, one of my personal favourites from last year. Reminds me of the end of summer 2024. Check out the alternate version on his project off topic which dropped recently too.

KWES E “NURSERY FT. SCRUZ” 

Victory Lap: This is one that’s been on my playlists for a few years. It just reminds me of a time e was coming down to the VLAP show monthly (shout out to scruz who produced this mellow, dance slapper for e to slide on). “My Stoney just turned 3 years old, it’s going nursery!”

JIM LEGXACY “AGGRESSIVE” 

Victory Lap: One of those songs that when it ends, you just restart it. The first single from the highly anticipated upcoming album Black British Music. Emotional delivery, a hypnotic beat that makes you move and important quintessentially British cultural reference points chopped into samples throughout the beat. This is Jim Legxacy.

JIM LEGXACY “HIT IT LIGHT IT TWIST IT” 

Victory Lap: This is a song even my dad texted me about in 2023 – yeah, even my dad is a Jim Legxacy fan. He has his finger on the pulse! A classic that takes me back to the summer of 2023 flying around on a lime bike.

ASHBECK “LOCAL”

Victory Lap: This is another one that was born on Victory Lap, in the first show back in our new studio. I love when something happens live on air and then takes on a life of its own, so shout out to Ash and Londo for putting this one out for the people.

ASHBECK “FOOLI”

Victory Lap: This is one of my personal favourite Ash songs, taken from Ashlondo 3 last year. Londo signature dream sequence beats matched with Ash’s deadly delivery is a reason they’ve established themselves as a serious duo – and this song is the perfect showcase for their partnership.

ZINO VINCI “RICE AND STEW”

Victory Lap: The song and video for this speaks to my inner Madvillain fanboy – a British love letter and twist on a classic hip-hop sound. The video, single cover, action figure, samples and vocals chopped into the song all help to build Zino’s vivid East London comic book world. Highly recommended.

ZINO VINCI “CEO OF THE FRIENDSHIP GROUP”

Victory Lap: I think this is the first Zino song that was on my radar – short and addictive, you’ll keep running it back constantly. A hypnotic, spacey beat backdrops Zino referencing one of the funniest Twitter debates of 2022. Are you the leader in your friendship group?

Read our spring 2025 cover story on the UK‘s underground rap scene here. For all these tracks in one place, follow our Spotify playlist above.