New Jersey streamer and producer Plaqueboymax sits in a London studio, Magnum tonic wine in hand. A Union Jack and Arsenal and Chelsea football kits hang in the background. Over three days, grime legend Skepta, UK rap man-of-the-moment Nemzz, and new wave trailblazers YT, Lancey Foux and Len pull up for a series of livestreamed recording sessions. It’s a powerful introduction to the British musical zeitgeist right now, and it all culminated in the release of Plaqueboymax’s 5$TAR SESSIONS: LONDON yesterday (March 20). “I had done a stream with Central Cee, and I fucked with the UK scene. I knew everybody,” Plaqueboymax tells Dazed. “I had never been before, so I was like, let’s see.”
Broadcast to Plaqueboymax’s seven-figure Twitch channel, the event churned out a number of viral moments. But the sessions truly shone by showcasing the full spectrum of UK rap sonics to the world. “There are so many different worlds [in the UK], so many different languages within the same language,” Stockwell rapper Len tells Dazed. Len, in particular, is notable for helping to add yet another language to the mix. Alongside Lancey Foux and Fimiguerrero, his 2024 collaborative release Conglomerate is a landmark in the nascent jerk-plugg-rage rap nexus that, more distantly, is also being explored by the likes of YT, Fakemink, 5EB and more.
Blending the party-oriented drum patterns of the early 2010s jerk rap scene with rage’s layered, distorted melodies and eclectic cadences that borrow as much from US rapper Playboi Carti as from the UK streets, the sound has been racking up millions of views online but has hitherto escaped an official label. “I’d describe it as ‘full throttle’,” says Len.
Despite these landmark interventions, however, all accounts point to Plaqueboymax’s introduction to Magnum tonic wine being the true star of the show. “My favourite moment was definitely Plaqueboymax’s reaction to the Magnum drink, he bonded with it immediately,” recalls Len. Plaqueboymax agrees: “They were fire, and hit you fast,” he says (the UK’s take on “Maccies” was another highlight.)
The 21-year-old streamer also shared that some of the recording sessions were only locked in at the last minute. “I didn’t know I was gonna do something with Skepta when I came to the UK. It was some last-minute shit, a good moment,” Plaqueboymax explains. As for the artist he wished he had recorded with while he was here, the producer had only one name in mind: “Pinkpantheress”.
5$TAR SESSIONS: LONDON is out now. Read our cover story on the UK’s thriving underground rap scene here.