Wiley
The architect of eskibeat and one of grime's founding figures, whose icy, video-game-cold productions set the template the whole scene grew from.
Wiley, born Richard Kylea Cowie Jr. in 1979 in Bow, east London, grew up around music: his father, Richard Cowie Senior, was a reggae artist who introduced him to early hip-hop acts like the Sugarhill Gang and to drumming. Wiley spent time selling drugs as a teenager before turning to production as an alternative living, performing first as DJ Wildchild, then Wiley Kat, before settling on Wiley.
His eskibeat productions, built from cold, sparse synth tones and pulled from UK garage and drum and bass, gave grime much of its early sonic identity. He broadcast them on pirate stations including Rinse FM, and his "Eskimo" instrumental, made around 1999-2000, is often cited as one of the genre's first beats.
He was part of UK garage crew Pay As U Go Cartel, reaching the UK top 40 with "Champagne Dance" in 2001, then founded Roll Deep, whose members at various points included Dizzee Rascal and Tinchy Stryder. Alongside mixtapes and white-label twelve-inches, he had UK top ten hits with "Wearing My Rolex" and "Never Be Your Woman", and a number one with "Heatwave".
His eleventh album, Godfather, released in 2017, was his highest-charting record and won an Outstanding Contribution to Music award from NME. He was appointed MBE for services to music in 2018, an honour withdrawn in 2024 after social media posts widely condemned as antisemitic. He is still widely referred to as the godfather of grime, both for his own records and for the artists he brought through.
Wiley at a glance
What kind of music does Wiley play?
Wiley is tagged hip-hop.
What festivals has Wiley played before?
Wiley has played Lost Lands 2026.
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