Lethal Bizzle’s debut single Pow! caused uproar in UK nightclubs during the early 2000s. The grime track, featuring 10 MCs passing the microphone, made the venue floors adrenalin-fuelled as clubbers moshed, pushed and slammed into each other. The reaction was so huge that clubs banned the three-minute song across the nation, with many even displaying signs reading “All Lethal B tracks are banned from this venue (including instrumentals).”
The musician, whose real name is Maxwell Owusu Ansah, thinks a fight breaking out at a club where Pow! was being played started the ban. Another fight occurred elsewhere and DJs sent him images of signs in booths warning them not to play the track. The suppression of his music continued with shows getting pulled, including one in Leicester, after the police claimed the venue risked losing its live licence if the performance went ahead.
Bizzle wanted to create the vibe of pirate radio on a song. His frustration with the music industry, which wasn’t investing in grime aside from Dizzee Rascal’s debut record Boy In Da Corner, inspired Pow!. The track was a frenzy on London’s pirate radio stations even before its release on iTunes. The musician wanted to invest in other underground MCs, putting calls into individuals like D Double E, Flowdan and Jamakabi. When they met and Bizzle played the beat he had chosen, most of them weren’t too keen. Bizzle had to encourage them to record their verses and after listening back, their opinion began to shift.
The 20th anniversary of Pow! will be celebrated with a Roundhouse performance where Bizzle and all the crew will perform together live. Some of the MCs have drifted into other careers, with Napper promoting boxing and managing Chris Eubank Jr, but all will join Bizzle onstage with special guests like Roll Deep to give their fans the performance they have been waiting for
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