Best New Artists of 2016
Dave
Location: South London, U.K.
His name may be simple, but his bars most definitely are not. Young British rapper Dave (formerly SantanDave) might have had the best year of anyone on this list, releasing his debut EP Six Paths, selling out his first headline shows, making his festival debut, and even reaching L.A. to record in Mark Ronson’s studio. Oh, and there was that small matter of Drake remixing Dave’s song “Wanna Know” and debuting it on OVO Sound Radio.
Dave subsequently returned the favor, dropping a new version of Drake’s “Two Birds No Stones,” but it’s his stunning Six Paths EP rather than any cross-Atlantic cosign that should make you respect this fast-rising teenager. On the EP, Dave reveals the parts of London that don’t appear in the tourist brochures—the stabbings, the drugs, the poverty, the police—never glorifying the situation he grew up around, instead preaching the power of self-belief and hard work.
Provoking introspection without ever getting preachy and delivering punchlines that will have you rewinding to make sure you caught them, Dave isn’t just a talented, thoughtful rapper, he’s a versatile one too. He can bring stories to life with vivid detail (“Six Paths”), he can lay melodic hooks (“Wanna Know”), and he can go in over grimy, high-energy beats (“Thiago Silva”).
“Don’t let anybody tell you you can’t run, dance, sing, or be a baller / You can be a king,” Dave raps on “Picture Me.” Wise words from an 18-year-old who is doing something special.—Alex Gardner
[youtube ytid=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnI5sc0puYQ?rel=0&w=680&h=338%5D
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