Boy in da Corner

Around the age of 14, Dizzee Rascal became an amateur drum and bass DJ, also rapping over tracks as customary in sound system culture, and making occasional appearances on local pirate radio stations.{{cite web|author=DJ Vlad|title=Dizzee Rascal on Growing up in the Projects & Raw Gun Culture in the U.K.|website=YouTube |date=17 March 2016|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3hugcCt6b0&t=244 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/l3hugcCt6b0 |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|access-date=10 August 2016}}{{cbignore}} Two years on, aged 16, he self-produced his first single, "I Luv U", which was included on his debut.{{cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/dizzee-rascal-you-ask-the-questions-556269.html|title=Dizzee Rascal: You Ask The Questions|work=The Independent|location=London|date=12 August 2004|access-date=8 May 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090823002050/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/dizzee-rascal-you-ask-the-questions-556269.html|archive-date=23 August 2009|url-status=live}} The same year, Rascal signed a solo deal with the record label XL.{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/3055770.stm|title=Garage star stabbed in Cyprus|work=BBC News|date=8 July 2003|access-date=8 May 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090512160847/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/3055770.stm|archive-date=12 May 2009|url-status=live}}

{{Album ratings

| MC = 92/100

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1Score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite web|last=Kellman|first=Andy|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/boy-in-da-corner-mw0000333183|title=Boy in da Corner – Dizzee Rascal|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=3 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120602062454/http://www.allmusic.com/album/boy-in-da-corner-mw0000333183|archive-date=2 June 2012|url-status=live}}

| rev2 = Blender

| rev2Score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite journal|last=Weiner|first=Jonah|url=http://www.blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=1612|title=Dizzee Rascal: Boy in da Corner|journal=Blender|issue=23|date=January 2004|access-date=8 March 2015|page=108|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070930180816/http://www.blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=1612|archive-date=30 September 2007|url-status=dead}}

| rev3 = Entertainment Weekly

| rev3Score = B+{{cite magazine|last=Browne|first=David|author-link=David Browne (journalist)|date=16 January 2004|url=https://www.ew.com/article/2004/01/16/boy-da-corner|title=Boy in da Corner|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|access-date=3 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160412130342/http://www.ew.com/article/2004/01/16/boy-da-corner|archive-date=12 April 2016|url-status=dead}}

| rev4 = The Guardian

| rev4Score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite news|last=Petridis|first=Alexis|author-link=Alexis Petridis|date=18 July 2003|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2003/jul/18/popandrock.artsfeatures|title=Dizzee Rascal: Boy in da Corner|work=The Guardian|access-date=3 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140422153307/http://www.theguardian.com/music/2003/jul/18/popandrock.artsfeatures|archive-date=22 April 2014|url-status=live}}

| rev5 = Mojo

| rev5Score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite journal|title=Dizzee Rascal: Boy in da Corner|journal=Mojo|issue=117|date=August 2003|page=106}}

| rev6 = NME

| rev6Score = 9/10{{cite journal|last=Pattison|first=Louis|url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/dizzee-rascal/7140|title=Dizzee Rascal : Boy in Da Corner|journal=NME|date=21 July 2003|access-date=3 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305065317/http://www.nme.com/reviews/dizzee-rascal/7140|archive-date=5 March 2016|url-status=dead}}

| rev7 = Pitchfork

| rev7Score = 9.4/10{{cite web|last=Plagenhoef|first=Scott|date=6 July 2003|url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/2345-boy-in-da-corner/|title=Dizzee Rascal: Boy in Da Corner|work=Pitchfork|access-date=16 December 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121227194000/http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/2345-boy-in-da-corner/|archive-date=27 December 2012|url-status=live}}

| rev8 = Rolling Stone

| rev8Score = {{Rating|4|5}}{{cite magazine|last=Blashill|first=Pat|date=5 February 2004|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/dizzeerascal/albums/album/4974573|title=Dizzee Rascal: Boy in Da Corner|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=22 April 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080611163448/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/dizzeerascal/albums/album/4974573|archive-date=11 June 2008|url-status=dead}}

| rev9 = Spin

| rev9Score = A−{{cite journal|last=Hermes|first=Will|author-link=Will Hermes|date=February 2004|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MeQBt9uaTRUC&pg=PA95|title=Speaking in Tongues|journal=Spin|volume=20|issue=2|access-date=3 May 2011|pages=95–96}}

| rev10 = The Village Voice

| rev10Score = A−{{cite news|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|date=10 February 2004|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv204-04.php|title=Consumer Guide: Parts of the Elephunk|work=The Village Voice|access-date=3 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110629213452/http://robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv204-04.php|archive-date=29 June 2011|url-status=live}}

}}

Boy in da Corner received widespread acclaim from critics. At Metacritic, the album received an aggregate score of 92 out of 100, based on 28 reviews.{{cite web|url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/boy-in-da-corner/dizzee-rascal|title=Reviews for Boy in Da Corner by Dizzee Rascal|publisher=Metacritic|access-date=3 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120729050226/http://www.metacritic.com/music/boy-in-da-corner/dizzee-rascal|archive-date=29 July 2012|url-status=live}} NME called it "one of the most assured debut albums of the last five years". Entertainment Weekly stated that, "Combining U.K. garage beats and a distinctly British sensibility, Rascal spits out phrases with the energy and finesse of a championship boxer". Rolling Stone wrote, "If you want a vision of the future of hip-hop and techno, get this record". AllMusic called it "Startling, tirelessly powerful, and full of unlimited dimensions, nothing could truly weigh down this debut". Pitchfork{{'}}s Scott Plagenhoef stated, "Dizzee's despairing wail, focused anger, and cutting sonics places him on the front lines in the battle against a stultifying Britain, just as Pete Townshend, Johnny Rotten, and Morrissey have been in the past". In The Village Voice, Robert Christgau wrote that "His adolescent gulps and yowls are street-Brit with a Jamaican liquidity, as lean, eccentric, and arresting as the beats." Fellow Village Voice critic Jeff Chang stated, "When Dizzee thinks very deeply—worrying about growing up, about those around him who won't grow up, about dying before he grows up—he sounds like, what else can we call it, the real thing".{{cite news|last=Chang|first=Jeff|date=13 January 2004|url=http://www.villagevoice.com/2004-01-13/music/future-shock/1|title=Future Shock|work=The Village Voice|access-date=3 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101017224622/http://www.villagevoice.com/2004-01-13/music/future-shock/1/|archive-date=17 October 2010|url-status=live}} Stylus Magazine stated, "Most of Boy in Da Corner's most compelling moments come from this uneasy interaction between irrational youth and ultra-rational mechanized society".{{cite web|last=Mueller|first=Gavin|date=1 September 2003|url=http://www.stylusmagazine.com/reviews/dizzee-rascal/boy-in-da-corner.htm|title=Dizzee Rascal – Boy in Da Corner – Review|work=Stylus Magazine|access-date=3 May 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110630202221/http://stylusmagazine.com/reviews/dizzee-rascal/boy-in-da-corner.htm|archive-date=30 June 2011}} Alexis Petridis from The Guardian called Dizzee "the most original and exciting artist to emerge from dance music in a decade".

Boy in da Corner won Dizzee Rascal the 2003 Mercury Prize, an annual music award for the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland, making him the second rapper to win the award.{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/3092520.stm|title=Rapper Rascal wins Mercury Prize|publisher=BBC News|date=9 September 2003|access-date=3 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080919181134/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/music/3092520.stm|archive-date=19 September 2008|url-status=live}} In 2009, it was voted the sixth greatest album of all time by MTV Base.{{cite web|url=http://www.mtv.co.uk/channels/mtv-base/chart/greatest-albums-ever|title=MTV Base – Greatest Albums Ever|publisher=MTV|access-date=3 May 2011|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090310042354/http://www.mtv.co.uk/channels/mtv-base/chart/greatest-albums-ever|archive-date=10 March 2009}} The album was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.{{cite book|title=1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die: Revised and Updated Edition|editor1-last=Dimery|editor1-first=Robert|publisher=Universe|year=2010|isbn=978-0-789-32074-2}} According to B.J. Steiner from Complex, "Boy in Da Corner brought grime—an influential subgenre of hip-hop birthed from the endless creativity of a bunch of kids from the United Kingdom—to the rest of the world and made a young Dizzee Rascal, his country's first international rap superstar."{{cite journal|last=Steiner|first=B.J.|date=6 May 2016|url=http://www.complex.com/music/2016/05/dizzee-rascal-interview-boy-in-da-corner-retrospective|title=The Boy in Da Corner Grown Up: An Interview With Dizzee Rascal|journal=Complex|access-date=7 May 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160507125855/http://www.complex.com/music/2016/05/dizzee-rascal-interview-boy-in-da-corner-retrospective|archive-date=7 May 2016|url-status=live}}

Boy in da Corner was released on 21 July 2003 in the United Kingdom by XL Recordings and 20 January 2004 in the United States by Matador Records.{{cite web|url=https://www.popmatters.com/feature/031024-dizzeerascal/|access-date=8 May 2016|title=Dizzee Rascal: The End of Garage's Beginning|work=PopMatters|date=24 October 2003|last=Morris|first=David|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160617071026/http://www.popmatters.com/feature/031024-dizzeerascal/|archive-date=17 June 2016|url-status=live}} It reached number twenty-three on the UK Albums Chart{{cite news|last=Thompson|first=Ben|url=http://observer.guardian.co.uk/omm/story/0,,1240083,00.html|title=Dizzee Rascal, Boy in Da Corner|work=The Observer|date=20 June 2004|access-date=3 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110521144213/http://observer.guardian.co.uk/omm/story/0,,1240083,00.html|archive-date=21 May 2011|url-status=live}} and was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), having shipped 100,000 copies there.{{cite web |url=http://www.bpi.co.uk/certified-awards.aspx |title=BPI > Certified Awards Search |publisher=British Phonographic Industry |access-date=14 April 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130124005813/http://www.bpi.co.uk/certified-awards.aspx |archive-date=24 January 2013}} By 2004, it had sold over 250,000 copies worldwide,{{cite web|last=Weiner|first=Jonah|date=7 September 2004|url=http://www.villagevoice.com/music/0437,weiner,56694,22.html|title=Parallel Universe|work=The Village Voice|access-date=3 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080704214152/http://www.villagevoice.com/music/0437,weiner,56694,22.html|archive-date=4 July 2008|url-status=live}} and over 58,000 copies in the US by 2007.{{cite magazine|last=Martens|first=Todd|date=23 May 2007|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1051968/new-dizzee-rascal-goes-digital-only-in-us|title=New Dizzee Rascal Goes Digital-Only in U.S.|magazine=Billboard|access-date=3 May 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140914043640/http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1051968/new-dizzee-rascal-goes-digital-only-in-us|archive-date=14 September 2014|url-status=live}} The album was certified Platinum (300,000 copies) in July 2018, 15 years after its release, making it Dizzee's second Platinum selling album after Tongue n' Cheek.{{cite web|url=https://www.instagram.com/p/Bt6rT5yhlAZ/|title=Dizzee Rascal on Instagram: "Imagine I'm just now seeing Boy in the corner went platinum last year 15 years after it was released! Big up everyone who's still listening…"|website=Instagram|access-date=29 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190410093725/https://www.instagram.com/p/Bt6rT5yhlAZ/|archive-date=10 April 2019|url-status=live}}

In 2016, Dizzee Rascal performed Boy in da Corner in full for the first time first in New York and then in east London at the Copper Box Arena.{{cite web|url=http://www.okayplayer.com/news/dizzee-rascal-reveals-the-secret-history-of-boy-in-da-corner.html|title=The Secret History of Boy in Da Corner|date=6 May 2016|access-date=13 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116150325/http://www.okayplayer.com/news/dizzee-rascal-reveals-the-secret-history-of-boy-in-da-corner.html|archive-date=16 January 2017|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/dizzee-rascal-boy-in-da-corner-live|title=Dizzee Rascal reminisces making his Mercury Prize winning debut album Boy in Da Corner|first=Eleanor|last=Halls|date=23 October 2016 |access-date=13 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116150855/http://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/article/dizzee-rascal-boy-in-da-corner-live|archive-date=16 January 2017|url-status=live}} Contemporary critics praised the album's continuing influence on grime and ageless sound.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/may/07/dizzee-rascal-boy-in-da-corner-red-bull-music-academy|title=Dizzee Rascal: UK grime's royalty reclaims throne in New York|first=Kieran|last=Yates|date=7 May 2016|work=The Guardian|access-date=13 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170118063426/https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/may/07/dizzee-rascal-boy-in-da-corner-red-bull-music-academy|archive-date=18 January 2017|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=http://uk.complex.com/music/2016/09/dizzee-rascal-boy-in-da-corner-mini-doc-red-bull|title=Exclusive: The Grime Scene Talks Dizzee Rascal's 'Boy in Da Corner' In New Mini Doc|website=Complex UK|access-date=13 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170116185127/http://uk.complex.com/music/2016/09/dizzee-rascal-boy-in-da-corner-mini-doc-red-bull|archive-date=16 January 2017|url-status=live}} In late 2016, a bootleg fan mixtape of rare recordings from the Boy in Da Corner era called Left in da Corner was released.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PneCtBxbT7E|title=Dizzee Rascal - Left in Da Corner (Mixtape)|author=Fourth Mason|date=22 December 2016|via=YouTube|access-date=13 January 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190505183137/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PneCtBxbT7E|archive-date=5 May 2019|url-status=live}}

On 21 July 2023 XL Recordings released the 20th Anniversary Edition of the album, featuring 14 previously unreleased songs.{{Cite web |title=Boy In Da Corner 20th Anniversary Edition Vinyl |url=https://shopusa.xlrecordings.com/boy-in-da-corner-20th-anniversary-edition |access-date=2023-07-21 |website=XL Recordings |language=en}}

All tracks were produced by Dizzee Rascal, except where noted.

{{Track listing

| total_length = 57:08

| title1 = Sittin' Here

| writer1 = Dylan Mills

| length1 = 4:05

| title2 = Stop Dat

| writer2 = Mills

| length2 = 3:40

| title3 = I Luv U

| writer3 = Mills

| length3 = 4:05

| title4 = Brand New Day

| writer4 = Mills

| length4 = 4:00

| title5 = 2 Far

| note5 = featuring Wiley

| writer5 = {{hlist|Mills|Richard Cowie}}

| length5 = 3:07

| title6 = Fix Up, Look Sharp

| writer6 = {{hlist|Mills|Nick Detnon|Billy Squier}}

| length6 = 3:44

| title7 = Cut 'Em Off

| writer7 = Mills

| length7 = 3:53

| title8 = Hold Ya Mouf

| note8 = featuring God's Gift

| writer8 = {{hlist|Mills|Jerome Dow}}

| length8 = 2:55

| title9 = Round We Go

| note9 = co-produced by Chubby Dread

| writer9 = {{hlist|Mills|Hector}}

| length9 = 4:13

| title10 = Jus' a Rascal

| note10 = featuring Taz) (co-produced by Taz & Vanguard

| writer10 = {{hlist|Mills|Tesmond Rowe|Vanguard Vardoen}}

| length10 = 3:39

| title11 = Wot U On?

| note11 =

| writer11 = Mills

| length11 = 4:50

| title12 = Jezebel

| writer12 = Mills

| length12 = 3:36

| title13 = Seems 2 Be

| writer13 = Mills

| length13 = 3:46

| title14 = Live O

| writer14 = Mills

| length14 = 3:35

| title15 = Do It!

| writer15 = Mills

| length15 = 4:06

}}

{{Track listing

| headline = US edition bonus track

| title16 = Vexed

| writer16 = Mills

| length16 = 4:11

}}{{Track listing

| headline = 20th anniversary edition track listing

| title1 = Vexed

| length1 = 4:11

| writer1 = Dylan Mills

| title2 = Street Fighter

| length2 = 3:19

| writer2 = Mills

| title3 = I Luv U - Remix

| note3 = featuring Wiley & Sharky Major

| length3 = 4:24

| writer3 = {{hlist|Mills|Richard Cowie|Sharky Major}}

| title4 = Give U More

| note4 = featuring D Double E

| length4 = 3:25

| writer4 = {{hlist|Mills|Darren Dickson}}

| title5 = Win

| note5 = featuring Breeze

| length5 = 2:25

| writer5 = {{hlist|Mills|Breeze}}

| title6 = We Aint Havin It

| note6 = featuring Wiley

| length6 = 3:45

| writer6 = {{hlist|Mills|Cowie}}

| title7 = Kryme

| note7 = featuring Redrum & Sharky Major

| length7 = 3:41

| writer7 = {{hlist|Mills|Redrum|Sharky Major}}

| title8 = Ready 4 War

| note8 = featuring Armour, Stormin & Sharky Major

| length8 = 4:40

| writer8 = {{hlist|Mills|Armour|Stormin|Sharky Major}}

| title9 = Street Fighter - Instrumental

| length9 = 2:41

| title10 = Go - Instrumental

| length10 = 4:34

| title11 = Ho - Instrumental

| length11 = 4:05

| title12 = String Ho - Instrumental

| length12 = 2:44

| title13 = Ting Ting - Instrumental

| length13 = 2:05

| title14 = Wheel - Instrumental

| length14 = 3:48

| total_length = 107:00

}}

Notes

• "Stop Dat" features background vocals by Armour of N.A.S.T.Y. Crew
• "I Luv U" features additional vocals by Jeanine Jacques
• "Wot U On?" features additional vocals by Caramel
• "Seems 2 Be" features additional vocals by Claire Cottrell

Sample credits

• "Fix Up, Look Sharp" includes a sample of "The Big Beat", performed by Billy Squier.

The album's credits are adapted from AllMusic.{{cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/boy-in-da-corner-r675045/credits|title=Boy in da Corner - Dizzee Rascal: Credits|work=AllMusic|access-date=27 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110720041203/http://allmusic.com/album/boy-in-da-corner-r675045/credits|archive-date=20 July 2011|url-status=live}}

• Armour – background vocals
• Gareth Bayliss – sleeve design assistant
• Caramel – vocals
• Dean Chalkley – sleeve photo
• Chubby Dread – producer
• Claire Cottrell – vocals
• Nick Detnon – A&R
• Ben Drury – cover design, logo design
• God's Gift – performer
• Nick Huggett – artist coordination
• Dylan Mills – composer
• Tesmond Rowe – composer
• Vanguard Vardoen – composer
• Wiley – performer

{{col-start}}

{{col-2}}

{{col-2}}

{{col-end}}

{{reflist}}

• {{Discogs master|type=album|37683}}

{{Dizzee Rascal}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:2003 debut albums

Category:Dizzee Rascal albums

Category:Mercury Prize–winning albums

Category:XL Recordings albums