Arguably the hottest artist as we come into the Christmas season, Big Shaq has made international waves with his hit, “Man’s Not Hot.” The world first heard this freestyle on Charlie Sloth’s radio show, BBC’s 1xtra Fire in The Booth, and has been shook ever since. Shaq’s Grime hit currently has raked in over 41 million streams on Spotify and over 60 million views on the music video.
PHOTO: Youtube
Big Shaq a.k.a. Roadman Shaq a.ka. M.C. Quakez is the actor/Youtuber Michael Dapaah. Shaq is a character Dapaah plays for his mockumentary Youtube channel series, Somewhere in London (SWIL). The series is about the many different personalities in the city of London and his character, Big Shaq, is Dapaah’s look into the Grime culture of the city.
You hear names such as Skepta, Stormzy, Giggs, and the like. That’s Grime. Grime is the technical name for U.K. underground rap. Starting up in the early 2000s, Grime is a genre that takes its influence mainly from U.K. electronic music styles, hip-hop, and dancehall. When you hear Grime, you’re going to hear rapid backbeats and British accents spitting fast bars. That’s pretty much what it is.
PHOTO: Gfycat
It is questionable whether Big Shaq is here to stay. How far can an alter ego go in the rap industry where artists are calling each other fake, left, right, and center? Big Shaq has already started beef with real Shaq (Famous Lakers Center, Shaquille O’Neal) who actually made a diss rap of Big Shaq. But at the same time, artists like Giggs, Drake, and DJ Khaled, think Shaq deserves the hype.
PHOTO: Guestlist
Becoming a viral hit in a matter of days, the man who doesn’t take off his jacket should not be considered down and out for the count.
COVER PHOTO: @Graff_City
Watch Big Shaq’s Fire in the Booth here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WTsHsa4bQQ
Man’s Not Hot music video here (even DJ Khaled is in it!) :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3M_5oYU-IsU
Shaquille O’Neal’s Diss Track:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SjpAgAhLeQ
