• A funky new era: why women MCs are ruling UK clubs again - The Guardian

  The Guardian

  A funky new era: why women MCs are ruling UK clubs again The Guardian Some of the key players explain why the future of British hip-hop is female Ms Dynamite, who made some of 2009's biggest club tracks. ...

• Together - Season One / Week Four - Resident Advisor

  Resident Advisor

  Together - Season One / Week Four Resident Advisor Mercury Music Prize winner and the UK's first lady of hip-hop, Ms Dynamite takes to the stage alongside Macka B and Dizzee Rascal's tour DJ, Radio 1Xtra's ...

• This week's clubs previews - The Guardian

  The Guardian

  This week's clubs previews The Guardian ... complete the weekend next Saturday at Newcastle Student Union with live sets by Donaeo, Skepta, Sway, Tinie Tempah, Ms Dynamite and Boy Better Know.

• Complimentary Gallery Tours at the Museum of London! - Londonlaunch

  Complimentary Gallery Tours at the Museum of London! Londonlaunch With over 7000 objects from the Lord Mayor's coach to Ms Dynamite's track suit, the new Galleries provide a home for the story of modern London, ... and more »

• Preview: Sin City - A Red Bull Music Academy Special - Spoonfed

  Preview: Sin City - A Red Bull Music Academy Special Spoonfed Due to ?unforeseen circumstances?, dub band Scientist will not be fulfilling their headline billing and have been replaced by Ms Dynamite. ...

• Singles Round Up - February 8th - ClashMusic.com

  ClashMusic.com

  Singles Round Up - February 8th ClashMusic.com Kasabian threaten, The Bamboos get down, Dj Zinc teams up with Ms Dynamite, Helping Haiti has it's heart in the right place, Fearless Vampire Killers step ...

• Youth-led film focuses on influential women history forgot - The Guardian

  The Guardian

  Youth-led film focuses on influential women history forgot The Guardian ... well-known personalities such as Gurinder Chadha, the director of the film Bend It Like Beckham, singer Ms Dynamite, and hip-hop/grime artist Bashy. ...

• Grime / Dubstep - Pitchfork Media

  Pitchfork Media

  Grime / Dubstep Pitchfork Media But it's "Wile Out", his collaboration with Ms. Dynamite, that blows the bloody doors off, continuing where her stunning Sticky and Geeneus club anthems ... and more »

• Teen out to prove rap is not just for boys - Islington Gazette

  Islington Gazette

  Teen out to prove rap is not just for boys Islington Gazette Lil Simz has rapped at under-18s raves where fellow performers have included N-Dubz, Chipmunk, Ms Dynamite and Tinchy Stryder. ...

• Chart update - w/c 15 Feb 2010 - CMU News-Blog (blog)

  Chart update - w/c 15 Feb 2010 CMU News-Blog (blog) ... new entries in this week's top 40 are 'Parachute' by Cheryl Cole at 26 and DJ Zinc's 'Wile Out', which features vocals by Ms Dynamite, at 38. ... and more »

Niomi Arleen McLean-Daley (born; 26 April 1981) and popularly known as Ms Dynamite is a double Brit Award and three time MOBO Awards winning R&B, UK garage, and hip hop singer and rapper.

Biography

Ms Dynamite was born and raised in Archway, a district in North London, to a Scottish mother and a Jamaican father. She grew up listening to reggae and hip hop music. Though she wanted to become a schoolteacher or social worker, her biggest aspiration was to be a musician. She is the eldest of eleven siblings, one of whom is a grime artist known as Akala, and attended Acland Burghley School in Tufnell Park and another who is known as 'Snooze'.

Career

Ms Dynamite (originally called Lady Dynamite) was first known for her vocals on the UK garage underground track "Booo!", which was regularly played on London pirate radio stations and was later released as a single. Whilst working at the radio station RAW FM, Ms Dynamite was discovered by Richard Forbes at a West End club. After working briefly with the UK garage act So Solid Crew, she released her debut album, A Little Deeper in 2002, featuring the hit songs "It Takes More" and "Dy-Na-Mi-Tee". In 2003, the album was released in the United States to critical acclaim. In 2002, Dynamite won the prestigious Mercury Music Prize,¹ for A Little Deeper. She donated the £20,000 prize to the NSPCC.

Her first public performance was at the closing ceremony of the 2002 Commonwealth Games at the City of Manchester Stadium. On 2 July 2005, she performed at the Live 8 concert in Hyde Park, London. Among the songs performed was "Redemption Song" - a Bob Marley penned song.

On 11 September 2005, she returned to the limelight (having taken time off to have her son, Shavaar) with a new album entitled Judgement Days. Featuring more social commentary, in songs such as the single, "Judgement Day," and the Tony Blair critique, "Mr Prime Minister," reviews of the album were not as favourable as those of her debut. However "Judgement Day" reached #25 in the UK Singles Chart.²

On the 6 January 2006 Ms Dynamite was arrested outside a London nightclub, after a brawl in which she punched a male police officer in the face whilst in custody. She was convicted and sentenced to sixty hours of community service. The second single from Judgement Days was due to be "Fall In Love Again" (previously titled "When I Fall In Love"), with a release date of 30 January 2006. A video was shot for the track but, due to her arrest, the single was cancelled. The video did not surface until June 2006, when it was leaked on to the web.

In February 2006, she won the Naomi Award for Worst Urban Act.

Since her trouble in January 2006 and her disappearance from the public eye, Ms Dynamite confirmed that the much rumoured 'A Little Darker' album would be released in March 2006 as a mixtape. After the confirmation, the album was pushed back to June 2006. Also, in April 2006, Ms Dynamite confirmed that there would be no more releases from her Judgement Days album, and that she was due to start working on new material.

A collection of new and upcoming UK hip-hop and garage artists,³ was compiled by Ms Dynamite and her rapping brother Akala, who was voted Best Hip Hop Act at the MOBO Awards in September 2006.

In November 2006 she took part in a television show called The Race on Sky1. This was a week long event in which ten celebrities had to compete against each other on the track in different races building up to a thirty lap Formula Ford race on Sunday 12 November 2006. After about ten laps into the race disaster struck, and Ms. Dynamite hit the wall on the pit straight at about 100mph. She was air lifted to hospital for overnight observations but later released.

After taking a break from the music scene for a couple of years, Dynamite guest hosted BBC Radio 1Xtra, and stated she would be releasing a third album 'Democracy' in 2009. The first single from the new album will be "Bad Gyal".⁴

Ms Dynamite appeared on Hell's Kitchen on ITV1 in 2009. ⁵ She was voted out by public vote on 24 April 2009 finishing fourth.

Ancestry

As stated on the programme Ms Dynamite: In Search of Nanny Maroon in addition to her Jamaican-Scottish parentage, she shares Bajan, English, Irish, German and Grenadian ancestries.

Discography

Albums

Singles

As Solo Artist

As Featured Artist

Soundtracks

• "DYNAMITE" (On the Ali G Indahouse soundtrack)

Awards and honours

• Mercury Music Prize - Album of the Year 2002 ¹
• 100 Great Black Britons - 2003 - No14
• The South Bank Show Awards 2003 - Best Pop (A Little Deeper)
• Race In The Media Awards 2003 - Media Personality Of The Year
• MOBO Awards 2003 - Best Single
• MOBO Awards 2003 - Best Newcomer
• MOBO Awards 2003 - U.K Act Of The Year
• Brit Awards 2003 - British female solo artist
• Brit Awards 2003 - Best British Urban Act

References

External links

• Official website
• Ms Dynamite at Allmusic
• Ms Dynamite Fans information and photos website