Wretch 32 Biography

Jermaine Scott (born 9 March 1985), better known by his stage name Wretch 32, is a Black British rapper and former Grime MC from Tottenham,London where he grew up the son of a local reggae DJ in the Tiverton Estate. He was a member of the grime collective "Combination Chain Gang", before forming The Movement with Scorcher, Ghetts, Devlin and Mercston. He is also often associated with the TMT crew, also from Tottenham, due to his close relationship to fellow Tottenham rapper Cell 22. The pair have made several songs together. He released his first single "Traktor" in January 2011.

On 6 December 2010, the BBC announced that Wretch 32 had been nominated for the BBC's Sound of 2011 poll and MTV named him as a nominee for MTV Brand New for 2011.

Early life

Born in March 1985, Scott grew up alongside crews Combination Chain Gang and The Movement, the latter of which featured Scorcher, Ghetto, Mercston and Devlin, Lowkey & Wretch 32 In My Lifetime part of the Soundtrack To The Struggle. Beginning his MC career in 2006, Scott under the name Wretch 32 released a series of mixtapes, including Teacher's Training Day - which featured guest appearances from Ghetts, Bashy and Scorcher. After coming to the attention of BBC Radio 1 Xtra's DJ Cameo, Wretch went on to win a 1Xtra Mixtape Award.

2008-2011: Early career

The movement into mainstream began when Wretch 32 appeared at Radio 1's Big Weekend on the BBC Introducing stage in 2009. His debut studio album, Wretchrospective was released in the United Kingdom during 2008, prior to Wretch's signing with record label Ministry of Sound. On 6 December 2010, Wretch 32 was named as one of the nominees for BBC's Sound of 2011, an annual poll which predicts artists that will progress during the upcoming year.

2011-present: Black and White

Wretch then continued, releasing his debut single "Traktor" on 16 January 2010 through Ministry of Sound as both a digital download and a CD single. The track saw commercial success, having been selected as BBC Radio 1's Reggie Yates Weekend Anthem on 19-20 December 2010, before debuting at number five on the UK Singles Chart as the third highest entry of the week.