Wiley and Skepta's Barnet Beef

Afternoon grime fans.

The internet moves too quickly for me to keep up nowadays, so I'm a bit late with this story. I could have let it pass; there's plenty more fish in the sea. However, fish stocks are apparently dwindling and grime's traditional summer drought is imminent, so I thought I would dive into my renewed quest for some of that search engine optimisation.

Forgive me.

'I'm a king when I roll through anywhere, you're just a king when you roll through Barnet.'

The unassuming North London borough is enjoying a welcome return to the spotlight again, a couple years after residents started 'vandalising' road-signs by dubbing their bits 'Barnét'.

Wiley's lyric on his album track Zip It Up has caused a bit of aggro. Skepta in particular took exception, and his barnet must have raised a few millimetres after hearing Wiley's dig because, soon enough, he made his way to Barnet's Dollis Valley estate where, apparently, the kids indulge in zooming quad bikes 'dangerouly around the estate's green spaces'.

Skepta - In the Country



Wiley left his house in the country to reply.

Wiley - Barnet Dub



538 years after the Battle of Barnet in the English Civil War, admittedly quite a big precedent as far as what we'll call 'Barnet war' goes, Skepta has taken this to the blocks in 21st century urban guerilla warfare.

Skepta half-sniggering outside a house that was presented as Wiley's, as well as dubbing Wiley his 'bredrin' before it even all kicked off proper, meant this was never going to be a Wiley v Doogz, two artists that don't really seem to like each other very much.

But who won this one?

Two top MCs battling. Essentially, over a lyric that at least acknowledged one of London's most neglected places.

Yeah. Probably Barnet.