Wonderland

IN THE SPOTLIGHT: CENTRAL CEE – CAN’T RUSH GREATNESS

Cramming the many sides of his character in with conviction and ambition, the long-awaited debut album from UK rap’s poster boy Central Cee is surprisingly potent in its messaging.

It might be Central Cee’s debut album, but in some ways Can’t Rush Greatness feels more like a victory lap. “Look at me,” he marvels with a pout on the maximalist cover image, “I can bring together the biggest rappers from either side of the Atlantic and create a chiselled body of work that celebrates Britishness whilst feeling sprawlingly global.” It’s arguably UK rap’s most significant mainstream album this decade, maybe of all time considering the ease of contemporary distribution. And in his attempts to finally—after a long line of contestants—be the English hip hop act to ‘break’ the American vanguard of vacancy, Cench shows that there’s far more to him than meets the eye.

The album is fuelled by paradoxical comparison; a classic rags to riches narrative. Then, he had little, his stomach rumbling from no dinner, lost within a world that was all he recognised. Now, it’s steak and lobster, Maybach trucks, plethoras of romantic pursuits. But Cench does well to distil the braggadocio with sharp, pained realism. “I just ordered a stab-proof vest because they say that they want man dead,” he concludes wistfully on “Walk In Wardrobe” a beat switch-sporting cut towards the album’s backend that sums up the double-edged tone of what the rapper construes across the near 50 minute run time.

The track-list isn’t perfect; the Lil Durk-featuring “Truth In The Lies” is sonically pastiched and lyrically cliched, whilst “Gen Z Luv” is sickly sweet (“if it wasn’t or my algorithm I wouldn’t have found my woman” feels particularly saccharine), and one-dimensional. “Gata”, on the other hand, could have gone horribly wrong in its flirtations with Latin trap, but actually plays out tastefully, with Young Miko proving a characterful coup in the feature slot and Cench showing the breadth of his dexterity and charm.

The West Londoner tackles lost love with added flavour on “Now We’re Strangers”, which boasts a heartfelt hook from impressive vocalist Kamal., whilst “BAND4BAND”, the mega single prior to the album’s release, nestles nicely into the wider timbre. UK rap wise, it’s only the cream-of-the-crop involved across the record. Skepta’s skippy contribution on ”Ten” is unsurprisingly a standout moment, whilst Dave once again brings the best out of Cench—following their uber-popular 2023 joint EP—on perhaps the strongest track on the album, “CRG”.

“I wanna live a simplistic life, but that’s not realistic,“ Central Cee ponders on his debut album’s opening track, “No Introduction”. He’s right of course. But would he really want to? Despite the dense confidence of Can’t Rush Greatness, the rapper makes his best efforts to oscillate the brags with introspection and honesty. And for that, he deserves credit.

Listen to Can’t Rush Greatness…