Drissy Parker

I was sent an album this week that at initial inspection fell right outside my comfort zone in terms of listening enjoyment.

We are all prone to be fans of certain genres of music, while other groups of music present less of an enjoyable experience for us individually. Personally hardcore Rap is one of those genres that I find I have to push myself to listen too than by just pure entertainment choice.

Having said that, it is my job to listen impartially to a large selection of music, and from time to time Rap artists also ask for their work to be considered. On this basis I loaded “Never on Schedule” the debut album from Drissy Parker an emerging Zimbabwean Rapper.

Drissy Parker, who was born Idris Lamina lives in London, but is a child of Zimbabwean roots, was educated in Zimbabwe, having attended the exact same schools as myself and has been making music since the tender age of 11. A fan of freestyle rapping, Drissy quickly became popular among the youth of his School and the Scripture Union at College where he was known as the Rapper with some Swagger.

I guess I shouldn’t be surprised considering that Idris is an Old Harrarian, that his music is actually quite catchy. Maybe that is me just being biased and the spirit of a true PE Old Boy shining through, but while I may have been hesitant initially, I was pleasantly surprised at the soft almost jazzy feel to the music of “Never on Schedule”.

Idris built his identity around his childhood hero Spiderman, a character that took on adversity and became a superhero, someone bigger than himself. And so was born Drissy Parker. Work on this debut album started out with some freestlying on Twitter, and encouraged by the positive response Drissy began to seriously turn his considerations to channelling his efforts towards a completed album of work.

“Never on Schedule” is a mix of emotion, passion, chilled out music and clever lyrical content. Edgy and kind of scratchy it’s a complete mix of musical taste, and has been recognised by a wide range of music fans for its originality and as a unique listening experience.

Receiving air play the single ‘Undeniable’ was initially played on Radio Afro and gaining exposure through interviews on Flava FM in Zambia, Drissy has taken his album to new heights having worked hard to build a solid fan base.

The production of the album was fraught with delays and hurdles that sort to frustrate Drissy and his team, but through dogged determination and despite the backlash of the fans through the delays, Drissy persevered and on 12th February 2012, this long awaited album was launched.

Working under the guidance of the award winning producer Ezra ‘The Gobbla’ Murembeni, Drissy has collaborated with the likes of Simba Tagz who enjoys air time on MTV Base Africa with his own song entitled ‘Stronger’ and Zambian R&B Artist Paul Da Prince. This 13 track album is jam packed with surprises and hidden gems.

While Drissy is now busy working on video productions for his music, and penning more work, his music is gaining popularity across the board. As a recent nominee for the Artist of the Year at the Zimbabwean Achievers Awards in London, I’m sure that this is the start of something new and exciting for Drissy Parker and the Rap Music community at large. Big things are to come from this young man and we’ll make sure we let you know about it.

If you want to read more about Drissy Parker check out

Drissy Parker’s Website

Drissy Parker on Facebook

Drissy Parker on Twitter

Drissy Parker on SoundCloud

Our thanks to Idris Lamina