‘Godfather Of Grime’ Wiley Joins UTA For Worldwide Representation

The London office of UTA  announced March 27 the worldwide signing of pioneering grime rapper and producer Wiley.

Joseph Okpako/WireImage – Wiley
Performs on stage on Day 1 at Reading Festival 2016 on August 26, 2016 in Reading, England

Wiley, whose real name is Richard Kylea Cowie, is widely credited for shaping what is today considered the London grime sound in the early 2000s, when he formed the Roll Deep collective, which included fellow MCs Dizzee Rascal and Tinchy Stryder.

He shaped the genre even more when joining Skepta and Jme’s to form the Boy Better Know collective in 2005, releasing his second album Da 2nd Phase in 2006.

Wiley’s commercial breakthrough came with the 2008 single “Wearing My Rolex,” which wasn’t particularly representative of the style he had been honing at the time, but peaked at number two in the UK singles chart. His first UK number one came in 2012 in the form of “Heatwave” feat. Ms D.

Wiley won the Outstanding Contribution to Music award at the 2017 NME Awards and received MOBO’s Paving The Way award in 2013. He was awarded an MBE for his services to music in the Queen’s New Year Honours List of 2017.

His agent Billy Wood has been working with Wiley ever since joining Mission Control in 2009, moving on to WME in 2010, to Creative Control in 2016, and finally UTA last year. He said: “We are thrilled to be working with such an iconic tastemaker in music. He has played an integral role in elevating grime globally and still remains close to his roots. We look forward to working with Wiley and his team worldwide.”

Wiley’s new album The Godfather II is out April 6.