Biography
Born in Buckinghamshire, England, Tom George Austin shifted from social media notoriety into comedy rap, threading his tracks with allusions to provincial British existence. He took the stage name Niko B from Grand Theft Auto IV’s Niko Bellic. Ministry of Sound backed his May 2020 second single, “Who’s That What’s That,” which entered the U.K. Top 30; four years later he extended that momentum by issuing his self-released debut album, Dog Eat Dog Food World.
He spent his childhood on the Poet’s Estate in Newport Pagnell, Milton Keynes, alongside a builder father and a mother who taught children with special educational needs. Beginning at age eight he created and posted animations online, later pivoting to comedy sketches that established him as a recognized social media figure. At sixteen he started his own clothing line, which quickly supplied his primary income. In 2020 he tracked a rap track titled “Mary Berry”—a nod to the television chef and Great British Bake Off judge—in just two days and released it under the alias Niko Bellic. Within a fortnight the song amassed three million streams, its appeal rooted in Austin’s deadpan, observational flow that sat midway between the Streets’ Mike Skinner and Suggs from Madness. Riding that lone release, he joined tours with South African rapper K.O., U.K. drill artist V9, and East London’s NSG, the latter name-checked in the “Mary Berry” intro.
While Antz and his WEAREBLK imprint handled “Mary Berry,” Niko B—now using the shortened handle—secured Ministry of Sound’s full backing for the follow-up “Who’s That What’s That.” The single reached number 26 on the U.K. chart that May and surpassed fifty million streams across the next four years. Late 2020 brought “Quick Drive,” early 2021 saw “International Baby,” and August live dates followed at Reading and Leeds Festivals. October 2021’s “It All Gone” channeled a deliberate speed garage feel and marked his last release for WEAREBLK and Ministry of Sound.
Across 2022 Niko B put out four independent singles: “I Had a Fist Fight with an Emo Outside Subway,” “Canada Goose,” “Love Island Freestyle,” and “Rips in Jeans.” The subsequent year proved comparatively quiet, though he appeared with South African artists Dinho and Makhanj on “Vintage Golf,” a charity track benefiting Bridge for Music. March 2024 introduced the Spiller-inspired house cut “Trespass Coat,” featuring southwest London’s Dexter in the Newsagent; it led his debut album, Dog Eat Dog Food World, which narrowly missed the U.K. Top 40 that May.
He spent his childhood on the Poet’s Estate in Newport Pagnell, Milton Keynes, alongside a builder father and a mother who taught children with special educational needs. Beginning at age eight he created and posted animations online, later pivoting to comedy sketches that established him as a recognized social media figure. At sixteen he started his own clothing line, which quickly supplied his primary income. In 2020 he tracked a rap track titled “Mary Berry”—a nod to the television chef and Great British Bake Off judge—in just two days and released it under the alias Niko Bellic. Within a fortnight the song amassed three million streams, its appeal rooted in Austin’s deadpan, observational flow that sat midway between the Streets’ Mike Skinner and Suggs from Madness. Riding that lone release, he joined tours with South African rapper K.O., U.K. drill artist V9, and East London’s NSG, the latter name-checked in the “Mary Berry” intro.
While Antz and his WEAREBLK imprint handled “Mary Berry,” Niko B—now using the shortened handle—secured Ministry of Sound’s full backing for the follow-up “Who’s That What’s That.” The single reached number 26 on the U.K. chart that May and surpassed fifty million streams across the next four years. Late 2020 brought “Quick Drive,” early 2021 saw “International Baby,” and August live dates followed at Reading and Leeds Festivals. October 2021’s “It All Gone” channeled a deliberate speed garage feel and marked his last release for WEAREBLK and Ministry of Sound.
Across 2022 Niko B put out four independent singles: “I Had a Fist Fight with an Emo Outside Subway,” “Canada Goose,” “Love Island Freestyle,” and “Rips in Jeans.” The subsequent year proved comparatively quiet, though he appeared with South African artists Dinho and Makhanj on “Vintage Golf,” a charity track benefiting Bridge for Music. March 2024 introduced the Spiller-inspired house cut “Trespass Coat,” featuring southwest London’s Dexter in the Newsagent; it led his debut album, Dog Eat Dog Food World, which narrowly missed the U.K. Top 40 that May.
Albums
Singles
