OneFour

Leading the pack in Australian rap with their assertive presence, ONEFOUR from Sydney originated the nation's emerging drill movement by adapting the London sounds that ruled England's capital in the late 2010s.

The lineup of Spenny (Spencer Magologo), JEmz (Jerome Misa), YP (Pio Misa), Celly (Dachell Ramos), and Lekks (Salec Sua) formed the rap collective ONEFOUR after rising out of Sydney's Mount Druitt suburb in 2017, launching their career via the moody trap textures of "Don't Want It." Although their first release nodded to the U.K., later tracks absorbed stronger elements from the city's prevailing drill wave, including "Ready for War" as a stark reworking of the Harlem Spartans' "Call Me a Spartan" and "What You Know" that adopted the style's crew-focused imagery alongside its twitchy deliveries. The collective began reshaping drill according to their own template in 2019, opening the year via the stark "Shanks and Shivs" before exposing their sound to global listeners through the breakthrough cut "The Message." Crafted with Gotcha and Pulse Beats, "The Message" fused U.K. drill's icy textures with the raw power of the local rap landscape, drawing millions of streams while introducing the crew's signature line "Retaliation is a must, ain't no maybe, ifs or buts." Having claimed the style as their own, ONEFOUR followed with another major hit in June via "Spot the Difference," a brisk rallying cry built on lightning-quick cadences, dramatic flair, and a string of memorable lines such as "How can I call them opps? They run off and leave their friends for dead, more like a bunch of dogs." They rounded out 2019 with the heavy trap cut "Ladz in the Hood," the rolling drill track "Ben 10," and the dark boast rap of "In the Beginning." Setbacks arrived that December when YP, Lekks, and Celly each received prison terms. During 2020, JEmz and Spenny scored traction through overseas features including A$AP Ferg on "Say It Again," Headie One on the "Ain't It Different Remix," and Dutchavelli on "Better," while the full group joined numerous drill acts for Tweeko and Sebz' "The Coldest Link Up, Pt. 2." Preparation for their first EP opened with the resolute "Home and Away," then continued with "My City," a tribute to Sydney that featured local talent the Kid LAROI. Against All Odds arrived in November 2020; expanding into Afroswing and melodic trap, the release mixed fresh directions, established drill statements, and acknowledgments of the members then behind bars.