As we all know (!), fame is a double -edged sword, especially if you’re a budding musician. Years are spent trying to achieve fame status and high album sales, but as fast as this is achieved, many musicians turn their back on this sudden whirlwind of publicity stating ‘too much pressure’ as the reason for their insufficient copying abilities. Look at the recent departure of The Drums guitarist Adam Kessler ,who quit the band just over a month ago, in the hope of living a ‘simple life’.

However, with that being said this fact hardly warrants Tinie Tempah to bemoan fame to the point of oblivion on his debut LP Disc-o-very. He’s followed the footsteps of the current grime/pop crossover king Dizzee Rascal down to a tee with his transition from underground buzz-maker to the U.K’s biggest breakout star being dealt with assumed grace and ease. But again, even with 3 number 1 singles under his metaphorical belt in the space of 6 months, lyrics about the pressures, or even the pay-offs, of fame seem slightly contrived.

This type of lyrical subject isn’t unusual. After all, rap as a genre thrives on the fact that it’s all about bragging about one’s achievements, it’s just Tinie isn’t as good at it as others. Tinie, in fact, makes fellow rising star Drake look like a poet laureate, easily surpassing Tinie’s nursey rhymes with his superior flow when it comes to discussing fame. This is even more frustrating when it’s obvious Tinie does have a way with words, with his tongue-lashing lyrical wit coming to light ironically when he isn’t yapping on about fame. On recent number 1 ‘ Written In The Stars’ it comes when he’s discussing his musical talent ”Cos I’ve got more hits than a disciplined child” which is followed with a brillant overlapping of phonetic rhymes. This is confirmed on ‘Simply Unstoppable’ when he’s dealing with the suspiscions surronding his sudden mainstream sound ”I’ve gone pop and I won’t stop pringles”.

Luckily, Tinie doesn’t really need to rely on his lyrical nounce because when the hits do come it’s clear they are HITS. Apart from the inclusion of his 3 number 1′s there’s a surprisingly successful collaboration with Ellie Goulding named ‘Wonderman’ that’s set to sail to the top of the charts. Then there’s ‘Illusion’ with its marching bassline, brash synths and repetitive piano chime, all working to great effect. The other tracks aren’t exactly fillers, just ones that may be for hardcore fans only.

Overall, Disc-o-very is the most consistent mainstream urban album to be released in recent years, apart from the aforementioned Dizzee Rascal with his LP Tongue ‘n’ Cheek, and it’s a testament to Mr Tempah’s talent as a rapper. But if Tinie uses less contradictive chat about fame and pop culture references but ups his quotient of clever wordplay, then he clearly holds the potential to become something more than just another creator of great rap/pop songs.