''The Rated Legend'' is the debut studio album by British rapper

Cadet A cadet is an officer trainee or candidate. The term is frequently used to refer to those training to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. Its meaning may vary between countries which can include youths in ...

. The album was released posthumously on 10 April 2020 via Cadet's independent imprint Underrated Legends. Its title comes from a reversal of the nickname used to describe Cadet, "The Underrated Legend".

Background

On 2 March 2020, Cadet's cousin Krept announced that Cadet's album ''The Rated Legend'' would be released the following month on 10 April 2020. It would include the singles " Advice" and " Gang Gang" as well as previously unreleased music, and features vocal contributions from

Young Adz D-Block Europe, often abbreviated to DBE, is a British hip hop collective consisting of Adam Nathaniel "Young Adz" Williams, Ricky Earl "Dirtbike LB" Banton and Lil Pino from Lewisham, London. Their name is a reference to The Lox (also known as ...

, Krept, Swarmz, Wretch 32, Chip,

Tion Wayne Dennis Junior Odunwo (born 1 September 1993), known professionally as Tion Wayne, is a British rapper and DJ from Edmonton, North London. He appeared on three top-10 singles on UK Singles Chart as a guest – NSG's " Options", "Keisha & Becky" ...

, and Deno, and production from

Show N Prove Show N Prove, born Ellis Taylor, is a Scottish music producer, DJ and musical artist from Edinburgh, Scotland. Music production career Show N Prove's career began when working with local acts in the Edinburgh hip hop scene in the early 2000 ...

and Da Beatfreakz. Krept was the executive producer for the album and stated that all the guest artists and producers had contributed to the album for free.

Promotion

In promotion of the album, a short film titled ''

Support Me Blaine Cameron Johnson (2 March 1990 – 9 February 2019), known professionally as Cadet, was a British rapper. The younger cousin of Krept, Johnson began pursuing a solo career as a rapper in 2011, releasing a number of freestyles through YouT ...

'' was released on 11 March 2020 along with the lead single of the album. The film is based on the subject of an aspiring writer looking to his significant other for support and motivation whilst he chases his career. It also touches on the themes of love and success, displaying a narrative in which a young man attempts to balance his career as a writer and time with his significant other. The film was distributed by

ADV Films A.D. Vision Holdings, Inc. (known simply as ADV and also referred to as ADV Films) was an American multimedia entertainment distributor headquartered in Houston, Texas, and founded in 1992 by video game fan John Ledford and anime fans Matt Gre ...

and was released on YouTube via Cadet's channel.

Singles

" Advice" was released as a non-album

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

originally on 28 August 2018. The track was produced by longtime collaborator of Cadet, Da Beatfreakz. It entered the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

at number 54, reaching a peak of number 14 in its 30 weeks of charting, and 2 weeks after the death of Cadet. It ultimately became Cadet's first charted single which was also his highest and longest-running. The second single " Gang Gang" was released posthumously on 29 August 2019 and was produced by LA Beats. It entered the UK Singles Charts at 82 on 12 August 2019 where it remained on the charts for a week. The third single "

", which acted as the lead single of the album, was released on 11 March 2020 and was produced by Dirty Saj. The song was released with a short promotional film of the same name released on YouTube via Cadet's channel.

Critical reception

The album was met with positive reviews. Ramy-Abou Setta of '' Clash'' said that Cadet "seals his legendary status in UK rap, showcasing natural storytelling ability through gritty lyrics and deep understanding of an authentic sound" and called the album "the perfect way to honour Cadet while staying true to his unique vision". Kyann-Sian Williams of ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' called the album "a fitting showcase of his incredible talent" and stated that it "shows off the meticulous talents of one of south London's most successful underdogs, who was always unafraid to speak his mind". Emily Fortune of ''

Gigwise ''Gigwise'' is a British online music news site that features music news, photos, album reviews, music festivals, concert tickets and video content. Founded in June 2001, the site is based in London, England. History Gigwise was launched in 2001 ...

'' highlighted Cadet's "abundance of energy" as he displays "everything from his humour to his deepest emotions, in a mixture of Afroswing infused instrumentals to old school inspired hip-hop and grime production", and summed up the album as showing "the impact that he had not only on his friends and fellow artists but on the UK rap scene as a whole".

Track listing

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rated Legend, The Cadet (rapper) albums 2020 debut albums Albums published posthumously Grime music albums Afroswing albums