Wiley Flow

"Wiley Flow"
Single by Stormzy
from the album Heavy Is the Head
Released15 September 2019 (2019-09-15)
Length3:27
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Stormzy singles chronology
"Sounds of the Skeng"
(2019) 		"Wiley Flow"
(2019) 		"Own It"
(2019)
Music video
"Wiley Flow" on YouTube

"Wiley Flow" is a song by English rapper Stormzy, released on 15 September 2019 through #Merky and Atlantic Records as the third single from his second studio album, Heavy Is the Head. The song is a homage to British grime MC Wiley that interpolates flows from his tracks "Bad 'Em Up" and "Nightbus Dubplate".[1] The cover art also mirrors his mixtape, Tunnel Vision Vol 1 (2007).[2]

Critical reception

Writing for Fact, Henry Bruce-Jones called it a salute to the "godfather of grime" on which Stormzy "cribs flows" from Wiley and "go[es] in on" over a "murky instrumental".[1] Karen Gwee of NME labelled it "hard-hitting",[3] while Sajae Elder of The Fader described it as Stormzy "racing through a series of number and OG checks ("If you can't do 10K first week then I don't wanna hear no chat about numbers')".[4]

Music video

The music video features Stormzy rapping the song while "surrounded by his friends in a gloomy basement".[3]

Charts

Chart performance for "Wiley Flow"
Chart (2019) Peak
position
Ireland (IRMA)[5] 30
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[6] 21
Scotland (OCC)[7] 59
UK Singles (OCC)[8] 22
UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC)[9] 25

Certifications

Certifications for "Wiley Flow"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
New Zealand (RMNZ)[10] Gold 15,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[11] Gold 400,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ a b Bruce-Jones, Henry (16 September 2019). "Stormzy salutes the grandfather of grime on 'Wiley Flow'". Fact. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  2. ^ "Stormzy Pays Homage To Wiley With Merky New Track "Wiley Flow"". trenchtrenchtrench.com. Retrieved 20 November 2019.
  3. ^ a b Gwee, Karen (16 September 2019). "Hear Stormzy's hard-hitting new track, 'Wiley Flow'". NME. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  4. ^ Elder, Sajae (15 September 2019). "Stormzy drops 'Wiley Flow'". The Fader. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  5. ^ "Official Irish Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  6. ^ "NZ Hot Singles Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 23 September 2019. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  7. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  8. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 September 2019.
  9. ^ "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  10. ^ "New Zealand single certifications – Stormzy – Wiley Flow". Radioscope. Retrieved 4 January 2024. Type Wiley Flow in the "Search:" field.
  11. ^ "British single certifications – Stormzy – Wiley Flow". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 5 February 2022.