Dizzee began MCing on pirate radio and at raves at fifteen, but since his mainstream success he has distanced himself from the fledgling scene. Rascal grew up in the East End of London in south Bow in a council estate, raised by his single mother, a Ghanaian immigrant. Little is known about his father, though it is thought that he died when Mills was two. He attributes his musical development to a school teacher who allowed him to skip regular classes and spend time working on music on the school computers.
His music is an eclectic mixture of garage and hip-hop beats with an extremely broad palette of influences, ranging from metal guitars to found sounds, drill and bass synth lines, eclectic samples and even Japanese court music. His vocal performance is also distinctive, he uses a fast version of rapping (known as 'spitting') which blends elements from garage MCing, conventional rap, grime and ragga.
Dizzee Rascal has numerous rivals within the Grime scene, mainly from the Bow, East London area. A notable rival of Dizzee Rascal is Crazy Titch who produced and recorded a diss called "Just An Arsehole" which used the backing track of Dizzee's record of "Jus A Rascal".
Dizzee Rascal has had international endorsements deals with urban brand Ecko and designed his own shoe with Nike. He has also worked with cross genre artist, Beck, on a remix of the song Hell Yes.
He released his debut album in 2003, which was called Boy In Da Corner, winning him the 2003 Mercury Prize. His second album Showtime was released in 2004. His third effort, Maths and English was released in 2007. All three albums received critical acclaim. He experienced commercial success in 2008 when Dance Wiv Me reached the number one spot in the UK charts. His fourth album, Tongue n' Cheek was released in 2009, going platinum for sales exceeding 300,000 units in the UK. Dizzee Rascal's album The Fifth was released in 2013, the same year he received an honorary Doctorate of the Arts from the University of East London.
In 2017, Rascal released Raskit, which as well as building on his sound heralded a return on some songs to the grime sound of his earlier albums.
Discography:
Studio albums:
2003: Boy in da Corner
2004: Showtime
2007: Maths + English
2009: Tongue n' Cheek
2013: The Fifth
2017: Raskit
2020: E3 AF
2024: Don't Take It Personal
U Can't Tell Me Nuffin'
Dizzee Rascal Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Cause I've been through madness
'Nuff madness
You can't tell me nothing
And I've done pure badness
'Nuff badness
You can't tell me nothing
And I've had a lot of drama
You can't tell me nothing
Just look in my eyes, it's all too clear
But it don't matter, cause I'm still here
D-the-i-the-zz-the-e-the-e, straight from the LDN
I don't wanna hear no talk about streets and all that thug from way back when
Been a bad boy, I'll destroy your joy, gotta toy that'll put that shit to a end
That and I walk the walk cause I talk the talk, you got a problem, step to me then
Otherwise don't pretend, stop, breathe, count to ten
Keep on chatting or get the leng
I stand up tall, I don't bend
So if you got a crew, go get your men
We can meet up, say where and when
I'll be on time like Big Ben
Couldn't ever take me for a speng
And I ain't saying it again
[Chorus]
I like to move it, move it
You want beef prove it
You got a problem, don't excuse it
You got a 9mm, it's your prerogative, use it
You got a temper, lose it
If not just bounce to the music
That's a better choice anyway, choose it
Cause you know that you can't refuse it
Watch the beat, how I bruise it
Wild out and nod your head, stupid
I ain't cupid, no love lost
I get paid in the end whatever the cost
I'm the boss, still work with me
Don't stand looking pretty like Kate Moss
Put your hands up like you couldn't give a toss
Either way you know I'm gonna get my point across
[Chorus]
Get me?
I'm still fucking here
I don't give a shit
I don't answer to none of you pussyholes
I live my fucking life, yeah
I live my fucking life
Fuck you
(Oi rudeboy, what's all the hyping for?)
These pussyholes don't want no war
They are just acting, I've seen it before
They are just acting, I've seen it before
(Rudeboy, what's all the hyping for?)
These pussyholes don't want no war
They are just acting, I've seen it before
They are just acting, I've seen it before
Finally, fuck who's listening
The world don't owe me shit and the feeling's mutual
I just wanna be neutral but I ain't no prick
So no, I don't smile when I see you, grin when I greet you
If it weren't business I'd beat you
And I'd rather be a asshole than a pussyhole
You're a bitch and I see through
So fuck you and fuck your ego
Cause I really was a poor little negro
Don't need no chain or a throwback
I'm really from the streets and you know that
But I really would rather be touring
Cause most players on the roads ain't scoring
But now it's Maths & English, I'm focused
And it's Dirtee Stank, so take notice
[Chorus]
You can't tell me nothing!
You can't tell me nothing!
The lyrics to Dizzee Rascal's song U Can't Tell Me Nuffin showcase his confidence and resilience despite the challenges he has faced, and his determination to succeed. The chorus emphasizes this, with Dizzee proclaiming that he has been through a lot of "madness" and "badness" and plenty of "drama," but that he is still standing strong. He refuses to be told what to do or how to live his life, even if others believe they have the authority to give him advice. Throughout the song, Dizzee asserts his dominance and stature as a successful rapper, but also alludes to his past as a "bad boy" and his time in the streets.
The verses delve deeper into Dizzee's experiences and his mindset. He introduces himself with a series of accents, spelling out his name in the process, before dismissing anyone trying to talk about "thug from way back when." He talks about his ability to take care of business with ease, having a "toy" to put an end to any troublemakers. He also boasts about his confidence and how nobody can diminish it, even going as far as challenging anyone to step to him face-to-face. The rest of the song consists of Dizzee confidently asserting himself as a boss, declaring that he lives his life on his terms and doesn't answer to anyone.
Line by Line Meaning
Cause I've been through madness
I've been through a lot of craziness
'Nuff madness
A lot of madness
You can't tell me nothing
You can't tell me what to do
And I've done pure badness
I've done a lot of bad things
'Nuff badness
A lot of badness
And I've had a lot of drama
I've been in a lot of dramatic situations
'Nuff drama
A lot of drama
You can't tell me nothing
You can't tell me what to do
Just look in my eyes, it's all too clear
My eyes show my experiences and my past
But it don't matter, cause I'm still here
But regardless, I'm still alive and kicking
I don't wanna hear no talk about streets and all that thug from way back when
I don't want to listen to your stories about the street life and being a thug from the past
Been a bad boy, I'll destroy your joy, gotta toy that'll put that shit to a end
I have been a bad guy and I can ruin your happiness. I have a weapon to stop that shit from happening
That and I walk the walk cause I talk the talk, you got a problem, step to me then
I act how I talk and if you have an issue, face me
Otherwise don't pretend, stop, breathe, count to ten
Don't act like you are tough, take a breath, and calm down
Keep on chatting or get the leng
Keep talking or face the consequences
I stand up tall, I don't bend
I don't back down from anyone
So if you got a crew, go get your men
If you have a group of people, bring all of them to fight me
We can meet up, say where and when
We can organize a place and time to fight
I'll be on time like Big Ben
I'll be punctual
Couldn't ever take me for a speng
Don't mistake me for a weakling
And I ain't saying it again
I won't repeat myself
I like to move it, move it
I like to dance and move around
You want beef prove it
If you want a fight, show me
You got a problem, don't excuse it
If you have an issue, own up to it
You got a 9mm, it's your prerogative, use it
If you have a 9mm gun, it's your choice to use it
You got a temper, lose it
If you have a temper, control it
If not just bounce to the music
If you can't control your temper, dance it out
That's a better choice anyway, choose it
Dancing is always a better choice than violence
Cause you know that you can't refuse it
You know that you can't resist the music
Watch the beat, how I bruise it
Watch how I destroy the beat with my rapping
Wild out and nod your head, stupid
Dance wildly and nod your head to the music
I ain't cupid, no love lost
I'm not here to play matchmaker, and I don't care about lost love
I get paid in the end whatever the cost
I get paid in the end, no matter what it takes
I'm the boss, still work with me
I'm in charge, but I'm willing to collaborate
Don't stand looking pretty like Kate Moss
Don't just stand there doing nothing
Put your hands up like you couldn't give a toss
Raise your hands if you don't give a damn
Either way you know I'm gonna get my point across
Either way, I'll make my message clear
Get me?
Do you understand me?
I'm still fucking here
I'm still alive and kicking
I don't give a shit
I don't care
I don't answer to none of you pussyholes
I don't listen to any of you assholes
I live my fucking life, yeah
I live my own life
Fuck you
I don't care about you
(Oi rudeboy, what's all the hyping for?)
(Hey, guy, what are you getting so worked up about?)
These pussyholes don't want no war
These cowards don't want to fight
They are just acting, I've seen it before
They are just pretending to be tough, and I'm not buying it
Finally, fuck who's listening
I don't care who's listening
The world don't owe me shit and the feeling's mutual
I don't owe the world anything, and the world doesn't owe me anything
I just wanna be neutral but I ain't no prick
I want to be neutral, but I'm not a jerk
So no, I don't smile when I see you, grin when I greet you
No, I don't smile when I see you
If it weren't business I'd beat you
If this wasn't a business situation, I'd fight you
And I'd rather be a asshole than a pussyhole
I'd rather be a jerk than a coward
You're a bitch and I see through
You're a coward, and I can see that
So fuck you and fuck your ego
I don't care about you or your ego
Cause I really was a poor little negro
I grew up poor and black
Don't need no chain or a throwback
I don't need any jewelry or vintage clothes
I'm really from the streets and you know that
I am really from the streets, and you can tell
But I really would rather be touring
But now, I'd rather be touring
Cause most players on the roads ain't scoring
Because most people doing illegal activities aren't successful
But now it's Maths & English, I'm focused
But now, I'm focused on my music
And it's Dirtee Stank, so take notice
And it's Dirtee Stank, so pay attention
You can't tell me nothing!
You can't tell me what to do!
You can't tell me nothing!
You can't tell me what to do!
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: DANIEL CARNEGIE, DYLAN KWABENA MILLS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind