He sent "The Mixtape" to various record companies and in response Drew McConnell (bassist for Babyshambles) arranged for Rat Boy to have a meeting with him, Cardy was subsequently signed to Parlophone in early 2015. In addition to this "The Mixtape" was featured in NME Magazine and played by radio stations including BBC Radio 1, Radio X and BBC Radio 6.
Rat Boy was added to the BBC Sound Of 2016 Longlist, an annual poll in which over 100 Music Specialists select artists they believe will be successful within the next 12 months. In December 2015, MTV released its Brand New for 2016, an annually released article and webseries containing artists to watch out for during the upcoming year. Rat Boy was shortlisted along with 10 other artists including Bonkaz, Jack Garratt and Rationale. He was also nominated for the Best New Artist 2016 by NME magazine, which he subsequently won, along with performing his single "Move" at the awards ceremony.
In April 2017, Cardy's song "Knock Knock" was sampled on Kendrick Lamar's song "Lust", taken from his fourth studio album, Damn. When he found out about the sample, he tweeted his appreciation for it.
On 11 August 2017 Rat Boy released his long-awaited debut album Scum. The album was initially released with 13 tracks, however a deluxe 25-track version was also released. The deluxe version included more than 15 minutes of skits, samples and interludes, as well as an extra song "Sad Sad" featuring fellow indie musician Mallory Merk. The album reached 15 in the uk album chart.
In December 2017, Cardy supported Liam Gallagher on his UK solo tour.
On 25 January 2019 Rat Boy released the studio album Internationally Unknown which was recorded in 2018.
Rat Boy featured on McFly's 2020 album, "Young Dumb Thrills" under a song of the same name.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK
Rat boy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On my door, who could it be?
Puffy jacket badman
Wants his money
Kicked down the door and his Nike Air Rattles
Rush the fire exit, no time for battles
Well, I, I never expected it from you
Someone I always thought I knew
And shit's about to go down like Titanic
Young, dumb, living off Mum
Waiting for the right time to come
The best bet's getting you when you're all alone
Unknown number, don't pick up the phone
The stepson father, brother's next door neighbour's riddled
Cause when he heard his wife had had a little bit of a fiddle
On the side, hands held wide, tight at the side
I couldn't get home but at least he tried
And it ain't all over till the fat ladies sing
And even then, the fire's still yet to begin
There's an hole in the city but isn't it a pity
Why the fuck do relationships be so tricky?
Young, dumb, living off Mum
Waiting for the right time to come
The best bet's getting you when you're all alone
Unknown number, don't pick up the phone
The lyrics to RAT BOY's song Knock Knock Knock tell the story of unexpected visitors and drama-filled situations. The first verse describes a bad guy in a puffy jacket who comes knocking on the singer's door looking for his money. He kicks down the door and rushes out of the fire exit, leaving no time for battles. The singer expresses shock that he never expected this behavior from someone he thought he knew. It's clear that the situation is about to escalate, as "shit's about to go down like Titanic".
The second verse focuses on the idea that sometimes danger comes from unexpected places. The singer warns that the best bet for bad guys is to catch their victims when they are all alone, and to call from an unknown number so they are not recognized. The rest of the verse tells the story of a man named "stepson father", whose wife cheated on him with their neighbor. The neighbor tries to make it right by holding his hands out in apology, but it is too late. The situation is not yet resolved, as there is still "an hole in the city" and the singer questions why relationships have to be so tricky.
Line by Line Meaning
Knock knock knock
Someone is knocking on the singer's door.
On my door, who could it be?
The singer is wondering who could be knocking on his door.
Puffy jacket badman
The person knocking on the door is wearing a puffy jacket and is possibly dangerous.
Wants his money
The puffy jacket badman is looking to collect money from the singer.
Kicked down the door and his Nike Air Rattles
The puffy jacket badman broke down the door and is wearing Nike shoes that make noise.
Rush the fire exit, no time for battles
The singer is trying to escape by using the fire exit and is avoiding confrontation.
Well, I, I never expected it from you
The singer is surprised that someone he knew would send a dangerous person to collect money from him.
Someone I always thought I knew
The singer thought he knew the person who sent the badman to collect money.
It's true, the demise of this guy's came through
The singer acknowledges that the person who sent the badman has ruined their friendship.
And shit's about to go down like Titanic
The situation is about to get bad, like how the Titanic disaster occurred.
Young, dumb, living off Mum
The singer is describing himself as someone who is young, naive, and still living with his mother.
Waiting for the right time to come
The singer is waiting for the right opportunity to do something.
The best bet's getting you when you're all alone
The best opportunity for someone to get the singer is when he is alone.
Unknown number, don't pick up the phone
The singer advises not to answer calls from unknown numbers to avoid danger.
The stepson father, brother's next door neighbour's riddled
The singer is describing someone who is related to different people in his community and has problems.
Cause when he heard his wife had had a little bit of a fiddle
The person became upset when he found out that his wife was unfaithful.
On the side, hands held wide, tight at the side
The person is showing conflicting body language by holding hands wide and tight at the same time.
I couldn't get home but at least he tried
The singer couldn't get home but someone tried to help him.
And it ain't all over till the fat ladies sing
The situation isn't over until things have come to a definite end.
And even then, the fire's still yet to begin
Even when things seem to be over, there could still be danger or conflict.
There's a hole in the city but isn't it a pity
The singer is commenting that there's a problem or danger in the city that is unfortunate.
Why the fuck do relationships be so tricky?
The singer is questioning why relationships are so complicated and difficult.
Young, dumb, living off Mum
The singer repeats that he is young, naive, and still living with his mother.
Waiting for the right time to come
The singer repeats that he is waiting for the right opportunity to do something.
The best bet's getting you when you're all alone
The singer repeats that the best opportunity for someone to get him is when he is alone.
Unknown number, don't pick up the phone
The singer repeats to not answer calls from unknown numbers to avoid danger.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JORDAN CARDY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
rebootNYC
this shit is hard asf, thanks kdot.
Martin Morales
i love your songs you should visit México
Maxxsas
0:18 ... you're welcome
Martin Morales
me encantan tus canciones deberías visitar México
Chris C
anyone here from LUST.?
Ben Dawson
what tha actual fuck is dat
Iron Man
@Ben Dawson Kendrick Lamar song
iZapchu
Chris C I did but where in the song did Kendrick sample this? Sounds nothing like LUST
G Wiz
iZapchu the sample is super pitched up and i think sped up. they pulled it from the beginning after he says wants his money i think
caligulaoctocat
@iZapchu 0:25