Coventry’s Afro-Drill Pioneer Pa Salieu’s Meteoric Rise to the Top 

A brief dive into Pa Salieu’s exhilarating life so far 

2020 saw Pa Salieu burst onto the UK music scene with his debut single ‘Frontline‘. The single was the most played track of the year on BBC Radio 1Xtra, Reprezent Radio and Rinse FM. The anthem recounts the story of his upbringing in Coventry and paints a vivid picture of his beloved neighbourhood. 

Salieu was born in Slough, following his parents’ move to the UK from the Gambia. Before his 1st birthday, he was sent to live with his Grandmother back in The Gambia where he stayed until he was 8. He describes these years as being the most influential in forming his musical persona.  His mother brought him back to the UK to Coventry where his family had relocated to the Hillfields neighbourhood. 

From Coventry’s Frontline to Countrywide Success 

Pa’s start in music began in 2017 when he started rapping under the moniker ‘Tribal1‘. His early releases were mostly in the form of videos made with other local Coventry artists. His work would soon gain a lot of buzz in the area, especially once he started experimenting with different sounds. Salieu decided to reconnect with his African roots after spending some time performing within the Grime/Drill genre. Taking influence from Afro-beat, he now best describes his music as Afro-Drill, a unique self-made genre. 

Pa says the encouragement of this friend to focus on his music rather than his life ‘on road’ is what inspired him to take his career seriously. Following the tragic killing of this friend Salieu became more active in following his dreams. Recording his freestyles and spending more time in a friend’s home studio set up. 

Salieu had a close call in October 2019 when he was shot in the head, just months before the success of his first single. He has, of course, made a full recovery since then, going on to sign a record deal with Warner Records. His music is praised by many big names including BBC Radio 1’s Annie Mac, OVO Sound co-founder Oliver El-Khatib, fellow rapper JHus and the late fashion titan Virgil Abloh. 

Pa Salieu’s National Recognition as an Award-winning Artist 

Pa Salieu’s popularity as an artist is undeniable, especially after winning the BBC ‘Sound of…2021’ award, which he believes has changed the media’s perception of him. He has also collaborated with an array of successful musicians since his storming nationwide success. From going further afield to South London to collaborate with SL on track ‘Hit the Block’ to back home in The Midlands with Slowthai on their track ‘Glidin’. 

Despite all his success, Salieu’s career is now facing a brief standstill. The rapper is currently in the midst of a court case surrounding the tragic events in which his friend was murdered. That same night saw the stabbing of a second man for which Salieu has now been facing charges. Salieu’s charges have had an impact on different projects, he was dismissed from Coventry’s City of Culture programming team after they were revealed. Salieu and the other 8 men being charged will face pretrial hearings in February. Unfortunately, we possibly won’t be hearing so much from him until then.