Stephan Allen, better known as Dutchavelli has lived one hell of a life so far. Originally hailing from Birmingham, England, he moved to the Netherlands at the age of one with his large family. Eventually, they relocated back to the UK, and that is when he set his sights on forging a career for himself in music, doing his best to get away from the street life. However, two different stints in prison made any legitimate progress difficult.
After that whirlwind of an early life, 2020 is when Dutch finally had the chance to gain some footing in the drill scene. This year has been a prolific year for Dutchavelli, resulting in what can only be described as a meteoric rise. His aggressive style, intimidating 6’6” stature, and legendarily, disgustingly deep and grimy voice set him apart from the rest.
He was a part of a few of the biggest singles of the year so far in “Burning” with the masked man M Huncho, “I Dunno” with Tion Wayne and superstar Stormzy, and “808” with Beatfreakz, DigDat and B Young. All of these tracks reached the top 20 of the UK charts, proving that Dutchavelli’s appeal can reach outside of the drill scene, and propel him much closer to the mainstream.
Dutch saw his own solo singles creep up the chart, with each track charting higher than the previous tune. All of this brings us to his much anticipated debut mixtape, Dutch From The 5th, using one of his most memorable lines for the title. It’s worth noting that his chart success appears to be continuing, as it is expected for the project to debut at number one in the UK. From the Netherlands, to prison, and finally to the top of the charts. His rise has been nothing short of impressive, and when you dig a little deeper, not all that surprising. With this project, Dutchavelli proves time and time again that his success is no fluke.
I think it’s important to start with the album art itself, as it provides a great deal of insight as to where Dutch is right now. The art can be interpreted in two different ways. If you see it as him putting those heavy diamond chains onto himself, then it is clear that he is deservedly reveling in his success. As he should, after experiencing untold levels of hardship. However, as a handful of tracks seem to elude to, it can also be seen as him taking his chains off, lending them to those who have stuck by and helped him through all of the pain and turmoil that he has endured. He does mention his own success, but throughout the whole album, a massive through line is this idea of loyalty, love, and actually taking the actions to prove that you hold those feelings for someone else.
The track “Intro” immediately makes this mantra clear. Line after line, we hear Dutchavelli reaffirming over a chipmunk-vocal assisted beat that, yes, he is stunned and happy at his success so far, but he also understands that he’s only getting started. In addition to that, he plans on taking all of those that stayed loyal to the top with him as he continues to ascend. Bars like, “I’d rather go on a suicide mission/ Than fold on them n***** that I used to go hard for,” and “Just take a look back and see where you started/ I promise to bring the crown back to the East/ If not, I’ma break it to pieces and half it,” drive this point home. This idea of “you reap what you sow” is expressed as well, and he see’s rewarding his loyal friends as the only logical step in his progression. He supported them, they stuck by when he was in prison, and now it’s back on him to return the favor.
Much of the tracklist here is full of dark, grimy, smokey, heavy and violent drill music. In that way, Dutchavelli not only gives you what you want, but actually gives you some of the best drill you will hear all year. “Only If You Knew,” includes one of my favorite lines this year in “Woulda thought I was legally blind/ The way I came through waving a stick,” providing some absurd imagery. Another single, “Cool With Me,” with M1llionz, fits into the trackless perfectly, with Dutch’s experimentation standing out, and M1llionz’ unique flow bringing something very different to the album.
We have two other previously released singles here, in “Bando Diaries,” and “Surely,” which are to massive tracks that helped solidify the sound that many come to expect with Dutch. There are a handful of tracks that continue to build on this sound. “S Road Bop,” features an ominous instrumental, as Dutch recalls various drillings. “I’m tryna get the thing with an extended clip/ Twenty-five hollows like the best of Giggs/ I spare no one when I let this rip,” he raps, making reference to the Hollowman himself, Giggs.
“Kaka,” is another standout here, in large part, to it’s unique instrumental. It features this two or three note blues guitar riff, which really reminds of me that Pusha T track with Kendrick Lamar, “Nostalgia.” It’s just something I’ve never really heard in a drill instrumental before, and it’s a unique platform for Dutch to give us more violent lines like “If I stab, dig it, twist it/ Then I’m probably gonna leave it in him.” I’ll admit, it’s hard not to wince a little bit at the amount of times he, and other drill rappers, vividly describe exactly how they like to use their knives.
“Ching Splash” features an instrumental that sounds downright evil, with Dutch’s vocals being layered and pitched down, adding to the devilish nature of the track. “2Am,” see’s Dutch doing his damnedest to set up a threesome with a woman and her friend. And yet, with someone as intimidating as Dutch is, he’s rather respectable about it, to be honest. “Is it rude if I wanna fuck you and your friend?” he asks, before letting her know, “But that’s only if your friend’s interested.” He show’s that despite your past, there isn’t any reason you still can’t show a little respect to women and the idea of consent.
“Skr On Em” with singer Ray BLK is another stab at a more sensual, sexual track, but it doesn’t really hit for me. “Do It,” with Fire is another solid drill track, but where this album really sets itself apart is when we see Dutch get introspective and show that he’s unafraid to dig deep into his past and explore all of the emotions that come with those experiences.
The first instance of this is the track “Segregation.” It’s still an energetic drill track, but he get’s pretty specific about his experience behind bars. He describes a place of chaos, violence and punishment, where he still has to finesse as much as possible to stay alive. “Segregation, thirteen weeks/ My neighbor doin’ a protest, banging his door, won’t let me sleep,” he raps. He also describes exactly what he needed to do in order to make some money while behind bars. In addition to getting in fights and protecting himself, he could put some of his skills as a dealer to use as well. “Have you ever made paper off paper? Like what do you mean?/ My boy come through like twenty-five sheets/ And it’s all off a legal V,” he explains. Unless I’m way off base, it seems like he’s describing having to sell single sheets of toilet paper to other inmates for some cash. That really just shows how dire and tough the conditions can be in these terrible institutions.
While “Segregation” still fits into his known sound and aesthetic, but providing new insight into his life, “Never Really Mine,” is one of the major curveballs here. Over a soulful, piano assisted beat, we hear Dutch address past relationships. Honestly, it is one of the last things I would have ever expected from him, but it is an instance in which Dutch continues to show his growth as not only an artist, but as a human being. “Guess I owe you for this ten milli’ plaque/ I was on the run when I slept on your floor/ Told me you never wanna see me go back/ She can see that my stars aligned/ She was there when my card declined,” he recalls. Again, here we can see his idea of loyalty reigning supreme. He understands deeply that he would not have been able to get to this point without countless people supporting him unconditionally.
In the second verse he raps, “Doin’ balloons in all of them clubs at night, I just pray you don’t pop no pills/ Trust, I guess it was never ever really love/ Find someone that you really want/ It’d be cool if you’d keep in touch/ Could told you how I really felt ’til I realized my words don’t mean that much.” We see an extremely mature point of view from Dutch here. He was hoping that this individual didn’t go down a bad path in regards to drugs and the nightlife. Despite their struggles, he still deep down hopes that she finds someone that can actually love her the way Dutch realized that he couldn’t. He would still like to be a friend, and a point of contact, if only to see that she was able to successfully find happiness. It’s quite a beautiful, touching sentiment that never comes off as corny or awkward coming from someone as hard as Dutchavelli.
Even though “Never Really Mine” comes later in the tracklist, the track “I’ll Call You Back” shows Dutch at his most vulnerable and emotional. It takes the emotional gravity to another level, and is honestly the most impressive track that Dutch has put out to this point. It is all framed as phone call where Dutch is talking to his significant other from prison. This is the track where the focus on loyalty and support ring the strongest. He makes this abundantly clear with lines like, “Still got the weed you brought me last week/ That’s why you’re my favorite/ If you ever go jail for me, I’ll be there in the V with a bag just waiting/ Yeah, put the money in your bank when you want a vacation.”
Throughout the track, it his is delivery that steals the show. He sounds like he is on the verge of tears, with his voice cracking and straining nearly to the point of breaking. Nobody, other than those close to him, have ever heard him like this. He addresses how much he knows that all of this must be breaking his mother’s “delicate heart.” He expresses how thankful he is that despite facing years in prison, this woman was still got his name tattooed on her, before declaring “We might go wild if I bust this case,” and then performing the chorus with much more emotion and energy than before, with his voice even closer to breaking.
The second verse here is just fantastic in every way. With the last line of the chorus explaining that he could be facing life in prison, he starts the verse by asking, “Girl, why you quiet? Why you, why you not talkin?,” going on to let us know that “I hear her crying, hear her, the tears are fallin’.” The little stumbles and repeated words in those bars really carry the emotional heft that a serious, crushing conversation like this holds. Then as he raps, “I heard keys on the landing, I think the govs are walkin’/ If I don’t call you back tonight, I’ma call you back in the mornin’,” A filter is placed on the last bar, giving it the effect that he is talking in his cell on a cheap phone that he isn’t supposed to have. Then when he says “mornin’,” his voice is back to normal, as if he is making that call from the prison approved phone that you are allowed to use. It is a very subtle point that helps paints a vivid picture of what they are going through day to day just to stay in contact.
On that call, he let’s her know that “You’re nothin’ them them who came and left, you there, for real/ Can’t wait ’til they say I got one day left, we’re living a dream.” Once again, the loyalty is the only thing that matters to him at the end of the day. Then he goes into another iteration of the chorus, yet again adding more emotion and changing the lyrics up. “I guess it’s true what they say, only miss the sun when the rain starts pouring/ Gotta club your wings, I watch you fly, no angels falling/ Gotta take a breath, might take a sec to take it all in,” he raps. These bars are downright poetic and gorgeous.
Finally, all of the emotion spills over, like a tub overflowing with scalding water when he says, “Got mail from chicks, but it ain’t from you, it ain’t important/ I hope you feel me in my pain when I’m saucing/ Even when I feel a type of way, I put my all in.” Once he addresses that pain directly, we get another unexpected wrinkle from Dutch, that being the use of autotune, and him deciding to actually sing. It isn’t for the purpose of creating a catchy, sweet sounding hook or anything, but the auto-tune is there to up the ante emotionally. It bursts from his vocal chords, as if holding this emotion in anymore would result in his emotional and physical implosion. It’s jarring and harrowing, and caught me so off guard the first time I heard it. Just like the rest of the track, it is legitimately beautiful and emotionally affecting.
If anybody told me that Dutchavelli had the ability to craft a track that would actually have the ability to bring tears to your eyes, I wouldn’t believe you. Yet, he not only tried to do that, but 10000% succeeded. This track acts as the centerpiece of the entire album, despite it’s early placement in the tracklist, and it has to go down as one of the best, most unexpected tracks I will hear all year. It’s somehow tender and explosive at the same time, and really feels like a track that only Dutchavelli could put together, regardless of how unlikely it may have seemed on paper.
“Darkest Moments,” is another introspective mediation on loyalty and those who remained by his side despite all of the bullshit he may have put them through. Then we have album closer “Zero Zero,” which is a fitting ending to the tape, as he revels in the idea that his price is going up and up, all because he remained true to himself and those that are important to him and his success.
Dutchavelli proved with Dutch From The 5th that he not only has plans to transcend the basic trappings of the drill genre, but that he is more than capable of doing so with flying fucking colors. I think that he and Headie One, and to a lesser extent, Unknown T, are the only artists that come to mind who have shown the ability to deftly balance that dark, violent side of the streets, while exploring the heart wrenching pain and emotion that comes with that in this way. Dutch might just edge Headie though, as tracks like “Never Really Mine, ” and “I’ll Call You Back,” explore those feelings in a way that I have never heard in drill. Of course pain is a major piece of this genre of music, but Dutch takes it to a different level here.
I may have said this in a few other reviews, but when the end of the year roles around, I think Dutch is going to be right at the top of any drill or UK centric “End Of The Year,” lists. Hell, if you ask me, this tape would find it’s way into my top ten even including the marquee American releases. Seriously, I think this tape is that damn good. Dutch gives you everything you would expect and then some here. Excluding “Skr On Me,” which even I can admit may appeal to a whole host of other people other than myself, it’s hard to find a single misstep. The drill tracks are hard, vivid and full of violent, creative lines. And then the introspective tracks hit so much harder than you would ever expect. Like I said before, I don’t think a single soul would have seen a tear-jerker like “I’ll Call You Later,” coming from Dutchavelli. He deserves all of the plaudits and chart success he’s gotten so far, and after an unbelievably impressive piece of work like this, I can only imagine how much more recognition Dutch will continue to gain. It’s rare when something lives up to the hype, and it’s even rarer when that hype is somehow exceeded.
But, in the end, should we really be all that surprised? His entire life has consisted of overcoming the odds, including surviving a prison system that is built to break down and take away the very things that make you human. And yet here he is; More human than ever, with a chokehold around the UK drill scene.
It feels odd to have a sense of pride for someone you’ve never met, but that’s exactly what I feel for Dutchavelli. I’m just realizing I will be putting his out on his 27th birthday, and that feels fitting. All of the positive reviews and chart success have been a long time coming. But they are finally here, and even though this may feel like the end of a long, winding, painful journey, I have a feeling that it’s only just the beginning. He’s going to celebrate, but he will always, always continue to evolve, move forward, and take those who deserve it with him.
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