| "Wot Do U Call It?" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Wiley | ||||
| from the album Treddin' on Thin Ice | ||||
| Released | 5 April 2004 (UK) | |||
| Recorded | 2003 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:20 (radio edit) | |||
| Label | XL | |||
| Songwriter | Richard Cowie | |||
| Producer | Wiley | |||
| Wiley singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Wot Do U Call It?" is the debut single by British grime artist Wiley, released on 5 April 2004 as the lead single from his debut album Treddin' on Thin Ice (2004). It is a vocal version of the instrumental song "Igloo", which he also produced.[1]
The song addresses the debate around the name of the then-emerging grime genre, which some commentators considered a derivative "grimy" form of UK garage and others such as DJ EZ had branded "grime" for short, while Wiley himself had been using the term "eskibeat" for his music.[2][3][4] Dan Hancox has described how Wiley "speculates derisively" about the correct name for the sound in the song's lyrics "without providing a definitive answer", referencing the options "garage", "urban" and "2-step".[5] Writing for NME in 2012, Kieran Yates described the song as a "seminal single" which "helped define the genre".[6]
A short documentary of the same name, directed by Adam Smith and produced by Raw TV for XL Recordings, aired on Channel 4 in 2004 and included interviews with Roll Deep, Terror Danjah and Nasty Crew's Stormin and Ghetts among others, discussing how they described the style of music they made.[7]
The music video, directed by Adam Smith,[8] was shot in various locations including the record shop Rhythm Division on Roman Road[5], pirate radio stations and raves.[4]
