ONE Fáris

The bar has been set for Video of the Year, as Meridian Dan rises out of the fumes of his German Whip.

From undeniably leading the charge of Grime’s resurgence, Meridian Dan had found himself caught between maintaining that sound whilst growing as an artist, two things that don’t often mesh well. Having basically opened the door, you could say he was lost amongst all those that followed after, not because of him or his music, but just the way the game is, a lot of changes and transitions followed, and though he gave us a mature take on Grime, at the time, it was continuously compared to his breakthrough single. Still active, the limelight however had began to fade, with the numbers game churning newer acts, and the support seemed to have followed as such. It’s frustrating for any creative, and at one point, unless you were personally checking for Dan, you would think he was inactive. Where he provided the spark for our music to flourish, it also provided the avenue for sub-genres to re-emerge, UK Rap became more prominent, and almost put Grime to the back. None the less, you can’t keep a good man down, and fast forward to 2019, off the back of presenting Boxing segments and music with the likes of God’s Gift, having switched things up in his personal and professional life, the Meridian legend, brings that new lifestyle and energy into his music with Vegan Chat.

Very few artists still care about the creativity, or production value, especially with their visuals, or maybe that is just their personalities, one dimensional and basic. Not with Dan, those that know or have witnessed enough, will be well aware that he’s a charismatic and funny individual, blended with his pedigree and upbringing, it’s what made him stand out in the first place. I knew he lived a vegan lifestyle, but had no idea what to expect when I came across the title ‘Vegan Chat’ (Was he even releasing music, or was this some new cooking/talk show?!), all I had been told from a close source was, “he’s back”, and they weren’t wrong. Musically, it’s classic Dan, as he lays out the plan and intentions from here on, effortlessly flowing, citing his stance as a person and artist, as he looks to stake his claim as one of the elites.

“I’m a positive guy, I don’t do bad energy..”

Visually, it’s a masterpiece really, from the concept, down to the execution. Shout out to Pierre in the opening scene, safe-guarding the operation. It’s a constant journey, that whilst so different, remains in line with the premise. From the traphouse (bagging up vegetables), into the amazing transition of the joint to the boxing ring, knocked out by the bull, later revealed to be none other than hometown hero Dillian White, into the butcher scene, with Dan playing multiple roles, an ode to his self-sufficiency and the multiple positions he plays in his own career. This video shows more potential for Dan within the acting world, this could have easily been a Guy Ritchie movie, and it only gets more intense, from the slaughterhouse to playing detectives and the underrated scene where he’s torturing what appears to be Ronald McDonald for the hidden meat factories.

Though the video has done well, it most certainly is underrated, and maybe with Giggs’ Big Bad visuals and the impact he has, having somewhat overshadowed it, but when those lists get made in December, if this video is not mentioned, then they can all go fuck themselves really, because Meridian Dan most definitely kicked it all off, and I for one, look forward to what’s next.