Wiley is a British MC, rapper, songwriter, DJ, and record producer who is widely regarded as the pioneer of the genre of grime music and is often referred to as Godfather of Grime. He had first come into the spotlight as a member of the UK-based garage crew Pay As U Go in the early 2000s after which he independently released a string of highly acclaimed eskibeat instrumentals. He is also renowned as a grime MC, for his solo work as well as for the music that he released with his crew called Roll Deep. Several of Wiley’s mainstream singles such as Wearing My Rolex, Never Be Your Woman, and Heatwave have been ‘Top 10’ hits in the UK. For his contribution to the music industry, he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) at the 2018 New Year Honours. His autobiography titled Eskiboy was published in November 2017.
Sun Sign
Capricorn
Residence
London, England, United Kingdom
Genre
British Hip Hop, Grime, UK Garage, Drum and Bass
Instruments
Vocals, Drums
Labels
- CTA
- Big Dada
- Boy Better Know Entertainment
- XL Recordings
- Ninja Tune
- Asylum Records
- Back Yard Recordings
- Island Records
- Virgin Records Ltd.
- Warner Music Group Inc.
- Universal Music Group
- All Around the World Productions
Girlfriend / Spouse
Wiley has dated –
- Lady Ny
He has 2 daughters from an unnamed relationship.
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
- Has a tattoo on the back of his neck
- Has his right arm and wrist covered in tattoos
- Short-cropped hair
- Often sports a trimmed goatee
Wiley Facts
- It was Wiley’s father, a reggae artist in the 1980s, who first introduced him to hip-hop and drums. As a child, he moved around a lot and lived in several places in London before moving to Kent to live with his grandmother at the age of 10. A year later, though, he moved to Bow in London to live with his father.
- During his teenage years, in the early-1990s, he had made an acquaintance with a DJ who used to sell drugs on the side. Wiley too began selling crack cocaine and heroin under his influence. He stopped his activities after a local drug dealer began threatening him and his friend.
- In that phase of his life, he was involved in several life-threatening situations, including being stabbed more than 20 times, shot at with shotguns, and attacked with a samurai sword.
- Early on in his career, he had taken up the moniker of DJ Wildchild but changed it to Wiley Kat after a female artist from Kool FM started using the Wildchild stage name and surpassed his popularity. Wiley Kat was a reference to a character from Thundercats, an American fiction-based media franchise.
- He is a staunch supporter of the English soccer team Tottenham Hotspur.
Featured Image by Wiley / Instagram
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Facts of Richard Kylea Cowie Jr.
- Gender Male
- full nameRichard Kylea Cowie Jr.
- middle nameKylea
- nicknamesEskiboy, Wiley, Wiley Kat, King of Grime, Godfather of Grime, Phaze One
- birthplaceBow, East London, England, United Kingdom
- Date of Birth January 19, 1979
- Age 45 years 7 months
- Horoscope Capricorn
- Lucky Number 10
- Lucky Stone Topaz
- Lucky Color Brown
- Best Match for Marriage Scorpio, Virgo, Taurus
- ethnicity / ethnic backgroundTrinidadian and Antiguan
- nationalityAmerican
- net worth$6 million
- professionMC, Rapper, Songwriter, DJ, Record Producer
- weight77 kg or 170 lbs
- height6 ft or 183 cm
- hair colorBlack
- eye colorDark Brown
- body type / buildSlim
- fatherRichard Cowie Senior
- sistersJanaya Cowie