“Marvin “Fredo” Bailey has always made much of his west London roots, so it’s jarring to find that he’s named his second album of the year after an American holiday. No matter. Independence Day is as English as EastEnders, but what was once soap is now opera. Fredo’s gruff truculence is supersized, given widescreen swagger by the propulsive production, a dense lattice of piano, strings and subtle s”
“Fredo is at his rawest but struggles to set his intention with Independence Day”
“Cut through the coarse edges of ‘Independence Day’, the latest album by west London rapper Fredo, and there lies another statement project. After his pop-leaning tendencies of 2020 – namely, the saccharine ‘Hickory Dickory Dock’, which has now disappeared off streaming services and been disowned by him – the 27-year-old rapper doubles down on his road-rap roots. Throughout the 14-track album, Fred”
