DnB achieved its first UK Number 1 single in 2012, 20 years after its origins, marking a delayed mainstream breakthrough

Despite its origins in the early 1990s UK underground, DnB did not achieve a UK Number 1 single until 2012, when DJ Fresh’s ‘Hot Right Now’ (featuring Rita Ora) reached the top spot. This was followed by more Number 1 hits from Rudimental, Sigma and others. Key milestone albums came earlier: Goldie’s ‘Timeless’ (1995, first mainstream DnB LP), Roni Size & Reprazent’s ‘New Forms’ (1997, Mercury Prize winner), and Pendulum’s ‘Hold Your Colour’ (2005, best-selling DnB album). Critical recognition (the 1997 Mercury Prize) thus preceded chart success by roughly fifteen years — evidence of a gap between critical and commercial legitimacy for underground genres.

Examples

Roni Size & Reprazent won the Mercury Prize in 1997 — critical recognition of DnB — but this did not produce chart hits. Chart success only arrived in 2012 with more pop-inflected production, demonstrating the gap between critical and commercial legitimacy.

Assessment

Identify the key milestones in DnB’s mainstream acceptance from 1995 to 2012. Explain why the Mercury Prize in 1997 did not lead to immediate mainstream chart success.