As if that blue hair didn’t make her noticeable enough, it’s easy to spot Stephanie Allen in all sorts of places right now.
As Stefflon Don (a play on the “Teflon Don” nickname of crime boss John Gotti, as well as “Steff London”, get it?) the east London-based 24-year old is currently on BBC Radio 1Xtra’s A-list with her song 16 Shots.
The video for its tough dancehall rap has raced to 2.5 million YouTube views in a month. In a fortnight you can find her making one of her characteristically prominent guest appearances on the new Tinie Tempah album, to go with past raps alongside Lethal Bizzle, Angel and Chicago R&B star Jeremih. Next week she plays her first headline show in London, and certainly not her last.
Her forthright style, inspired by female hip hop pioneers such as Lil’ Kim and Foxy Brown, also incorporates London grime and Jamaican bounciness, and sounds ready for big audiences already on her exuberant recent mixtape, Real Ting.
A childhood spent mostly in Rotterdam speaking Dutch accounts for some of her distinctiveness. Musically, she’s already proving she’s much more than a crazy hairdo.
April 6, Tape, W1 (020 7659 9080, tapelondon.com)