Marc Veira (born 17 March 1980), better known by his stage name Flowdan, is an English
grime MC and
record producer from
Bow and
Poplar,
East London.[3] A founding member of
Roll Deep, he was responsible for naming the group and remained a member until its hiatus.[3][4] In 2015, he founded his own record label, SpentShell, which has since signed
YGG and
GHSTLY XXVII to its roster. In 2023, he featured on two songs which reached the top 20 of the
UK Singles Chart, and in 2024 he won his first
Grammy Award for the
Skrillex and
Fred Again collaboration "
Rumble", becoming the first grime MC to win a Grammy in any category.[5]
Career
A founding member of Roll Deep, Veira appears intermittently on all five of their albums, although notably does not appear on any of their five singles to register on the
UK Top 40. A good friend of
Wiley, the crew's de facto leader, he came from a
drum and bass and
jungle background and was part of the first wave of grime MCs. He was one of nine artists to feature on
Lethal Bizzle's 2004 single "
Pow! (Forward)", which reached number eleven on the
UK Singles Chart, making it one of the most commercially successful grime songs to date. The song also won the
MOBO Award for Best Single. Veira's first solo album, Original Dan, was released in 2009 and featured a range of guest artists, including
Frisco, Wiley, Killa P and Riko. An EP, Serious Business, followed in 2014, and his second full-length album Disaster Piece was released in 2016, to more positive reviews than his debut.[6][7]
Flowdan is also known for his frequent collaboration with dub and dancehall producer
The Bug, and has appeared on at least seven of his songs.[8] In 2017, the pair's collaboration "Bad" peaked at number 37 on the
UK Physical Singles Chart.[9] This was Veira's second named appearance on the chart, having reached number 63 with the Jubei collaboration "Say Nothin'" in 2013.[10]
In 2018, Flowdan forayed further into
record production. He produced tracks for
PK's Bad Ombré EP and
GHSTLY XXVII's Guerrilla Tactics EP, the first two releases on his new label, SpentShell.[11] He also contributed preset sounds and samples as well as entire demo tracks to
Native Instruments'
Maschine expansion pack 'London Grit'.[12][13] In June 2018, he released the four-track One Shell Fits All EP, featuring vocals from
D Double E, Nasty Jack, GHSTLY XXVII and
Meridian Dan, and production from Masro, Teddy Music, Filthy Gears and Jammz.
In 2023, Veira released multiple collaborations with electronic dance music producer
Skrillex, including the
Fred Again collaboration "
Rumble". Released in January 2023, it peaked at number 19 on the
UK Singles Chart, marking Flowdan's second top 40 hit. He bettered this record with the
Chase & Status and
Bou collaboration "Baddadan", which spent over 20 continuous weeks in the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number five and also topping the country's Official Trending Chart.[14] The song was certified Platinum by the
BPI in March 2024, in recognition of the equivalent of 600,000 sales.[15] In October of the same year, he reunited with Skrillex for the
Lil Baby-featuring "Pepper", and performed the song live at the opening ceremony of the fourth Riyadh Season.[16] Boxer
Francis Ngannou, who faced
Tyson Fury at a heavyweight championship match at the event, appears in the song's music video alongside footballer
Cristiano Ronaldo.[17] "Rumble" later won the 2024
Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Recording.[18][19] The song is also certified Silver by the BPI, in recognition of the equivalent of 200,000 sales.[15]
Style
Flowdan is known for his deep voice and use of
patois lyrics. Although rooted in grime, he performs over various different styles, from the drum and bass of his early days, to the dubstep of his numerous features with
The Bug.