# Headie One — Next Up?

Headie One’s Next Up? (2018) is No. 1 in our UK Drill ranking. The full verdict, and where to hear it.

- **Released:** 2018
- **On one list:** UK Drill
- **Updated:** 2026-08-31
- **Artist:** [Headie One](https://waxonia.com/artist/headie-one/)
- **Canonical page:** https://waxonia.com/track/headie-one--next-up/

## What we say

### No. 1 in [UK Drill](https://waxonia.com/genre/uk-drill/)

A freestyle series entry that became the genre's calling card. Headie's timing is behind the beat throughout, and the restraint is what separates him from the field.

## Analysis

8 sections, the first drop of 3 at 1:22, 34% of the way in, 10% of it spent climbing.

- **Key:** F# minor
- **Dynamic range:** 12.6 dB — wide open — the quiet parts are genuinely quiet
- **Length:** 4:02

- `0:00` A · **intro**, instrumental — opens the record below its own average energy
- `0:15` B · **build** (bar 6), sung — energy and brightness climbing without a break — playing: drums, vocals
- `0:40` C · **peak** (bar 16), sung — sits at the top of this record's range — playing: drums, bass, vocals
- `1:45` C · **lift** (bar 42), sung — a short rise that does not resolve — a fill or a transition, not a build — playing: bass, vocals
- `2:11` A · **breakdown** (bar 53), instrumental — energy falling away mid-record, percussion thinning
- `2:27` C · **steady** (bar 59), sung — holding a level — the groove, neither rising nor falling — playing: bass, vocals
- `2:40` C · **peak** (bar 64), sung — sits at the top of this record's range — playing: drums, bass, vocals
- `3:47` C · **outro** (bar 91), instrumental — the closing fall — playing: drums, bass

**Drops** at 1:22 (bar 33), 1:55 (bar 46), 2:26 (bar 59). A drop is a moment, not a stretch.

**What is playing.** Separated into parts by a source-separation model, so each lane is the instrument it names.

- **drums:** the drum kit, separated from the mix
- **bass:** the bass part, separated from the mix
- **vocals:** the voice, separated from the mix
- **other:** everything else — synths, guitars, keys, strings

Measured from the YouTube master on 2026-08-29. Section labels describe how the energy
moves, not musical form. Anything we were not confident enough to state is omitted
rather than hedged.

## Listen

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Headie%20One%20Next%20Up%3F) · [YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=FTw_3O1Hw7g)

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Hand-curated by Waxonia. We host no audio; all links point to streaming platforms.