The Ragga Twins

The Ragga Twins are the Hackney brothers Deman Rocker and Flinty Badman, whose recording partnership grew out of London’s reggae sound-system culture. Before working as a duo, both developed their microphone skills with Unity Sound System. They wanted more opportunities to make records, and left Unity at the end of 1989.

Working with Smiley and PJ of Shut Up & Dance gave them a new setting for their lyrics. Their 1991 album Reggae Owes Me Money combined dancehall vocals with breakbeats, hip-hop, rave, and dub. Tracks including Ragga Trip, Hooligan 69, and Spliffhead connected their sound-system background with the emerging rave scene.

They were brothers before they were a recording act, and are not biological twins. The shared name was suggested as a way to present them together, while their individual identities remained part of the music. Their later album Rinsin’ Lyrics arrived in 1995, moving into a different musical setting with producer Geoff Wilkinson of Us3.

Their subsequent collaborations reach across bass music, including work with Skrillex, Wrongtom, and James Blake. For their work with Wrongtom on In Time, they revisited lyrics from their Unity years, bringing that earlier writing into new recordings.