Pitchfork

Considering how close together the releases of Boy in Da Corner and Showtime were, Dizzee Rascal has practically been in recording hibernation since 2004.

Thus, it's not terribly encouraging to hear that he told NME that Lily Allen and Joss Stone will appear on his new record, Maths and English, according to MTV.co.uk.

As nice as Lily is (less so Stone), it seems like an odd fit.

Nonetheless, Allen sings the hook on Maths' "So You Want to Be a Gangsta". Dizzee said he "was working with [producers] Futurecuts, and they got Lily in to sing on the track. I like her. She's straight up."

As for Stone, he said, "She came up to me at the Brit Awards [and] said, 'I'd like to sing a hook on your record.' The track is not what you'd expect. You don't always hear Joss Stone singing on a drum 'n' bass tune, do you?"

Actually, we try to avoid hearing Joss Stone sing on any tune as much as possible.

Dizzee's collaborative spirit seems to stem from his recent work with Arctic Monkeys on a song titled "Temptation", since he also said, "I'd definitely like to work with them again, especially Alex [Turner]... He knows all types of music. It goes beyond rock 'n' roll."

So what gives? Is Dizzee crazy? Just misguided? Has he lost the ineffable "it" on Maths and English? Maybe his statement that "I want this album to go multi-platinum" explains his motives a bit. Then again, there is always the off chance that he knows what he's doing. Remember when Kanye got the Maroon 5 guy to sing on that one record? That worked out pretty well.

Dizzee Rascal will play a few scattered dates in Europe this spring and summer.

Dates:

04-14 Porto, Portugal - Casa de Musica
06-15 Barcelona, Spain - Sonar Festival
07-05 Amsterdam, Netherlands - Melkweg (5 Days Off Festival)
07-21 Bern, Switzerland - Gurtenfestival