Ironik's second release, Stay with Me, became his breakthrough hit, charting at number five in the U.K. Written about his fears for his ten-year-old sister growing up in a society rife with knife crime and violence, it bizarrely sampled Written in the Stars, a track from Westlife's Unbreakable, Vol. 1: The Greatest Hits album. Inspired by U.K. grime artists Wiley and Dizzee Rascal, and U.S. hip-hop stars Kanye West and Lupe Fiasco, his debut album, No Point in Wasting Tears, appeared in 2008. Ironik also had his own radio show on Xtreme FM, and launched his own label, Venemous Records.
The Elton John-sampling and -featuring "Tiny Dancer (Hold Me Closer)" became his biggest chart entry, reaching number three in the U.K. in 2010. A pair of EPs, Independently Unstoppable and T.O.B.D (Ticking Off Boyhood Dreams), followed in 2013 and 2015, respectively, paving the way for his second album, 2017's Truth Be Told, on RU Listening Records. ~ Jon O'Brien, Rovi