"Extraordinary... a crucial release and a landmark for UK beats and rhymes."

"The uncertain, fluctuating British soundscape may not be ready for he sound of 'Brand New Second Hand', but after it lands and is taken in by the curious, it could emerge into the type of abiding legacy that 'Blue Lines' went on to become. Comfortably distanced by time and space from anything else before it, rooted to history with flickerings of the future, an artist and an album for all your millenium domes."

"The most original slice of British hip hop in years."

"The best rap album from this or any other country you'll hear all year. Already. Very deep and very dark, echoes of dub, electro and dancehall frame laid-back but gripping narratives, the sort of music Massive Attack once made. Gorgeous and vital, it makes you realise how long the Americans have been on cruise control."

"Arguably the best hip hop album to emerge from the UK this decade... unique... In fact, it should be mandatory for anyone with even a passing interest in hip hop culture to check out a bit of Roots-Fi Boogie."

"The most important UK black music album since the seminal Soul II Soul debut... a brilliant vision of the hip hop sound."

"A multi-cultural cauldron which offers a true taste of the Brit-hop experience. Like the b-boy incarnation of James Baldwin, Roots Manuva delivers his street ministry with the conviction of a preacher's son... a wilderness of dubwise beats, bottomless bass and reverberating vibes that lie somewhere between Mobb Deep and Massive Attack. A new testament from an old soul. This man hurts like the truth."

"A unique vision... a place where lo-fi creative sensibilities run the dance. Throwing together elements from reggae to ragga, dub to hip hop, he has created a supreme audio cosmos that manages to wrestle the Black musical legacy into a new form... (he) utilises sonic effects like Lee 'Scratch' Perry's long lost son. His artistry reminds us of what came before the commercialism of hip hop. Self-produced and
deeply personal it harks back to the days when the music was the product of intimate collaborations. Roots Manuva is blessed with the ability to unfurl and communicate life's subtleties through his rhymes... a drop of hip hop perfection."

"Roots Manuva is by some distance the most significant and original new voice in hip hop."

"Why Buy? Because no one else is being this honest about your life. Because no one else in hip hop is as opened-up to real musical innovation and intrigue.Because once you've heard him, you realise he has the most unmistakable voice anywhere in pop."

"There are edgy, innovative beats and his booming, dancehall reggae-tinged lyrics, imparting punchy observations of south London life, the odd line about impending global disaster and 'the complete guide to skiving and surviving.' With bubbling effects and a huge dubwise rumble on board, you have the best UK hip hop album in ages."

"Combining his roots in reggae with the hip hop beats, Roots Manuva is on the verge of changing this culture forever. When you hear Manuva you know you're hearing something as fresh as Tribe's "Midnight Marauders". Booming bass, science fiction sound effects and backwards snares lay the canvas for Roots to spit his own language, creating music that has never been heard before. 100 percent original, just like hip hop should be, Manuva has truly turned the English language inside out."

"An outstanding statement of his potent skills and the vibrancy of the British scene... a contender to watch in an increasingly globalized hip hop arena."

"Fierce and beguiling... unlike anything else. A highly promising debut"

"An album that's dark enough to make Wu-Tang seem like a troop of children's clowns. Easy listening it ain't. But persevere and it becomes more than worthwhile. It is hip hop, kids. But not as we know it. And that's no bad thing."

"His is the voice of urban Britain, encompassing dub, ragga, funk and hip hop as it sweeps from crumbling street corners to ganja-filled dancehalls, setting gritty narratives against all manner of warped beats."

"This LP mixes a multitude of musical flavours, jazz, soul, dub, hip hop and techno. Roots Manuva's smooth but attitude-packed lyrics ride all these different musical styles with ease. Weird beats and breaks that come in at strange points make you listen again but they definitely work. There are so many strong tracks..."

"A hip hop contender to conquer America, Roots Manuva has lyrics to go and a voice like gravel. Once heard it's imprinted deep in the subconscious."

"Conceived in a future mindset era, Roots Manuva’s "Brand New Second Hand" is a striking assemblage of reggaefied hip hop textures with wilder bass patterns interwoven beneath. These open-ended adventures into the Roots-Fi zone make the music sound even better, exposing reasons behind the abrupt shifts in the fluctuating constructs of the album. At the hub of it all is the imposing bass-tinged voice coated in layers of reggae and hip hop and stained with the noxious ingredients of the weeded tobacco cylinders he smokes."

"Roots Manuva is a great rapper and 'Brand New Second Hand' is a great hip hop album period. The 26 year-old Stockwell MC has wit, brains, originality, warmth and a fine voice. For those worn out searching for something to invigorate a lost love affair with hip hop, 'Brand New Second Hand' should cancel any renunciation of faith."

"The brilliant 'Brand New Second Hand' is an audio omni-verse which wrestles a black British musical legacy into cohesion."

"The saviour of British hip hop. Humour, sadness, anger, life. Smith keeps his hip hop real, not to the ageing musical rules of a foreign land, but to the street, his streets. And, with his vision and rhymes, the ordinary/extraordinary streets of anyone who listens to this album."

"An album that can sit in your collection alongside Rakim and do that with pride."