In September 2005, Jay-Z became the first rap artist to perform at London’s stodgy Royal Albert Hall, causing young ‘uns raised on pirate radio and bashment beats to pay close attention. About halfway through the night they were rewarded, as Memphis Bleek and Hov delivered the springy verses of “Is That Your Chick” over the craggy terrain of Lethal B’s “Pow.” It was an important moment for cross-pond hip-hop: The best in the game invaded the old folks’ home and spit lyrics over a homegrown grime instrumental.

The man responsible for “Pow”‘s demanding beat is 22-year-old North London whiz kid Dexplicit. The son of a reggae lover, he spent his childhood watching his dad cut tracks in his home studio. This sparked an interest in the nuts-and-bolts side of music-making–before Dex could even grow a mustache, he was parked in front of a computer, slaving away at rudimentary electronic beats. By the age of 15, he was sending material to heavy-hitting pirates like Heat FM, where MC Slick D would deliver entire sets over his big, angry basslines and lightning-quick breaks.”It doesn’t bother me at all when people talk about my age,” says Dex. “I’m very proud of achieving what I have so far.”

As well he should be. In a few short years, he’s put a unique stamp on his music. By pushing average hip-hop to warp speeds, tossing in enormous, growling basslines and exploiting the bass-driven energy and propulsive, kick-heavy relentlessness of 4/4 garage house, Dexplicit has created a distinctive sound, exciting even the UKG naysayers who’ve been bemoaning the genre’s death before it even started. His dancefloor-ready jams have made him one of the most sought-after producers in the “UK urban” scene–he’s worked extensively with UK pop acts like NaNa and Maxwell D while releasing underground bangers on his DXP Recordings label. Now, his star is starting to rise in America, thanks to recent remixes of Dipset and M.I.A. “I want to build an empire,” says Dex. “I want [the Dexplicit] brand to be well known throughout the globe, like Aftermath or Def Jam.”

With his Melodic Energy Vol. 1 mixtape flying off shelves, a new NaNa record in the queue, and a remix of Dem Franchise Boys’ “I Think They Like Me” forthcoming on Virgin UK, that doesn’t seem so unlikely. When Dexplicit says he’ll achieve an unthinkable amount by the time he’s 25, it doesn’t come off as wishful thinking–it sounds like a promise.

Aussie MC Romy Hoffman has a lot on her mind, which quickly becomes clear when listening to her full-length debut as Macromantics. On Moments in Movement, her train of thought runs wild, whether she’s spitting with bizarre braggadocio or melancholy introspection. Lines like “Everyone’s just trying to jump on the bandwagon/But I’m just chasing the back of a damn dragon” (from “Bandwagon”) show this up-and-comer is as in touch with fantasy as she is reality.

“My thoughts are all scattered and cluttered,” Hoffman explains of her abnormal lyrical approach. “I go on tangents and I wanna talk about myself and philosophy and how I fit into the world at large and the cosmos and chaos. And you’re allowed to do that in hip-hop. It’s a really post-modern form of writing.”

Rhyming wasn’t always Miss Macro’s chosen form of expression. Originally a guitarist, she made a name for herself in the mid-’90s by playing with Ben Lee’s now disbanded pop-punk band Noise Addict. While touring with Noise Addict in America, then-15-year-old Hoffman discovered and fell in love with hip-hop.

“Everyone’s voice is important and should be heard, and that’s what really spoke to me about hip-hop,” says Hoffman. “It was saying something about society and culture and blending thoughts about self and philosophy and politics. It became a genre of music and a genre of writing that I found to be perfect to get my voice across.”

Hoffman started sharpening her rhymes, but opportunities for MCs in the Land Down Under were scarce. Thus, in the early 2000s, she moved to America to record, and found no shortage of inspiration. As the war in Iraq began to spin out of control, she recorded Hyperbolic Logic, an EP full of dark, stream-of-consciousness rhymes ignited by the climate in the U.S. “I was kind of overwhelmed,” she admits. Moments in Movement was recorded back in Australia, and it finds Hoffman lightening things up a bit with catchier songs (such as the progressive “Scorch”) and genre-bending producer Tony Buchen (a.k.a. Buchman) behind the boards. That’s not to say that this album is less socially conscious–all of Hoffman’s life experiences are reflected in her imaginative freestyles.

“The way stars twinkle at night is going to affect my writing as much as who gets into power next and what happens in Iraq,” she says. “I feel what I do is journalism–I’m commenting on all of that stuff.”