He’s back. Skepta has officially dropped The Fork and Knife today — Friday, November 6, 2026 — his first solo album in seven years, and grime fans everywhere, Toledo included, have been waiting for this one.

The 15-track album arrives via Big Smoke Records / Epic Records, and it’s streaming now. Seven years is a long time between solo albums, but if anyone can make a return feel like an event, it’s Skepta.

His last solo album, Ignorance Is Bliss, came out in May 2019. Since then, the wait has only made the anticipation louder — and today, the wait is over.

A stacked guest list

The Fork and Knife doesn’t come back quietly. The album features Asake on “Aloe Vera,” Project Pat on “Cold Shower,” and Aya Nakamura on “Chippie,” alongside Central Cee, Jorja Smith and Novelist.

That’s a lineup that spans grime, hip-hop, Afrobeats and R&B — and it says everything about where Skepta sits in music right now: still rooted in grime, still reaching everywhere.

A big moment behind the boards, too

South African producer BZM co-produced “Cold Shower” with Baso, M1OnTheBeat and Cxzy.exe — his first major international placement, and a reminder that this album’s reach goes well beyond London.

For a producer getting that kind of look on a Skepta album, it’s a career-changing moment. For listeners, it’s one more reason to press play on “Cold Shower” first.

Why this comeback hits different

Skepta isn’t just one of grime’s biggest names — he’s one of the artists who took the sound worldwide. He won the Mercury Prize for Konnichiwa in 2016, and he’s been a standard-bearer for the scene ever since.

So a new Skepta solo album isn’t just another Friday release. It’s a return moment — the kind Toledo music fans know well: the artist you grew up on, back with something to say, and 15 tracks to say it with.

Put your headphones on, turn it up, and run it back. The Fork and Knife is out now and streaming everywhere.

Sources: Music Times and SA Hip Hop Mag.

Photo: Blue37 via Wikimedia Commons