Central Cee Closes Curtains on 2025 with Solo Single ‘Booga’

West London's very own Central Cee stepped into 2025 with a bang as he released his debut album CAN’T RUSH GREATNESS in January. Having featured some of the biggest artists out of both England and America on the chart-topping and record-breaking project, Cench went on to have a phenomenal year professionally. 

Amidst the sold-out worldwide tour that trailed his debut album, the rapper flaunted his multitasking skills when he dropped the song of the summer, ‘GUILT TRIPPIN’, with St. Louis female rapper, Sexyy Red. A month after he collaborated with Sexyy Red, the London native made a guest appearance on Drake’s single ‘Which One’, unveiled in July. 

In the same month when he was a co-headliner at Rolling Loud India, he commemorated the Thanksgiving holiday by dropping ‘Booga’ on November 27, about a month ahead of another concert that he will be co-headlining in Lagos, Nigeria. 

In terms of theme, ‘Booga’ passes as a multidimensional tune. From reinstating that he calls the shots to paying homage to older artistes to reminding us of his journey as a self-made artiste to rapping some lines in the Somali language, the solo single underlines why Central Cee is the biggest rapper out of the UK currently.

Skepta, one of the notable appearances on CAN’T RUSH GREATNESS, reappears on the ‘Booga’ track. This time, not as a rapper, rather with the opening line of “If you don’t get money, you will suffer”. 

Through pengame, Cench references iconic French rapper Booba, classic hip-hop group Wu-Tang Clan, late American singer Frank Sinatra, and late legendary rapper Tupac. Ever proud of his roots, the London rapper places his hometown on the map once again as he boasts of representing West London similarly to how the late Tupac represented the West Coast back in the day.

In the opening scene of the music video, Skepta also makes a cameo - zooming in on Skepta seated in the backseat of a Rolls-Royce with the back window rolled down, proclaiming the song’s opening line. 

The music video doesn’t stray away from the lyrical content. Directed by the sought-after Don.Prod, the visuals sport cameos from other fellow English personalities. The spotlight falls on Skepta a second time in the music video when he’s seen seated on the bonnet of the Rolls-Royce, in front of which Cench sits with his back to the bumper. A clip of footballer Cole Palmer posing for a picture with Cench is also included in the visuals. Towards the end, FinesseKid is spotted as well.

On the lyrical front, Cench flags his stance with independent artists, swagging that he made millions off of rap before he signed to a record label. He proceeds to remind us that he only likes girls who are uninterested in him, as he said in Chicken Shop DATE with Amelia Dimoldenberg 2.5 years ago. 

Doubling down on the Somali lines in his rap and presumably proving that he’s not embracing the culture for mere likes and clicks, the English sensation is seen eating Somali food alongside friends at a large dining table in one of the scenes. 

On the outro line, he reminisces about watching the epic Bollywood movie, “Slumdog Millionaire”, and concludes that he can “relate to the kid from Mumbai” who was the protagonist. Unarguably, Central Cee stays central commercially.

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