Whilst only 18 years old, Deno has cemented himself as a hook master within the UK music scene, having gifted infectious choruses to an array of artists. To this day, perhaps the most stellar example of his knack for melodies remains his 2018 collaboration with Cadet on ‘Advice’, which is incidentally also his most played track on Spotify with over 70 million plays. The song also appeared on Cadet’s posthumously released album ‘The Rated Legend’ in 2020, thus also serves as a reminder of the energetic talent that the scene lost when Cadet tragically passed away over two years ago.

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Known for his flawless tenor vocals, Deno has appeared over pop, hip-hop, R&B, afroswing, and even drill production. In an interview with On The Radar in 2019, Deno demonstrated that he is clearly aware of his versatile selection of beats, suggesting that it is a conscious choice to appeal to as wide an audience as possible. He said, “I’ve got that street-smart aura. I’ve got that cool, young, fresh sound. I can do more than just one genre. I don’t just do Afroswing. I did a song the other day with Chip on a rhythmic drill beat. I can do the singing thing and the half-sing, half-rap thing. It takes me to different audiences.”

The teenage talent is both wise beyond years and highly ambitious; in the same interview, Deno said: “I’m going to be like Drake”. Although he has a long path ahead of him, the singer’s prophecy is not impossible given what he has achieved at such a young age.

The South Londoner teamed up with J.I. the Prince of N.Y. and Chunkz on his latest track ‘Lingo’, a track which is likely to appear on his forthcoming mixtape. The song’s main theme is luxury, something that the music video itself emphasises through a backdrop of supercars and money stacks. As both an 18-year-old and a smooth vocalist, J.I. the Prince of N.Y. is Deno’s transatlantic counterpart, and his appearance on the track is most probably a savvy decision made by Deno to attract an untapped American audience.

With obvious mainstream appeal, there really is no ceiling for Deno. ‘Boy Meets World’ will be a chance for the rising star to propel himself to the heights that he has been aiming for.