Another big name from the States who’s yet to make an impact on audiences elsewhere, Kevin Rudolf is a man with a canny knowledge of what makes a commercially successful song. Why else would his services as a guitarist, songwriter and producer be in demand by some of the biggest names from the world of pop and R‘n’B? In that respect, think of him as another Ryan Tedder (OneRepublic), except that he’s dressed as a skateboarder from the ghetto, and has a whole lot of ‘muthafuckin’’ attitude.
In The City is pitched somewhere between Linkin Park and The Neptunes; these slickly rendered (and, it could be argued, over-produced) songs are dominated by heavy riffs and underlying electronic manipulations, while Rudolf is joined by rap heavyweights Nas (on ‘NYC’) and Lil Wayne (on the pulsating, robotic single ‘Let It Rock’, probably the best track here). By incorporating three genres into his sound, Rudolf hits several target audiences at once, so it’s a pity that the end product is so clunky, uninspiring and hackneyed – particularly ‘Great Escape’, a saccharine piano ballad about the death of a friend.

Key Track: 'Let It Rock'