In 2018, Digga D became one of the first British musicians to be handed a Criminal Behaviour Order controlling his output. Trapped in a cycle of prison time and staccato output, it seemed the Ladbroke Grove drill MC might not realise his considerable potential. Then 2021’s Made in the Pyrex mixtape arrived, with its explicit nods to Los Angeles gang culture and 2000s US rap trends. It underlined his prodigious ability, while also announcing his considerable ambitions. “Before I blew up, all that I knew was London,” he tells Apple Music. “Now I know there's much more to do out here in the world.” Is Noughty By Nature, then, a bid for US domination? It certainly pays its dues to Digga’s biggest American idol. “I was born in 2000, I’m a noughties baby, and I grew up listening to 50 Cent,” he says. “I felt like I needed to show that.” He does so pretty emphatically, retooling three of the New Yorker’s memorable anthems. Liverpool talent Still Brickin hops on for the wild braggadocio of “Pump 101” (sampling G-Unit’s “Stunt 101”); Digga lines up queries over a striking sample of “21 Questions” on “Hold It Down”, while he taps Bronx spitter B-Lovee for scattergun drill flows on the “Best Friend”-sampling “What You Reckon”. But it’s when Digga embraces home that he’s arguably most compelling. “Intro” charts his personal history—taking in early neglect, juvenile felonies and the pain of loss—and connects the dots between his troubled start and the scandals that have checked his professional progress. There are clear shots at rap rivals, but this tape makes it clear that Digga knows who his worst enemy is—and how he’s battling against past mistakes. “This is the evolution of badness,” he tells Apple Music. “I’m showing it from the start, playing with toys, then getting older, starting to smoke, and getting into more. Right up to Digga with the mic, staying out of trouble. I’m showing everything in my nature so you’ll get the full picture.”