Funky DL

Funky DL
Background information
Born	Naphta Newman (1977-11-21) November 21, 1977 (age 48)
Origin	Hackney, London
Genres	Hip-hop underground hip-hop instrumental hip-hop jazz rap
Occupations	Rapper record producer
Years active	1995–present
Labels	Utmost Records Bad News Records Washington Classics

Naphta Newman (born November 21, 1977) ^[1] , better known by his stage name Funky DL, is an English rapper and record producer from Hackney, London. ^[2] His debut album Classic Was The Day won the 1997 MOBO Award for Best Hip Hop. He was also nominated in 1998 and 1999. ^{[3] [4]} Following the release of his second album Heartfelt Integrity his music has been released through his own label Washington Classics. ^[5] In the early 2000’s he made multiple songs with Japanese record producer Nujabes. ^{[6] [7]} Later in 2011 after his tragic passing, Funky DL released a tribute song “Ode to Nujabes”. ^[8] In 2024 he authored a book titled “The Blueprint for Independent Artists: Pursuing a Successful Career In the Music Business”. ^[9]

Discography

Funky DL discography
Albums	36
Instrumental albums	35
EPs	11
Singles	50

Albums

Album also released as instrumental version*

• Classic Was The Day (1997)*
• Heartfelt Integrity (1998)
• One Another (1999)
• When Love Is Breaking Down… (2000)
• Blackcurrent Jazz (2001)*
• The Classic Fantasy (2003)
• The Red Pill And The Blue Pill (2003)
• The Red Pill, The Blue Pill (Volume 2: The Reload) (2004)
• Since 77 (2005)
• Street Love (2005)
• Street Swagger (2006)
• The Latin Love Story (2006)
• Music From Naphta (2007)
• The 4th Quarter (2007)*
• The Jazz That Was Forgotten (2008)
• The Interview (2009)
• A Classic Example Of A… (2010)*
• Blackcurrent Jazz 2 (2011)*
• NANE (2012)*
• The Jazzphonic Groove 1 & 2 (2013)
• Le Emporium De Jazz (2015)*
• The Jazz Lounge (2016)
• Autonomy (The 4th Quarter 2) (2016)*
• Blackcurrent Jazz 3 (2018)*
• Dennison Point (2018)*
• Life After Dennison (2019)*
• DEF (2019)*
• Twenty (2020)*
• Beautiful Soul (2021)*
• The In And Out Of Love Tape (2022)*
• Still Classic (2022)*
• Blendisms (Vol.1) (2023)*
• I Am Reuben (2023)*
• NEON II (2024)*
• The Boom Bap Specialist (2025)*

Instrumental Albums

• Jazzmatic Jazzstrumentals (2001)
• Cool Classic Jazzstrumentals, Vol. 1-4 (2011)
• Nights In Nippon Jazzstrumentals (2012)
• The Lawshank Redemption (2012)
• Too Hard To Beat (2012)
• Straight From The MPC, Vol. 1 (2013)
• From Street To Sweet (2013)
• A Treat To Repeat (2014)
• Another Instrumental Moment (2014)
• February: A Rest In Beats Tribute To The Sounds Of J Dilla & Nujabes (2014)
• Jazzmatic Jazzstrumentals, Vol. 2 (2014)
• Forever Instrumental (2015)
• Blue Silk Instrumentals (2015)
• For The Love Of Jazz And Thursdays (2016)
• Marauding At Midnight: A Tribute To The Sounds Of A Tribe Called Quest (2017)
• Incognito In Soho (2017)
• Half Jazz Half Amazing (2019)
• O Espírito do Brasil (2019)
• Hip-Hop Jazz …With Voices (2020)
• Trapped In Jazz (2021)
• Jazz Dust (2021)
• Lo-Fi Blue Beats (2022)
• Neon: Deluxe (2022)
• Jazzmatic 3 Jazzstrumentals (2022)
• Crate Diggers: Funky DL Legato Lush (2023)
• Get It In: Summer Sunshine (2023)
• A Vintage Soulful Boom Bap Christmas (2023)
• February’s Seba Lounge (2024)
• February’s Dillounge (2024)
• A Vintage Soulful Chilled Out Christmas (2024)
• Magic In The Rain (2024)
• Keys and Company (2025)

EPs

• Classic Moves (1996) (with Guile)
• The Record Shop (1997) (with DJ Stixx)
• The Main Features (1998)
• The Jazzy Ways (2001)
• Cut From The Illest Cloth (2015)
• The Lilac Pack (2024) (with Vsteeze)
• The Honey Pack (2021) (with Vsteeze)
• We Met In Tokyo (2021) (with Substantial)
• Whole Lot (2024) (with Vsteeze)
• The Jade Pack (2024) (with Vsteeze)
• Eharmonia (2025)

Singles

Digital single*

• “Soul Silhouette” / “It’s About Time (And That’s True)” (1996)
• “Circles (Going Round)” (1997)
• “Worldwide”(with Ty) (1997)
• “Billie Holliday” / “100%” (1998)
• “Peoples Don’t Stray”(with Nujabes) (1999)
• “Adidas” / “Thought I Could Trust U” (1999)
• “I’d Like To Know” (1999)
• “Triangular Rotations” / “Is It A Dream?” (1999)
• “Everybody Rock On” / “Green Lights” (1999)
• “Loud Noise Of Silence [Dimensional Ball Remix]”(with Nujabes) (1999)
• “Don’t Even Try It”(with Nujabes) (2000)
• “Unstoppable” / “Peoples Don’t Stray [Remix]”(with Nujabes) (2000)
• “Hit Me” (2000)
• “& Ask For DL” (2001)
• “Day By Day” (2001)
• “The Music” / “About The Things” (2001)
• “Prediction” (2001)
• “Slow Down” / “Not Yet Known”(with Nujabes and Lefty Three) (2002)
• “Because Of You” / “Wonderful” (2002)
• “Action Replay (239)” / “World Applause” (2003)
• “Training Day” (ft. Sadat X) / “Serious” (2003)
• “Yeah” / “Me & My Microphone Pt. 1” (2003)
• “Fantasy” / “Yo (My Rhymes)[Remix]” (2003)
• “Just One Of Those Nights” / “Tangible (Lucy)” (2003)
• “Little Mike” / “Disconnected” (2004)
• “Love Is The Only” / “Glistening” (2005)
• “What A Shame” / “Here To Stay” (2005)
• “Not The 1 4 Me [Shin-Ski Remix]” (2006)
• “Hit Me [Remix]” / “Queen Of Diamonds [Remix]” (2006)
• “Glistening” / “About The Things” [Latin Remixes] (2006)
• “Blending Buttermilk With Sex Appeal” / “Only The Initials CM” (2007)
• “Stoppin & Startin” (2009)
• “Ode To Nujabes” (2011)*
• “Don’t Hold Ya Breath”(with Marcus D) (2012)
• “Blinding Light”(with Marcus D, Substantial and Cise Star) (2012)
• “The Rhapsody” (2016)*
• “Trinity”(with Marcus D, Substantial, Cise Star and Lei Ann) (2018)*
• “We Met In Tokyo” (2021)*
• “Beautiful Is A Heart Full Of Love” (2021)*
• “Return To Sender” (2021)*
• “Shades Of Division” (2021)*
• “Say Less” (2021)*
• “Tropic Exotic” (2022)*
• “Night Lights” (2022)*
• “Ultraviolet Glass” (2023)*
• “Floating Beams” (2023)*
• “Guardian Angel” (2023)*
• “So…” (2023)*
• “Superpowers”(with Stee Moglie) (2023)*
• “Full Court”(with E1EVENSHAY) (2024)*

References

1. "November Twenty-One, Nineteen, Seven, Seven, by Funky DL". Funky DL. Retrieved 2026-01-26.
2. "BBC - Music - Review of Funky DL - The Interview". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2026-01-26.
3. "FUNKY DL". BBE Music - Barely Breaking Even. Retrieved 2026-01-26.
4. ""Not Yet Known" by Funky DL". WEFUNK Radio. Retrieved 2026-01-26.
5. "On The DL - Funky DL". www.britishhiphop.co.uk. 2001-08-29. Retrieved 2026-01-26.
6. "Biography, Funky DL, Information, History, Attributes, Discography". THE WASHINGTON CLASSICS. Retrieved 2026-01-26.
7. "Former Nujabes Collaborators Substantial & Funky DL Drops 'We Met In Tokyo' (mini-doc & EP)". Word Is Bond. 2021-09-03. Retrieved 2026-01-26.
8. Danny (2011-03-25). "Video: Funky DL - Ode To Nujabes". The Find Mag. Retrieved 2026-01-26.
9. "New Book: Funky DL – The Blueprint for Independent Artists - Blackout Hip Hop". 2024-07-27. Retrieved 2026-01-26.

External links

• Discogs
• Bandcamp