Speech Debelle parts company with record label

25/11/2009

Mercury Prize-winning rapper Speech Debelle has revealed that she is leaving her record label Big Dada.

The London artist said that the company's distribution network let her down in the wake of her Mercury triumph in September, as sales of debut album Speech Therapy have been disappointing.

Speaking to BBC 6 Music, Debelle said: "The Mercury Prize was on Tuesday and on Friday there were no more physical albums in the shops.

"I wasn't on a big label and the machine wasn't there."

Big Dada, which is an imprint of London-based label Ninja Tune and also represents artists such as Roots Manuva and Ty, has declined to comment on Debelle's remarks.

Previous winners of the Mercury Prize, such as Arctic Monkeys, Pulp and Primal Scream, have gone on to reap the benefits of increased album and merchandising sales, including band T-shirts.

Debelle was a surprise choice for this year's award, beating off competition from artists such as La Roux, Friendly Fires and Bat for Lashes.