From Mount Druitt, Western Sydney, OneFour is one of Australia's most recognisable musicians.
Love them or hate them, OneFour pioneered Australia’s music scene whilst simultaneously reviving the adlay scene.
THE GROUP.
Initially consisting of five members:
- J Emz (Jerome Misa),
- YP (Pio Misa),
- Spenny (Spencer Magalogo),
- Lekks (Salec Su’a) and
- Celly (Dahcell Ramos)
However, in 2024, YP left the group after being released from prison to focus on religion and has since become a priest. He credits his time in prison as a wake-up call. The remaining members continued the OneFour music group.
Their sound blended UK drill influences with distinctive Australian elements, such as language and fashion stemming from eshay/adlay culture. Their lyrics documented their life in Mount Druitt, with their early music videos being primarily filmed around the exact location of their experiences.
HOW IT ALL STARTED.
J Emz states in an interview with Wonderland:
“… we loved rap so would end up freestyling at drink-ups. Eventually we started to take music a bit more seriously, getting into the studio and recoding songs. Then we started uploading them to YouTube and the rest is history.”
Having discovered UK Drill during their teenage adolescence, Celly states in an interview with Wonderland:
“… Harelm Sparters, Loski, 67. We loved it straight away. We felt like it spoke to us and what our lives were like at the time. It was real and authentic in a way that other types of rap music were not.”
The collective began making music together in 2014, releasing their debut single, "Ready For War" in 2017. The group's breakthrough came in 2019 when “The Message” began trending on Twitter, particularly with music enthusiasts in the UK, followed by "In The Beginning" entering the Top 40 of Australia's ARIA Charts.
MUSICAL SUCCESS.
OneFour's rise was rapid. Early songs gained traction immediately from their local community after being uploaded to YouTube. Eventually, their music attracted the attention of international audiences, including UK rappers they had admired.
In November 2020, their debut album, "Against All Odds", peaked at number seven on the ARIA Charts with significant mainstream appeal.
In June 2025, OneFour released their second album, "Look At Me Now," which featured collaborations with prominent UK artists. The album showcased the group's evolution beyond strictly drill music, incorporating various rap sub-genres and singing.
RIVALRIES.
OneFour's story is intertwined with Sydney's g*ng landscape. It has been reported by the NSW Police that the group's name is derived from the Mount Druitt street g*ng, NF14 (OneFour). The group's management has stated that their name comes from the year they started making music - 2014.
The group has been associated with ongoing conflicts between Western Sydney and Inner West Sydney gangs, with their rival g*ng being 21 District, a coalition of members from Sydney’s suburbs where postcodes begin with ‘21’.
The rivalry extended beyond words. In July 2018, an incident occurred at the Carousel Inn, Rooty Hill, which led to criminal charges involving what was described in court as an altercation between members, with reports of up to 20 men involved in the carpark confrontation.
Police have alleged multiple skirmishes between groups and social media was used by both sides to post videos and messages targeting each other. The conflict has been characterised as part of a broader "postcode wars" in Western Sydney, where drill music has been described by some as fuelling rivalries through songs that include threats and taunts.
THE POPO.
The group's rise coincided with serious legal troubles. In December 2019, three members, YP, Lekks and Celly were jailed over charges including reckless grievous bodily harm following the violent incident at the Carousel Inn in July 2018.
Celly received the longest sentence. He was initially sentenced to a maximum of 10 years’ imprisonment with a non-parole period of 6 years, for charges that included assault occasioning actual bodily harm in company and wounding with intent to cause grievous bodily harm. He was incarcerated during the group's commercial breakthrough in 2019 and 2020. Celly appealed his sentence, and in 2022, two of his sentences were quashed by the courts. He was ultimately released in June 2023 after serving approximately five years.
Lekks was sentenced to 4 years in prison and was later deported from Australia in January 2023. YP was sentenced to 4 years in prison with a 2 year non-parole period.
The timing of these incarcerations was significant as OneFour was achieving mainstream recognition and chart success. Key members were unable to participate fully in the group's activities or perform at major events. The group noted in interviews that one of the major challenges in creating their 2025 album was members going in and out of jail. Despite Lekks' deportation to New Zealand, the group continued to collaborate with him.
TOURING.
In 2019, OneFour faced unprecedented police intervention in their touring activities. After being booked as support for UK rapper, Dave's Australian tour, venues in Sydney and Melbourne cancelled their performances following communication from police about potential risks.
Subsequently, the group's own national tour was cancelled after venues in Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney and Perth declined to host them, reportedly due to police concerns. NSW Police also served exclusion orders to two group members, preventing them from attending the ARIA Music Awards and their local shopping centre, Mount Druitt Westfield.
The group and their management have stated that no violence has occurred at their shows. Police, however, have pointed to the group's associations and past incidents as justification for monitoring. The group has been monitored by Strikeforce Raptor, an NSW Police unit typically focused on organised crime and outlaw motorcycle gangs.
In recent years, the situation has evolved. The group has managed to perform at major Sydney events, including festivals and a stadium show supporting The Kid Laroi in Western Sydney, despite police opposition. They have also completed headline shows in major Australian cities outside Sydney. However, police presence remains a factor, with the group reporting that officers frequently attend their photo shoots and video shoots, searching everyone present.
This situation sparked debate in Australia about freedom of artistic expression, the appropriate role of police in events, racial profiling and whether drill music itself should be subject to different standards than other genres that reference illegal activity.
DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES.
Supporters of OneFour argue that the police response represents overreach and censorship, particularly targeting young artists from disadvantaged and multicultural backgrounds. They point out that other genres reference illegal activity without facing similar restrictions, and that the group's music reflects their lived experiences rather than promoting violence.
Critics and police maintain that the concerns are based on public safety considerations, pointing to the members' criminal convictions and alleged gang associations. They argue that the monitoring is justified based on received intelligence about potential violence at events.
Some observers note the complexity of the situation: the group members have been convicted of violent offenses, but they were also achieving success through legal means while facing restrictions that may be unprecedented for Australian musicians.
Despite their legal troubles and the image controversies surrounding them, OneFour has maintained a connection to their home community. The group has organised giveaway events in Mount Druitt, where they distributed shoes and other goods to fans and community members.
CULTURAL IMPACT.
OneFour has undeniably influenced Australian hip-hop. They established drill as a genre in Australia and opened doors for other artists from Western Sydney. Their story became the subject of a Netflix documentary, bringing their experiences to an international audience.
The group demonstrated that artists from Mount Druitt and similar areas could achieve commercial success. They also became a focal point for broader conversations about class, policing practices, and representation in Australian media and music.
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