A rap mixtape Tom Hardy made in 1999 has surfaced on the internet

Before Tom Hardy was Hollywood actor Tom Hardy, warring with Batman and piloting World War Spitfires in blockbusting films, he was an amateur rapper called Tommy No 1.

In 1999 he half-finished a mixtape called 'Falling on Your Arse in 1999' with Eddie Too Tall aka writer and director Edward Tracy, co-creator of the Channel 4 comedy Fonejacker.

Earlier this month Tracy appears to have released the tape to the world via a post on Reddit and upload on Bandcamp, alongside the description: “Made in a bedroom 1999 these mixtapes were never really finished. Lyrics written and performed by Tom Hardy. Music written and produced by Ed Tracy.”

We’ve seen music stars become actors in the past, and the results are often lacking; think Madonna’s struggles in Evita or Pete Doherty bumbling through Confession of a Child of the Century.

Although Hardy never made it in the music biz before getting his acting break, the mixtape is actually pretty good. His famously striking voice can maintain an impressive flow, even with some strays to dodgy cockney accent territory. Perhaps Guy Ritchie heard this before casting him in RocknRolla? Tracy’s beats, meanwhile. are defined by breezy strings, analogue crackling and jazzy percussion.

Listen to it below.

[Via: Noisey]

Patrick Hinton is Mixmag's Digital Staff Writer, follow him on Twitter