Working under the name trials, Australian artist Daniel Rankine moved from serving as a producer and being a member of various groups to performing as a solo rapper. His first solo outing arrived in 2020 with the release of his energetic yet depressive emo-rap single "I'm a Fucking Wreck." Trials began working in the Australian rap scene in the late '90s as a member of the three-person crew Funkoars. Doing double duty as producer and emcee, trials (sometimes credited as Mr. Trials) helped shape Funkoars' riled-up golden-era hip-hop tracks. Funkoars stayed active while trials got more deeply involved in producing for other artists, working on tracks for Hilltop Hoods, Briggs, Cross Bred Mongrels, and many others. As the years went on, he branched out into work for film and television, scoring two seasons of the Australian TV drama Cleverman and the 2017 Netflix film Cargo. Trials also comprised half of the hip-hop duo A.B. Original, who cracked the Australian Top Ten with their 2016 debut album, Reclaim Australia. He released his first completely solo single in 2020, the downtrodden and self-depreciating "I'm a Fucking Wreck" featuring Daniyel. ~ Fred Thomas