In a parallel universe, Niomi McLean-Daley is in a bar at the University of Sussex thinking about the social anthropology essay she should be writing.

Back in our own reality, 21-year-old Niomi from north London, aka Ms Dynamite, is coming to Brighton not to learn but to pack out the Concorde 2 and give a masterclass in how to turn underground credibility into critical and commercial success.

After coming to prominence with the single Booo!, Ms Dynamite's profile steadily rose with the singles It Take More and Dyna-Mi-Tee.

But it was her Mercury Music Prize-winning debut album, A Little Deeper, which nudged her effortlessly into the mainstream.

An easy criticism is that Ms Dynamite, whose father lives in Crawley, is offering garage music-lite for coffee table CD buyers.

That argument ignores how refreshing it is to hear an obviously intelligent voice rising above the increasingly crass chart crossover garage acts like Romeo from So Solid Crew and Big Brovas.

The Music of Black Origin (Mobo) award judges also didn't seem to agree - she won three Mobos last month.

Songs based on her personal struggle of trying to get her education while coping with the responsibilities of looking after her siblings when her mother fell ill (Little Brother) sit side by side with attacks on the money-obsessed scene has found herself in (It Takes More).

On the latter, she sings "Who gives a damn about the ice on your hand? And if it's not too complex, tell me how many Africans died for the buggettes on your Rolex?"

Not for Ms Dynamite the flashy display of wealth so often seen in the music industry. She also opens her album with a tirade against drug use.

Although quoted as saying she thinks it's more important to educate than entertain, on record at least, Ms Dynamite does both equally well.

How well this translates into live performance remains to be seen as the Brighton gig is her first ever headline show after having previously supported Eminem on his London dates.

New single Put Him Out, which urges giving a useless boyfriend his marching orders, will soon no doubt give Ms Dynamite her biggest hit so far, rounding off a year in which she has had proved to be an explosive presence on the UK music scene.

Whatever comes next for Niomi, it's got to beat writing essays. Tickets have sold out.

Preview by Peter Simmons, features@theargus.co.uk