Idris Elba is taking a break from acting to concentrate on his music career — he plans to release his debut album later this year.

Idris, who plays Baltimore drug kingpin Stringer Bell on the HBO series The Wire, records under the name Driis and has already released a song, titled The Best I Can.

He describes his musical style as “a hybrid, everything from drum’n'bass to jazz.”

“My personal agenda has always been about musical ambitions,” Idris explained in an interview with NME this month. “Music’s a jealous bitch – I want to take time out (from acting) to finish the album….Actors doing music is a cliche, so my plan is to tour small venues and festivals in Europe next year – along with my band the Trampions – the route musicians go down.”