ghetto postage

so i'm gonna be posting my year in retrospect thingy bit by bit instead of all at once, so keep checking back every couple of days.

THING THAT RULED IN GRIME THIS YEAR #1

SKEPTA


Anyone's whose listened to grime for more than half a minute this year knows that humour is sadly in short supply with MC's. These guys take things pretty seriously. The mentality that drives cats like Stormin' to spend 9 minutes chatting shit about Trim's mum in a vain attempt at slewage is not condusive to making one bust out laughing during a pirate set. Something that the self-proclaimed "African Bastard" made me do consistently throughout the year, livening up previously moribund Roll Deep sets in the process.

Whether casting retributive violence as a game of Mario Kart ("I know guys round my postcode/ that'll pop two pills then go into devilish mode/Shoot you in the face then skid round the corner/Like Yoshi and Toad"), impersonating other MC's (in the process repopularizing Hyper's classic "YEAH, OH MY DIDDY!) or just chatting funny shit on radio (witness for example his "lash city" monologue on Garna's show in the spring.) Skepta was consistently on point, bringing a different vibe to the game.

And to get geeky for a sec Skepta's got this crazy Bakhtinian grotesque thing going on ("I'm a bad boy from Nigeria, not St. Lucia/Joseh Junior Adanooga/Big lips, African hootah") or (I've got rubber lips and a gigantic nose/Dry elbows/ skinny and bony/When I was young girls didn't wanna know me/Now they put 20 pound credit on the phone just to phone me) which I can definitely get down with.

ok what the shit? i've been out of this thing (again) for over a month but i had a good excuse ok? i moved to London, England; for various reasons i suppose. One being to escape the city of my childhood, high school AND college years for a while in pursuit of some broader horizons. A second being to immerse myself in another music scene, particularly this grime/pirate radio/rave thing. Third cause i get wicked deals on flights via my mother's employment at BA. So i figured why not?

Anyway now that i'm here and settled i'm gonna be lacing the internet with reports from the trenches. I've perceived somewhat of a dearth in reporting from the grime scene at the moment, at least from a certain perspective which i crave. Most of the blogs kicking are either self-promotional to the max or steeped in industry insiderism. So i'm gonna give it to you from the punter's perspective as well as offer my own half-baked critical flights of fancy.

Luckily in the short time i've lived here i've managed to fall in with some like-minded cats working in the music video business, so i've already got a Channel U credit under my belt (Look out for the Roadside G's "Get Dat Doe" video on there within a couple weeks.) Channel U for the uninformed is a music video station available on digital satellite in London that focuses on independent UK hip-hop and grime videos with the occasional US clip thrown in for good measure. It's pretty amazing actually. When the constraints of major label access and resources are thrown off of a big video station you get... something which resembles the former in every shape and form except on a shoestring; kind of like this midget MTV where directors slap 2.35:1 widescreen bars on a mini-DV camera and the token hoochies are the cameraman's cousins instead of supermodels. Some of the production value on this shit is hilariously abysmal, but the idea that kids can scrape together a few bucks and get a video on TV is heartening, and frankly the rawness of the whole enterprise reminds me of a certain network before it became an unwatchable corporate turd. If anyone wants to check out a few samples go here for some rips (the files are super-small and crummy which adds to the experience... or something.) Anyway in 2006 I'm gonna be bringing something to the game by lending my recently accredited film education to the up-and-coming HAC productions.

Next post will probably be a grime end-of-year thing. It wasn't pretty this annum, I'll be honest. Way back I wrote about this year being a major label referendum for the scene and I for one am pretty disapointed with the results. But watch that soon.

Check out Logan Sama interviewing Dizzee Rascal on his weekly Kiss show. Dizzee also turned up at the recent Rhythm Division all-dayer with Dirtee Stank signee Klass A, both of which indicate that Raskit is acknowledging the London scene in a way he hasn't been for the past couple of years, which is definitely a good sign. He compared D Double E to Snoop Dogg which is OTM. He also spat a heavy freestyle over Skreamz's dubstep tune of the moment, 'Late Night Request Line'.

MASSVIE PARDIGMATIC LINK-UP # 2

David Banner - "Ain't Got Nothing" (Global Grindin' Remixes)

David Banner's new single comes in this remix 12" edition which features 5 different country-specific remixes. Definitely peep the UK mix, which features Durrty Doogz (I guess he's calling himself 'Goodz' onw) and Rodney P tearing the track to pieces and the Canadian mix with Kardi and Saukrates which also well heavy. Interesting to see artists who are kind of on the margins of the hip-hop world collaborating.

MASSIVE PARADIGMATIC LINK-UP #1

Grit Boys & Dizzee Rascal - Get in My Car

Dizzee Rascal (who linked up with some Houston cats to do a lil' radio show a few months ago courtesy of Matt over at Houston So Real ) makes an appearence on the new Grit Boys mixtape.

VERY BIG! I suspect this is the result of Matt's efforts to get Dizzee in the studio. Large up. Can't wait to hear that Bun B shit, should be live-o. Anyway this is a big tune, they use the "Get in My Car" beat, a personal favourite. The funkiest guitar lick ever, and nice shuffly drumwork. Dizzee's clipped doubletime flow sits nicely next to the Grit Boys' more slurry steez. He busts some new bars in addition to "girls in the north/girls in the south/girls in the east/girls in the west..." WHEEL!

hello, wha' blow? i'm back, it's been a bit of a slow summer in many respects so i was taking a bit of breather..

also the grime scene kind of slowed down this summer (this is the natural cycle, grime is just winter music, straight up...). things look like they're ready to pop off again, with raves and events looking to gain some momentum.

thankfully the southern hip-hop scene is killing it right now, the level of quality on recent mixtapes has been sick. more on individual tracks soon... Swishaouse looks ready to take over the entire game this fall. more on that in a sec.

here's an intervew i did with logan sama, a top grime DJ, for www.riddim.ca

LL: could you outline the history of your DJ'ing career up to this point?

LS: BEGAN BUYING VINYL TO LISTEN TO AT HOME IN 1999. GOT MY FIRST SET OF DECKS SECOND HAND IN 2000. BEGAN DOING A SERIES OF GUESTS ON A LOCAL PIRATE STATION CALLED PLUSH FM IN ESSEX IN 2001. GOT ON RINSE IN 2002 AND STARTED DOING FRIDAY NIGHTS 7-9PM.

how did you gain such a prominent stature so quickly? you've got more
exclusives than just about anybody right now. how did you hook them all up?

I COULDNT TELL YOU WHY. I CAME ONTO RINSE FM ALREADY CUTTING DUBS. I JUST HAVE A GENUINE APPRECIATION OF THE MUSIC AND I THINK PEOPLE CAN SEE THAT AND ARE HAPPY TO GIVE ME THEIR MATERIAL TO PROMOTE FOR THEM. I WAS THE SORT OF DJ BEFORE I GOT ON RINSE WHO WOULD GO TO THE STORE EVERY WEEK AND ASK WHAT THEY HAD NEW IN. AND THEN I WOULD ASK AGAIN JUST IN CASE THERE WERE TEST PRESSES UNDER THE COUNTER. WHILE I WAS AT UNIVERSITY FOR 2 YEARS IN LONDON I
WOULD USUALLY SKIP LECTURES AND HANG OUT IN CITY SOUNDS RECORD STORE SO I GOT FIRST SHOUT ON ANY NEW STUFF THAT CAME IN.

WHEN I STARTED DOING THE RINSE SHOW, I WAS ON BEFORE ROLL DEEP, AND AS I LIVED OUT IN ESSEX I WASNT ABLE TO LISTEN TO ANY OF THE RINSE SETS WITH A CLEAR RECEPTION, SO I'D USUALLY STAY AFTER MY SHOW FINISHED AND CHECK OUT THE SHOWS TO HEAR THE NEW TRACKS AND WATCH WILEY AND DIZZEE ETC IN ACTION. I GOT SPEAKING TO WILEY ON A LEVEL AND BEGAN HELPING HIM OUT ORGANISING SOME OF HIS SHIT BECAUSE HIS CAREER WAS TAKING OFF ON A COMMERCIAL LEVEL AGAIN AT THAT POINT. AND FROM THERE I ENDED UP DEALING WITH MOST OF THE PEOPLE ON
RINSE AND MY LIST OF CONTACTS GREW AND GREW. I ALWAYS RETAIN THAT
APPRECIATION OF THE MUSIC, SO EVERY NEW PERSON I MEET USUALLY FEELS COMFORTABLE GIVING ME NEW MATERIAL OR SPECIALS BECAUSE I DO GENUINELY WANT THE MUSIC TO DO WELL, RATHER THAN JUST HOLD DOWN THE NUMBER ONE SPOT AT THE EXPENSE OF EVERYONE ELSE.

do you like DJ'ing at KISS better than rinse? why did you move?

ITS DIFFERENT TO RINSE. KISS FM IS ALWAYS ON EVERY WEEK FOR A START! THERE IS A WHOLE HEAP OF TECHNOLOGY AT KISS THAT IM STILL COMING TO TERMS WITH SO GIVE ME A WHILE TO ADJUST AND I WILL GET USED TO IT. I LOVED THE FAMILY ATMOSPHERE ON RINSE THOUGH. I STILL PASS THROUGH THE STUDIO NOW AND THEN TO DROP IN ON SHOWS.

what's it like being a white boy in the grime scene? is race even an issue?

LONDON ISN'T A CULTURALLY DIVIDED CITY. ASIANS LIVE NEXT DOOR TO BLACKS WHO LIVE NEXT DOOR TO WHITE PEOPLE. IT ISNT LIKE NEW YORK WHERE ITS SUCH A HUGE PLACE THERE IS ROOM TO HAVE EVERYONE SEGREGATED. THATS WHY THIS GRIME MUSIC IS NOTHING TO DO WITH RACE. YES, IT IS PREDOMINANTLY BLACK PEOPLE, BUT YOU
CANNOT SAY IT IS BLACK MUSIC. THIS CITY IS NOT SEGREGATED IN SUCH A WAY THAT DIFFERENT RACES LISTEN TO DIFFERENT MUSIC.

why did you decide to focus on vocals as opposed to working with MC's?

I WORK WITH MCS. BUT I UNDERSTOOD AFTER GETTING ON RINSE THAT FOR THE SCENE TO GROW IT COULDN'T RELY ON THE MCS PERFORMING LIVE. PEOPLE HAD TO BE ABLE TO LISTEN TO THE ARTISTS ON TRACKS. AFTER I GOT THE DEMO VERSION OF DIZZEE'S ALBUM ON CD AND MOST OF IT WAS ALL OVER THE BPM SCALE (GARAGE WAS ALWAYS TRADTIONALLY BETWEEN 130 AND 140BPM) I DECIDED TO FOCUS ON PUSHING ARTISTS AND VOCALS AND MOVE AWAY FROM "GARAGE" TO ALLOW ME TO PLAY SOME OF THIS MORE
EXPERIMENTAL STUFF AT VARIOUS DIFFERENT BPMS AND USING DIFFERENT SOUNDS THAT MIGHT NOT NECESSARILY WORK IN A GARAGE SET. I STILL MIX IT UP WHEN I HAVE THE MCS LIVE ON MY SETS. I THINK THAT IS AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE SCENE AND SOMETHING WHICH SETS THIS MUSIC APART FROM BEING JUST "UK HIP HOP" THAT LIVE ELEMENT IS SOMETHING UNIQUE TO THE MUSIC AND IS SOMETHING YOU REALLY NEED TO EXPERIENCE TO UNDERSTAND WHAT WE DO.

raves: has the vibe changed over the past several years? how so? it seems
as if a lot of the parties are getting locked off due to violence. just how
much of an impact does this have on everyone getting paid?

GETTING PAID IS WHAT COMES TOP OF THE AGENDA. YOU HAVE TO LOOK AFTER YOUR PEOPLE AND FAMILY AND "ARTISTIC INTEGRITY" DOESN'T PAY THE BILLS. THE VIOLENCE IS SOMETHING THAT IS PART OF ALL SO CALLED URBAN MUSIC THESE DAYS. YOU GET PEOPLE BEING INVOLVED IN SHIT AT POSH WEST END CLUBS LISTENING TO COMMERCIAL R'N'B AND HIP HOP JUST AS YOU DO IN GARAGE OR GRIME RAVES. IT'S JUST HOW SOCIETY HAS CHANGED. BUT YEH, THE FACT THAT THERE'S PRACTICALLY NO
RAVES MAKES IT HARD. I EARN ABSOLUTELY FUCK ALL RIGHT NOW. I GET PAID A NOMINAL AMOUNT FOR MY SHOW ON KISS BECAUSE ITS A COMMERCIAL STATION AND THEY WORK UNDER THE PRETENSE THAT THE SPECIALIST DJS ARE ABLE TO UP THEIR BOOKING FEES BASED ON THEIR LINKS WITH KISS FM. WELL THATS COOL IF YOU PLAY HOUSE OR HIP HOP AND THERE ARE BOOKINGS, BUT I PLAY GRIME AND THERE'S NO RAVES. I HAVE TO SCRAPE AND SAVE. IT WILL SOUND CHEESY AS HELL BUT I DO THIS EVERY DAY FOR THE LOVE OF THE SCENE AND THE BELIEF THAT ONE DAY WE WILL ALL BE
MAKING ENOUGH MONEY TO LOOK BACK ON THESE TIMES AND LAUGH. I BELIEVE THIS MUSIC WILL BE BIG AND THE MORE I HELP PUSH IT ON RADIO AND WHEREVER ELSE I CAN, THE FASTER IT WILL GET COMMERCIALLY SUCCESSFUL... AND THEN I CAN MAKE MY MONEY. I AM A DJ BECAUSE WHAT I WANTED TO HEAR ON THE RADIO OR ON MIX TAPES WASNT BEING DONE, SO I DECIDED TO GO OUT AND DO IT FOR MYSELF. THAT'S WHY I AM THE BEST THERE IS AT WHAT I DO, BECAUSE NO-ONE ELSE WAS DOING IT
UNTIL I STARTED.

you've been pushing a fair bit of so-called "r n' g". these kind of tunes
seem to get a fair bit of flack from hardcore heads. are r n' b elements
really needed to get more girls involved?

FIRST OFF I DON'T PLAY R & G. THAT'S SNOOP DOGG'S ALBUM. THIS MUSIC DOESN'T NEED GIMMICKS LIKE R & G TO GET THROUGH. I PLAY VOCALS. I PLAY MC TRACKS. I DONT PLAY R & G. THAT MUSIC DOESNT EXIST. I COULD NEVER GO TO AN AMERICAN WITH A STRAIGHT FACE AND SAY "LISTEN TO THIS MUSIC. IT IS CALLED R & G. THAT IS JUST SAYING WE ARE COPYING AMERICAN MUSIC. WE ARENT. DANCEHALL AND REGGAE IS SUPERFICIALLY SIMILAR TO HIP HOP, BUT DIFFERENT ENOUGH TO STAND ON ITS OWN AS A LEGITIMATE FORM OF MUSIC, AND I THINK OUR MUSIC WILL DO TOO OVER TIME. BUT IN TERMS OF VOCALS, YEH I THINK THEY HELP. A LOT OF PEOPLE FIND A BUNCH OF BLACK KIDS IN HOODIES SHOUTING ANGRY LYRICS OVER SOME MINIMAL BEATS TO BE INTIMIDATING... IF THEY CAN RELATE TO SOME GOOD LOOKING GIRLS SINGING ABOUT LOVE AND WHATEVER ELSE OVER BEATS MADE BY THE SAME PRODUCERS THEN COOL. THAT'S THE BEAUTY OF THIS MUSIC, IT IS SO WIDE THAT YOU CAN GO IN ANY DIRECTION WITH IT. GIRLS LIKE SONGS. AND GUYS LIKE MUSIC WHERE THE GIRLS ARE AT SO IT ALL HELPS. BUT THAT DOESNT MEAN THAT YOU HAVE TO MAKE SAPPY LOVE SONGS TO GET RECOGNITION. 50 CENT MAKES "SONGS" AND GIRLS LOVE THAT SHIT SO ITS JUST A MATTER OF BEING ABLE TO WRITE HOOKS AND KEEPING THE LEVELS OF PRODUCTION UP.

on the same note, the roll deep album is dividing fans on account of its
poppier qualities. what do you make of the album?

I SAW THE ROLL DEEP ALBUM BEING MADE FROM THE VERY START TO THE VERY END. IT WAS DONE FROM LAST SUMMER TO THE START OF THE WINTER. DANNY AND WILEY WERE BANGING A LOT OF DIPSET STUFF AND KANYE WEST'S ALBUM HAD DROPPED. WILEY BOUGHT HIMSELF AN MPC AND WAS CHOPPING UP A LOT OF OLD STUFF FROM THE 70S AND 80S. UK MUSIC AND OTHER STUFF AS WELL. THEY WERE JUST EXPERIMENTING. AT
THE TIME TARGET WAS MAKING A LOT OF BEATS THAT WERE GOING STRAIGHT OVER THE GRIME SCENE'S HEAD. MUSICAL SHIT THAT A LOT OF THE KIDS COULDN'T UNDERSTAND. THERE WERE A LOT OF SHIT BOOTLEGS BEING MADE JUST CUTTING UP BIG TRACKS AND STICKING THEM BACK TOGETHER AGAIN. THERE WAS NO MUSICAL EXPERIMENTATION. I THINK THAT WILEY, DANNY AND TARGET WERE GETTING A BIT SICK OF IT ALL AND TRIED SOMETHING DIFFERENT. THE ALBUM WAS VOCALLED IN THIS BIG STUDIO AND THE VIBE WAS REALLY LAID BACK. PEOPLE WOULD JUST COME DOWN AND CHILL AND WRITE TO BEATS AND THERE WERE ABOUT 60 TRACKS MADE OVER 3 MONTHS. THE ROLL DEEP ALBUM WAS GOING TO BE 2 DISCS AND IT HAD A LOT OF GRIMEY STUFF ON IT AS WELL AS THE SAMPLED TRACKS. THEN IT GOT SIGNED TO RELENTLESS AND IT ENDED UP BEING CUT DOWN TO ABOUT 13 TRACKS AND MOST OF THE GRIMEY STUFF DIDNT MAKE THE ALBUM. I THINK THATS A SHAME, BUT IF IT GIVES PEOPLE THE OPPORTUNITY TO PERFORM IN THE MAINSTREAM AND GIVES OTHER ARTISTS FROM OUR SCENE THE CHANCE
TO COME THROUGH THE IT'S A POSITIVE THING. AS LONG AS WE DON'T FORGET WHAT MAKES OUR MUSIC UNIQUE N THE FIRST PLACE I THINK IT'S OK. TRACKS LIKE SHAKE A LEG ARE A LAUGH. IT'S JUST A BIT OF FUN. I WOULDNT WANT TO HEAR A WHOLE SLEW OF ALBUMS COMING OUT ALL LIKE THAT THOUGH. AS LONG AS PEOPLE REMEMBER WHAT THE HEART OF THEIR MUSIC IS THEN DOING SOME MORE COMMERCIALLY ACCESSIBLE TRACKS IN ORDER TO GET THEIR GRITTIER STUFF OUT THERE IS ALL GOOD. I KNOW WILEY HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE ALBUM NOT BEING "TRUE" TO OUR SOUND, IT REALLY BOTHERED HIM FOR A WHILE. BUT AS LONG AS YOU ARE EXPOSING
PEOPLE TO TRACKS LIKE WHEN IM ERE, HEAT UP, POLTERGEIST AND PEOPLE DONT KNOW THEN IT LEAVES THE DOOR OPEN. THIS ALBUM IS GETTING PLAYED ON KISS FM AND RADIO 1 AND WITHOUT THOSE "POPPY" TRACKS IT WOULDNT HAVE BEEN. PEOPLE SAY THAT THE ROLL DEEP ALBUM SOUNDS CHEESY BUT I THINK IF YOU LISTEN TO THE LYRICS, THERE IS NOTHING CHEESY ABOUT THEM. IT'S REAL. PEOPLE ARE HAVING A GOOD TIME IN LONDON RIGHT NOW, JUST AS MUCH AS THEY ARE HAVING A HARD TIME.
I EQUATE THIS ALBUM TO STUFF LIKE GRAND MASTER FLASH AND THE FURIOUS 5; IT'S A SOUND THAT THE AVERAGE LISTENER CAN UNDERSTAND, BUT IT HAS A REAL MESSAGE BEHIND IT IF YOU PAY ATTENTION TO THE LYRICS.

technically speaking how do you find mixing grime? i understand your
background is in 2-step. what are the differences? some people bemoan
the decreased role of the DJ in grime (MC's wheeling up tunes, refusing to
MC on tunes they don't like etc.) is it possible that the balance of power
has shifted too far towards the MC's?

MY BACKGROUND IS JUST MUSIC. I'VE ALWAYS LISTENED TO MUSIC. I USED TO LISTEN TO NIRVANA AND STONE TEMPLE PILOTS, THE PIXIES. I USED TO LISTEN TO DIRE STRAITS AND THE POLICE WHEN I WAS LIKE 8 COS MY DAD HAD BOUGHT THEIR ALBUMS. I LOVE THE RAT PACK AND THAT WHOLE ERA. I LOVE 80S POP. CLASSICAL MUSIC. I LISTEN TO ALL KINDS OF SHIT. I DISCOVERED UK GARAGE IN 1997. IT WAS MAINLY 4/4 DUBBY STUFF WITH A FEW 2 STEP CUTS FROM DEM 2 AND SOME OTHER PRODUCERS.
THE MUSIC WAS ALWAYS BIG BECAUSE OF BASS THOUGH. THAT'S WHAT DREW THE PEOPLE IN. THAT'S WHAT GOT THE PEOPLE IN FROM JUNGLE WHEN IT WENT ALL TECHY. MCS STARTED TO GET INTO THE MUSIC AND WHEN YOU ARE ON A MICROPHONE WITH THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE LISTENING TO YOU, THAT'S A POSITION OF POWER. PEOPLE SAY THE DJ HAS NO POWERIN A RAVE OR THE SCENE ANYMORE. BUT WHAT IS AN MC WITHOUT
A DJ PLAYING TRACKS? I GUARANTEE YOU I COULD GET A BIGGER REACTION FOR DROPPING THE RIGHT TUNE THAN 95% OF MCS COULD GET FOR SPITTING A LYRIC. THERE IS A GAME CALLED "DJING" AND BETWEEN 1999 AND 2001 THE RULES CHANGED. A LOT OF PEOPLE DECIDED THEY DIDN'T LIKE THE GAME ANYMORE AND WANTED TO GO SOMEWHERE ELSE. I JUST WATCHED WHAT WAS HAPPENING AND EVOLVED. MC'S ARE NOW ARTISTS. THEY CAN MAKE SONGS. THEY ARE MEANT TO HAVE MORE POWER THAN THE DJ.
BUT AS A DJ MY CAREER IS MEANT TO LAST LONGER THAN ANY MC. THERE WILL ALWAYS BE ANOTHER MC COMING ALONG FOR ME TO PLAY THEIR MUSIC.

would you say the garage scene has gotten smaller or bigger since, say,
PAUG's height? obviously there's been a ton of press from the mainstream
media. does this accurately reflect the popularity of the sound in london
itself?

THIS MUSIC DOESN'T EVEN RUN LONDON YET. THERE ARE HARDLY ANY RAVES GOING ON. IT RUNS THE UNDERGROUND WITHOUT A DOUBT, BUT IT DOESN'T RUN THE TOWN YET. RNB AND HIP HOP ARE ACCEPTABLE BECAUSE THEY HAVE THE MONEY TO BUY INTO THE SORT OF PLACES THAT MAKE THEM ACCEPTABLE. GIVEN TIME THIS MUSIC WILL BE THE SOUND THAT IS RUNNING LONDON AND THEN WE CAN MOVE OUTWARDS TO THE REST OF
THE UK. THERE ARE KIDS DOING THEIR THING IN NOTTINGHAM, MANCHESTER,
BIRMINGHAM, SHEFFIELD AND BRISTOL. ALL OVER THE COUNTRY. IT JUST ISN'T MASSIVE THERE YET. IT'S LIKE AN UNDERGROUND MOVEMENT THAT KIDS ARE A PART OF. WHEN THESE KIDS GROW UP AND GET THEIR MONEY UP THEN WE CAN ALL START TAKING OVER.

where do you see the scene moving over the next couple of years?

NO ONE CAN PREDICT WHERE THIS MUSIC IS GOING. IT CHANGES EVERY DAY. I WAKE UP AND SOMEONE SOMEWHERE HAS MADE A NEW TUNE, AND THAT COULD BE WHAT'S BIG ALL OF A SUDDEN. BUT I HOPE IT MOVES INTO THE MIANSTREAM ON ITS OWN TERMS. I HOPE WE GET ENOUGH PROFESSIONAL SENSIBLE PEOPLE COMING THROUGH THE SCENE WHO WANT TO MAKE THEIR OWN MONEY AND SET UP THINGS PROPERLY. RIGHT NOW THERE IS
TOO MANY KIDS ON A HYPE WITHOUT EVEN LOOKING AFTER THEMSELVES AND GETTING PAID. THATS WHY ITS SO EASY FOR THE MAJORS TO COME IN RIGHT NOW AND PLUCK ALL THE TALENT. I WANT TO SEE US RUN IT OURSELVES. I RESPECT PEOPLE LIKE RUSSEL SYMMONS AND DAMON DASH WHO HAVE SHOWN THIS COUNTRY'S YOUTHS THAT WE CAN ESTABLISH OUR OWN BUSINESSES AND LABELS. I JUST WANT PEOPLE TO APPRECIATE. IT TAKES TIME AND PATIENCE.

why do you dispense your mix CD's for free as oppose to sell them?

LIKE I SAID ABOVE, IM DOING THIS BECAUSE I LOVE LISTENING TO THE MUSIC. I
MADE MY FIRST CD BECAUSE IT IS WHAT I WANTED TO HEAR, AND NO ONE HAD DONE IT YET. I GAVE IT TO SIDEWINDER TO RELEASE ON A TAPE PACK, BUT IT DIDNT MAKE THE PACK BECAUSE OF LOGISTICS AND TIME CONSTRAINTS. I ENDED UP PAYING OUT OF MY OWN POCKET TO GET IT OUT THERE BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT NEEDED TO BE HEARD. AND IT WORKED FOR ME. I GOT A LOT OF HYPE ON MY NAME AFTER THAT CD. I JUST
WANT TO BE KNOWN AS A DJ WHO PLAYS GOOD MUSIC, THAT'S A GOOD ENOUGH REP FOR ME. I DON'T MAKE ARTISTS, THEY MAKE THEMSELVES. I JUST GIVE THEM THE PLATFORM TO SHOW OFF THEIR OWN TALENTS. I'M GOING TO START SELLING CDS. I HAVE BILLS TO PAY! JUST NEED THE RIGHT BACKING TO GET IT ALL SET UP.

is the market for vinyl shrinking or growing?

THE MARKET FOR VINYL WAS SCREWED FOR ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF. TOO MANY SHIT BOOTLEGS, PEOPLE WEREN'T PLAYING NEW MUSIC. IT WENT FROM WILEY AND MUSICAL MOB SELLING 10,000 UNITS OF ESKIMO AND PULSE X, TO PEOPLE STRUGGLING TO SELL 500 UNITS OF NEW TUNES BECAUSE THERE WERE 5 DIFFERENT BOOTLEG MIXES OF HOE AND OI! OUT IN THE STORES THAT THE KIDS WANTED. I THINK THAT IS THE FAULT OF THE DJS. THEY WERE PLAYING SHIT MUSIC WITH NO QUALITY BEHIND IT AND NOT EDUCATING THE LISTENERS. NOWADAYS ALL THE PEOPLE I DEAL WITH ARE ALL PUSHING
GOOD NEW SHIT AND IT'S NOW SELLING HEALTHILY.

what are the implications of filesharing for the scene?

WELL WHEN YOU HAVE A SCENE LIKE HIP HOP, WHERE EMINEM AND 50 CENT'S ALBUMS ALBUMS LEAK ON THE NET AND THEN GO ON TO SELL A MILLION UNITS, I DOUBT THEY LOSE MUCH SLEEP ABOUT IT. WHEN YOU HAVE A SCENE WHEN THERE ARE ABOUT 5 ACTS SIGNED TO A DEAL AND THEIR MUSIC IS GETTING LEAKED AND SHARED IT FUCKS THINGS UP. THATS WHY I GIVE OUT MY MIXTAPES FREE. THE MUSIC ON THERE IS A PREVIEW, YOU DONT GET THE FULL TRACKS, IT IS ALL TAGGED UP. IT IS JUST ENOUGH OF A GLIMPSE TO GENERATE MORE INTEREST. I KNOW A LOT OF SETS ARE RECORDED OFF RINSE AND 1XTRA AND SENT AROUND TO PEOPLE. I THINK THATS
FUCKING GREAT. BUT WHEN IT IS FULL TRACKS SHARED THATS STEALING TO ME. AND WE ARENT EARNING ENOUGH MONEY TO LET IT SLIDE. IT REALLY HURTS AN ARTIST. STUDIO TIME COSTS MONEY, AND WHEN YOUR FANS ARENT PAYING FOR YOUR SHIT IT MAKES IT HARD TO CARRY ON MAKING MUSIC. I LIKE FILE SHARING WHEN IT IS PRODUCTIVE, BUT WHEN IT'S JUST STRAIGHT UP BOOTLEGGING... IM NOT FEELING THAT. THAT'S WHEN PEOPLE GET VISITS TO THEIR HOUSES.

what do you make of the emerging DVD game?

THIS GRIME SCENE MAKES ME LAUGH BECAUSE WHEN SOMEONE COMES WITH A NEW IDEA, EVERYONE ELSE RUSHES TO FOLLOW THEM. LORD OF THE DECKS DID THE FIRST PROPER DVD, BUT WE GOT THE IDEA FROM SMACK DVDS STRAIGHT UP. WHEN YOU CAN GET A 1000 DVDS FOR £1000 AND SELL THEM FOR £8 EACH... THAT'S SOME NICE MONEY! SO OBVIOUSLY EVERYONE IS GOING TO GET ON THE DVD TRAIL. BUT THERE'S A SATURATION OF SHIT DVDS NOW. AND I THINK WE HAVE TO BE CAREFUL THAT WE DON'T GET INTO A SITUATION WHERE EVERYONE IS TRYING TO OUT DO EVERYONE ELSE FOR
THE AMOUNT OF HYPE ON THEIR DVD. I SEE PEOPLE ON DVD'S CALLING OUT NAMES AND BEEFING AND EVEN COMING TO BLOWS. I DON'T WANT TO END UP IN A FUCKED UP SCENE LIKR HIP HOP IN THE LATE 80'S AND EARLY 90'S WHERE THE MOST VIOLENT CONTROVERSIAL SHIT IS WHAT SELLS. BUT YEH DVDS ARE GOOD, THEY LET THE ARTISTS SHOW OFF THEIR PERSONALITY AND LETS THE FANS SEE THEIR FAVOURITE MCS. IT IS SOMETHING THAT RADIO CANNOT DO FOR YOU.