THE EARLY YEARS
I fell in love with Hip Hop at an early age after hearing “That’s How I’m Livin'” by Ice-T on a compilation album called “The Best Rap Album In The World…. Ever!”. While the accuracy of that album title was questionable, it kickstarted an obsession that has lasted a lifetime.
I began writing my own lyrics at 13, however the guns, hoes and bling-laden content didn’t really reflect my idyllic Cotswolds surroundings.
It wasn’t until a few years later I discovered rappers this side of the pond and became influenced by artists like Mys-Diggi, YungGun, Jehst and Taskforce. I attended open mics across the country and even made two appearances on BBC 1Xtra.
My two early appearances on BBC 1Xtra
Me and Breadwinners rhyming partner (and lifelong friend) Fenetik
In 2003 I joined forces with schoolfriend and fellow rapper Fenetik and together we formed the duo “The Breadwinners”, releasing our debut (and only) E.P “Born & Bread” in 2003.
I left home in 2005 and moved to Bristol in pursuit of Hip Hop superstardom. However, as is so often the case with a man in his early 20’s, what I instead pursued was booze, drugs and, to a much less successful extent, girls.
Time passed and the longer I left making music, the more intimidating it became. After a couple of years of procrastination and creative drought, I thought my music making days were over.
THE RESURRECTION
It wasn’t until 2014, nearly 10 years later, that a friend invited me to an Electro Swing night. I had no idea what this was and almost didn’t bother going, but am eternally grateful I did as it was a life changing experience. The moment I heard the fun, cartoon-like sound of the music I was instantly inspired. “This would be the perfect music to rap over!” I thought. The friend who invited me put on his own night and, in a moment of alcohol-induced overconfidence, I told him that if he booked me for his night in one month’s time, I would write enough new material to perform a short set.
I woke up the next morning and immediately regretted my decision, however something told me I needed to follow through with it. I found an Electro Swing playlist on YouTube, picked up a pen and the lyrics flowed out of me with ease. I cursed myself for having left it so long, but was very grateful to finally be writing again.
My triumphant return to the stage in 2014
The track that started it all "Just Clicked" on YouTube channel Funky Panda
A month later, I had written more than enough material for my set and performed to a room full of friends I’d met in the intervening years who were equal parts intrigued and bemused. The show went well and from then on I was determined to keep it up.
Shortly after I released my first solo E.P “Peoplewatching” and it got… crickets. However a couple of months later, one of the tracks “Just Clicked” was picked up by YouTube channel Funky Panda, and my following began to grow.
This was followed 6 months later by “Peoplewatching 2” and then by another couple of EP’s entitled King of the Swingers 1 and 2.
The Odd Chap Years
In 2017 I made an offhand comment in a YouTube video that I was open to collaborations and received a reply from a then little-known New Zealand-based producer called Odd Chap.
I checked out his stuff and was amazed by the quality of it. He sent me an instrumental and this became Weekend Living, which to date is still probably my most popular track of all time.
"Weekend Living" - My first track with Odd Chap and still probably my most popular to date
Me and Odd Chap (actually taken a year later in Paris on his return visit)
We created a few more tracks together but had still never met in person. At this stage I was ready to release my first full-length album, so did a Crowdfunding campaign to raise the money to visit Odd Chap in New Zealand and create it together in person.
The campaign was a success and in 2017, I flew to the other side of the world and together Odd Chap and I created the album “I Don’t Normally Like Hip Hop But This Is Alright”.
THE Swinghoppers
In the meantime, I had also started a side project called The Swinghoppers. This was a trio consisting of myself, beatboxer Pye and singer Sharleena Ray (with all tracks again produced by Odd Chap). This was a much more Swing-inspired project than my solo stuff and allowed me to indulge in the 1920s theme, with the whole image revolving around a romanticised mobster aesthetic.
It was also intended to be more live show-friendly than my solo stuff and after releasing our debut E.P “Welcome to the Family” in 2018, this quickly led to an abundance of live performances up and down the country including some major festivals such as Isle of Wight Festival, WOMAD and Boomtown Fair.
The Swinghoppers at Great Estate Festival 2018
The Swinghoppers bringing down the house at another festival
Later that year we collaborated with Steampunk/Chap Hop icon Professor Elemental to release “Tea Total” and this was shortly followed by our second E.P “Speakin’ Easy” in 2019.
Eagerly anticipating the next decade and hopeful of a Swing-era revival with the “new ’20s”, we collaborated with Electro Swing veteran Wolfgang Lohr to create “Party Like 1920”. We released this on New Year’s Eve and it was a runaway success, receiving hundreds of thousands of plays within a few days and currently sitting on over 3m streams on Spotify and YouTube.
The future looked bright for the Swinghoppers but less than a month later, we abruptly parted ways. This was due to each of us having personal and creative commitments we wanted to pursue.
Nevertheless, I was feeling pretty despondent about this and decided to double down on my solo stuff.
I wanted to prove to the Swinghoppers, the world and myself that I could be just as much of a success on my own… little were any of us to know that Covid was lurking around the corner…
Burnout
After the Swinghoppers breaking up, a few questionable solo tracks and a general sense of Covid-induced creative and professional malaise, I decided to take a much-needed break.
I was feeling in a rut and so, after 15 years of living in Bristol, I packed my bags and moved to London. I spent a year meeting new people, discovering new places and trying new things.
One of these things was stand up comedy and this was something I’d often been told my music reminded people of. I thought “Rather than try and include comedy in music, why not do it the other way round?”. I wrote some material and did a couple of sets, but all it did was confirm for me that while I like comedy, I love Hip Hop!
Experimenting with standup comedy, London 2021
WHAT NOW?
After a decent amount of time away from music and having had a bunch of new experiences, I could feel my creative urges coming back. In early 2022 I decided to pick up a pen once again and to my delight the ideas flowed out of me and I was met with a renewed feeling of passion and inspiration!
Since then I have released several tracks, including “I Need Sleep” with Electro Swing stalwarts Balduin.
I also met my partner and have become a fully fledged Digital Nomad, traveling around the world and working remotely. At the time of writing I am currently in Brazil!
Said partner who likes True Crime shows a little too much...
Musically, I have also met and begun working with a new producer and have recently completed my brand new E.P entitled “The FREE.P”, which you can get EXCLUSIVE access to here:
What’s next?
Only time will tell, but I have a bunch of new tracks in the pipeline which I will be releasing throughout 2024 and beyond!