Having already been giving an insight of what goes down when SplurgeBoys are drunk, I caught up with them last week to find out more about the musical and life journey behind the brothers during their sober moments.....
Showing posts with label Articles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Articles. Show all posts
Thursday, 9 June 2011
Splurgeboys Interview
Having already been giving an insight of what goes down when SplurgeBoys are drunk, I caught up with them last week to find out more about the musical and life journey behind the brothers during their sober moments.....
Thursday, 21 April 2011
MTV Wrap question..... Is Funky Dead?
Earlier on in the week the editor of MTV Wrap Up asked me whether I thought the sub-genre was dead..... Initially I thought "Oh not this question again....." but then when I thought about it, I was quite chuffed being asked to release my thoughts into a commentary piece.... Is my opinion really that valuable? I personally didn't think it was......
Anyway...... This is was the response -----> Is UK Funky Dead?
Sunday, 20 February 2011
A Day In The Life of A.L.
They say Sunday is the day of rest, but after a long night in the studio putting pen to paper and laying down some vocals on a track, the day that A.L. has ahead of her has gone from long to strenuous. This young lady however is more than excited about the activities ahead. Running on nothing more than adrenalin and enthusiasm, this budding artist is showing her passion with actions instead of words.
Setting out shortly after 1pm, A.L. is already running late…. Expected to be at a rehearsal in Central London for 1.30pm to go through a forthcoming performance with a live band, A.L. arrives shortly before 2pm with a voice that barely reaches the required decibels to carry speech. Keeping to the stereotypical artist image, A.L. presents to the musicians a backing track with the most complicated jazz sequence they’ve ever come across. Whilst they get to grips with the chords, A.L. takes advantage of the situation by warming up her vocal chords with a couple cups of peppermint tea, The band have figured out the sequence but A.L. notices a major flaw straight away…. It’s in the wrong key!
The band humbly admits to changing it slightly to make it easier to play and go back to perfecting the sequence with accuracy, complimenting A.L. on her ability to hear the change straight away. The song is rehearsed with a further 2 songs for the band to learn and rehearse. Then they all discuss the sequence and delivery of the performance. By the time all 3 songs have been recorded for the band’s further rehearsals, the clock is ticking towards 3.30pm and A.L. is due to be a guest for a radio broadcast starting at 4pm in Stratford, East London.
Arriving just in time, A.L. enters the Break London radio studios with another cup of tea and a breakfast of Walker’s Sensations. Amazingly the lack of sleep and poor diet is still having no effect; A.L. is still firing in all cylinders while she discusses her career as an artist and the music scene......
“I started singing when I was 5 and started writing when I was older, since then I’ve just continued as a singer/songwriter. Producer wise I’ve worked with Rowntree, Lewi White, Swindle, Footsteps, Funkystepz, Hardhouse Banton, Jammer…. That’s just a handful, there’s too many! But because I first became on a Funky track, people don’t realise that I’ve worked in other genres. I’m currently working with Merlin, Flava D and on the Funky front I’m still working with Footsteps and I’ve got some upcoming stuff with Mystery, but I’ve got a whole load of other stuff going on……”
“With music it’s 80% who you know and 20% talent. It’s the hard truth. You have to get out and you have to network and the more connects that you get, the more say easier to get out there. So even if you’re an artist that make the best tracks and writes the best lyrics, it doesn’t mean that everybody is gonna know who you are and that may be due to the fact that you’ve not got a lot of contacts and connects.”
“It’s harder for a female singer to get out there as there are so many. You need to be doing something totally different or you need to be getting to more people to get noticed more than the others. In a way it’s harder but there are more girls getting through now and I just think if everybody keeps pushing, we will get recognised even more.”
“You can look forward to more videos from me, more solo stuff will be emerging. You’ve seen the collaborations I’ve done on the mix. I’m still going to be doing collaborations but going forward there will be more A.L. orientated stuff. I’m gonna be doing another mixtape this year also which will be more my stuff. So just look out for that.”
“With music it’s 80% who you know and 20% talent. It’s the hard truth. You have to get out and you have to network and the more connects that you get, the more say easier to get out there. So even if you’re an artist that make the best tracks and writes the best lyrics, it doesn’t mean that everybody is gonna know who you are and that may be due to the fact that you’ve not got a lot of contacts and connects.”
“It’s harder for a female singer to get out there as there are so many. You need to be doing something totally different or you need to be getting to more people to get noticed more than the others. In a way it’s harder but there are more girls getting through now and I just think if everybody keeps pushing, we will get recognised even more.”
“You can look forward to more videos from me, more solo stuff will be emerging. You’ve seen the collaborations I’ve done on the mix. I’m still going to be doing collaborations but going forward there will be more A.L. orientated stuff. I’m gonna be doing another mixtape this year also which will be more my stuff. So just look out for that.”
The show comes to an end, it’s 6pm and before A.L. can put her feet up and put her day to rest, there is 1 more task to complete; a performance at Sunday Show taking place at Sound, Leicester Square. Knowing the odds are against her to make the 6.30pm soundcheck, A.L. sets out hoping to achieve the inevitable. Greeted by 2 fat rats at the start of her journey and later the frustrating task of finding a parking space in Central London, A.L. misses the soundcheck but makes it in ample time to get ready for her 8.20pm performance.
When this young lady takes to the stage, the Sunday Show audience are none the wiser of the tiring activities the singer before them has completed on insufficient sleep. Giving a performance of 3 songs, it’s unbelievable that less than 12 hours prior, the voice belting throughout the nightclub was struggling to deliver smooth speech. Nevertheless the entertainment value of A.L.’s performance is very high, humbly awarded with loud applause and compliments from the host. A.L. deserves it.
Thoroughly keeping balance in her life, A.L. sets new sights on enjoying some time to socialise with friends who have come to support her before setting off home satisfied with the day’s accomplishments. Now time is ticking towards midnight A.L. declares that it’s definitely time to eat and get some hard earned sleep, which she thoroughly needs before returning back to the life of her regular 9-5......
The grafting never stops!!
Friday, 10 December 2010
FunkyStepz on MTV Wrap Up
This young production trio have spent many years mastering their individual crafts and are now finally reaching a point where they‘re able to reflect in hindsight, and see what recognition they have accomplished and plan for future steps to further their achievements. Funkystepz, also known as Maxsin (23), Stimpy (21) and Renay (19), came to know of each other through their own musical capacities and eventually joined together to become a reckoning force of producers/DJs within the UK funky circuit. Together, the trio have found a niche for themselves that has taken them on a journey that they're happy to continue...
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