Franko Fraize, straight outta Tetford, has had a pucka last year. Now signed to Polydor, he’s released a wicked single, Oi Oi , and will be supporting Rudimental this summer. He’s been busy helping to set up a recording studio in his hometown too and getting his local scene buzzing. Franko plays at Te Cut at Open this month, so we had a chat with the most positive guy in music about how life has changed for him recently...
So you’re from Tetford – is there a good music scene there? Te music scene right this minute is absolutely buzzing. We’ve got a group of like minded people who grew up together and who’ve been putting our efforts into music the last 3-4 years. My mate Tone who I’ve worked with closely since the word go has built a studio in Tetford and now we have all sorts of people coming to use it, like Jaguar Skills. I know you started off posting your music online, but how did you get yourself noticed by the likes of Radio 1 who playlisted you in 2014? It was the BBC Introducing campaign. I keep banging on about it year on year but it’s a massive thing for artists as it puts you in the shop window and without that I don’t think I’d have got the attention I did. Back then rap music was on the radio but the tunes they played weren’t out and out pop tunes if you know what I mean. So it’s good to get that channel of
24 / April 2016/
outlineonline.co.uk
communication to get your music listened to by the big dogs. Te other aspect is that BBC Introducing in Norfolk helped to learn how to carry myself on radio, how to present myself, how to do interviews, and they’re there to back you. Tey almost help to manage you right at that early stage and they’re really passionate about music. I think what they do is a massive thing for musicians in the UK. You supported Mike Skinner in Norwich in 2012 – what was that experience like? He was the first of my idols that I met. It was proper magic. Everyone loved Te Streets didn’t they? And as an artist, to come out and do what he did, people were like “what is this?” but then they got onboard. No one’s done anything like what he’s done since. Sitting in the room with him, talking about music and he was telling me his experiences in the music
industry..it was a proper mad experience. I remember he had a pukka watch on, and
I’d not been into watches before that but when I saw his I thought, you know what, I’m gonna have to get myself one of those! How has it been moving from doing the music just on your own to working with a full band? Interesting you say
that..it’s the hardest thing I’ve come across in music, not in a negative way. Honestly, when you’re making music, one of the biggest things you need is a strong work ethic, a get- up-and-go attitude and for me, when I started out there was no one else for me to answer to. I was writing the music, going to the studio to record it, getting the videos up, and it was all self driven. I wanted to get a band together cos I got to the point where I was a rapper making music that a lot of people could relate to, but a lot of older people were shut off from it as it was branded as rap. And for me it’s presented my music better. Now I’m supporting Rudimental at these Forest gigs the band’s gonna be bigger
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