THE GUESTLIST NETWORK | SEPTEMBER 2010


HIPHOP//RNB 35 TY: a SPECiaL KiND oF FooL


I know there’s been this space in music that you’ve always occupied, as long as I’ve known hip hop, and I’ve been listening to UK hip hop for a very long time. How many studio albums have you done now? We’ve done about four studio albums, and then i’ve done col- laborations and other records, its quite a big catalogue.


This latest one, ‘Special Kind Of Fool’, what inspired the name there? TY: it’s really kind of, a look at how the UK really looks upon UK hip hop artists. You know when society frowns upon a particular person because they don’t un- derstand it, yet within the thing itself, people are very serious and very focused. i really wanted to kind of laugh at the idea that hip hop is fickle or we’re not im- portant, by calling myself a fool. its a kind of side way glance at society, by saying i’m a fool. But i’m not a fool.


You’ve always dealt with issues in your music, and I think you’re known for that, as I’ve heard you talk about this kind of independent space that you fill. So tell us about that and what’s it like to be in that space for such a long period of time. its really quite simple. Whilst watching the music industry and watching the way that music is dealt with in the UK. When i was younger i realised, really early on that if i wanted to make music of substance i would need to side- step the commercial ladder, be- cause i could see that in the com- mercial ladder of things, there is no room really for an artist to say constructive things. i don’t mean conscious things i mean things that really effect people lives, re- ally, seriously. There’s no room for that because its not fashionable, not cool. So what i decided was that i was gonna sidestep the normal rat race of success, and actual focus on just making good music. i’m focusing on quality, i’m not focusing on quantity or free- styles, on being hip or being the coolest person in the moment.


i’m not a braggy, boasty sort of person, but i am one of the best performers in the UK, as far as performing hip hop music.


I’ve heard that you don’t like to be labelled as someone who’s alternative, what’s the conflict there? When people say alternative, its a faisty way of saying you’re not do- ing what everyone else is doing, you’re doing something different, but everybody does something different. People label world music as alternative music, but i think that’s the biggest slap in the face. World music is just the national music of a country, so to put it all under one banner, and call it ‘world’ music or ‘alternative’ is suggesting that if you don’t do classic or pop, then you’re music is not normal. That’s rubbish. So what i’ve realised is ‘alternative’, and ‘conscious rap’, all of these titles work for TY. i talk about sex, i talk about all types of madness. What my music is about, is re- ally about people that don’t really wanna hear Britney Spears, but they wanna hear hip hop, they wanna dance or they wanna feel good or they wanna feel includ- ed, men and women. My music is about that, its not about isolating or alienating any person of any race or background, but these ti- tles, ‘alternative’, ‘conscious’, give media groups the opportunity to say ‘oh no no no, he’s conscious, you know what that means!’ No it doesn’t.


I was talking to Akala a little while ago, and I asked him who else was talking sense, and your name came up. Now we’re here talking about what’s not, and what is real hip hop, who do you feel is making real hip hop in the UK? a lot of people are doing good music, so even if you’re not doing what we would consider to be tra- ditional hip hop, you’re still impor- tant, i’m not degrading anybody’s importance. i’ll definitely say that akala, absolutely. aKS, absolute- ly. Logic, Self Taught, Shortman, Mystro, Scandal, roots Manuva. Loads of people, but that’s just on the hip hop level. There are


DrU HiLL BaCK iN LoNDoN


Witness two of the biggest rnB groups of the 90’s on stage for a one off exclusive date in the UK on 24th october 2010.


Dru Hill will be performing in the UK for the first time since 1998. With Sisqo being a house mate in the Big Brother house you can assure he and the group will keep you entertained throughout the whole night.


Former Blackstreet members Mark Middleton & Eric Williams will also


perform some of the groups greatest hits including the almighty track ’No Diggity’ and ’Don’t Leave Me’.


The host on the night will be DJ Cal- vin Francis and UK support will come from Miss Frank (X Factor), Dele, Mich’el Pierre, Crystal Celebrity and Trooper.


To 2 win tickets for this amazing gig, just answer the following question:


Name two members of the group.


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Ty has been an integral part of the UK musical scene for more than a decade. With his fourth album out Ty is a breath of fresh air to the hip hop music scene with his honest lyrics, positive vibes and mad beats this is a voice to definitely be heard.


loads of artists, its not just about the artists, its about the mentality of the scene itself, and at the mo- ment, the mentality of the scene is confused. So we’re not sure whether we can get on TV mak- ing real hip hop music. So what you’re seeing is a load of people making dance music, or anything to be successful, and that’s not good, that’s a problem.


Which is why you need those artists to keep it hip hop no matter what. The last time i saw you it was a real Lon- don street fest a real hip hop show, and you played Jazz cafe and you do the festi- vals..so where is your best place to perform? The Jazz Cafe show was one of my favourite shows, i couldn’t have a show like that every week it was too intense, it was like people really wanted it to pop off and it was packed immensely!Me with a live band is a great ex- ample of what is possible in hip hop and me with a DJ is another great example.


Have you got any new music out? We got an exclusive hip hop video that i did with a group SK invitational, its me with a 12 piece band ..its crazy! The Heart is Breaking single has just come out, its crazy because with this track we have got a dubstep re- mix, garage and drum and bass.


Now you have got thou- sands of people following you on Twitter, you’re big in the game! i have always seen the platform of artists directly communicating with audience as the next thing in the development of music..and i have encouraged other artists to do this. if you ask me a ques- tion and if i can answer it then i will, i really embrace that as as an artist it really suits my ethos. My thing is that i am normal guy- that’s my stage persona, i’m a regular guy.


Ty’s 2nd single release “Heart is Breaking” with remixes by Nutty P and Sinbad, is out now.


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