Leeds Hip Hop Scene

First of all, how did you get into enjoying hip-hop and music as a whole?

I’m from a musical family, and a family of record collectors. So music and vinyl has always been a part of my life. I guess hip-hop was just a natural thing, growing up in Harehills and Chapletown. If you couldn’t recite a Biggie verse at the bus stop you might get stompt init. Wahaha.

As a artist who not only produces but DJ’s aswell, which of them did you start first and which do you enjoy doing more?

I started collecting records first. Was probably diggin in nappies n shit. I started playin guitar bout 12 or summin after seeing Superfly. I wanted to be Curtis Mayfield, ha. Then I got into hip-hop and fucked up the belt drive on my folk’s turntable trying to scratch. My mum had been putting some savings together for me and I bought some decks with that and started teaching myself to cut. The next step was an mpc and makin beats. I love DJing, and to me it feels very much a part of the process, but makin beats is my shit really. If I had it my way I’d probably do nothing else. Which is pretty much how it is, haha.

In this past year you’ve released two albums, one with band stateless and your solo effort, which ones done better commercially and which do you reckon is the better album?

Haha, that’s a bugged out question. Stateless will probably sell more but my album is doper cos it has Double D Dagger on it.

Hip-hop in Leeds is obviously nowhere near as big as it is in London but how do you think the scene is coming along?

I think Leeds has a pretty healthy hip-hop scene and it’s been good to watch it become more focussed over the years. It’s a good fam and the talent is ridiculous. Eliphino’s one of my favourite beat maker’s full stop. And Double D Dagger are some of the sickest emcees on the planet, serious. But everyone in Leeds is pretty dope to be honest and the scene is cool.

I guess you didn’t start making your beats with an MPC and a wall full of vinyl, what did you start producing on?

An mpc and a wall full of vinyl is exactly what I started makin my beats .. that I was probably on some pots n pans shit. Oh yo, I did have a little kid’s drum kit when I was a, um, little kid.

From the look in photo’s in your studio you use a lot of real instruments instead creating beats purely from sampling other people’s music, how do you think this compares to making a completely sample based beat?

Both have their qualities. Generally my shits like 75% samples, cos I dig the depth and feel of well-crafted sample based shit. You can’t re-create samples. There’s a history and vibe there and it’s a whole different type of creativity. But live shit can bring a real life and energy to beats that there’s no other way of creating. I just try utilise both and blur the lines a little. Like I’ll chop up live shit like a sample and then play a sample off my mpc like a live take or whatever. Mike L is ill at that shit, at getting samples to sound live. Shout out to Mike L!

You’ve collaborated with Jehst, toured with DJ Shadow and more recently done a remix for DJ Vadim, how did links with these artists come about?

I’ve always wanted to get Jehst on a beat, he’s one of the great emcees to me. An undisputed UK legend. A lot of motherfuckers have their moments, but peeps like Jehst will have a lasting impact. I just approached him init. I know a few of his people and visa versa. He came round my yard, picked a beat, and just wrote it all there and then. Sick! The Shadow link up was through Stateless. He just really digs Stateless and asked Chris to sing on The Outsider and then invited us on tour. That shit still bugs me out! Shadow is a genius, especially with the mpc. Meeting Shadow always bugged me out. Even after weeks of touring I was still like ‘damn, that’s Shadow’! Haha. The Vadim link came from working with Yarah. Vadim has always been one of my favourite producers too. His appreciation of sound and space is something else, his style is just mad dope. He just dug my beats and asked me for a remix, and I said gracias and hell yes.

If you could collaborate with any artist dead or alive who would it be?

Oh man, that’s too tough. I’ma refrain from making a list of possibilities and explaining each one or we’ll be here all night. Dead, I’d go with Billie Holiday. Alive, honestly, Lupe Fiasco. That might seem an odd choice considering some of the legends are still alive and well, but I’ve got some beats he would murder so perfect. I love that mad creative stylised flow shit, and Lupe backs it up with some of the illest lyrics in modern hip-hop in my opinion.

Finally anything you want to say or anybody you want to give shout outs to?

Check out my album and live show if you haven’t already – www.kidkanevil.com and myspace.com/kidkanevil for info. Shout outs to my First Word fam and Leeds’ Hip-Hop scene of course, and to all the honourable samurai. Peace! kidk

Easyone