REVIEW: Industry Takeover – On the Record: DJ & Producer Special, January 6th
Angie Chan, a member of our UD Creatives gives you her account of what went down this month’s Industry Takeover. Check out what she had to say about the fun-packed night.
The phenomenon that is Urban Development ushered in the New Year with yet another heavyweight bout of Industry maestros and fresh talent. This month, the Industry Takeover doors opened to shed some light on the magic that is music production.
The evening quickly cut to the chase as the panel addressed some frequently asked questions such as “what’s better, Mac or PC?” with most of them pointing out that they believe Macs are better configured for music-making software and such as Cubase, Logic and Reason. The logical choice for Goldielocks (DJ/ owner Gut Instinct Records) was clearly the Mac. She noted the ease of using Logic on a Mac, perhaps a good newbie choice. While Wonder (Rinse FM DJ/founder, Roll Deep) advised audience members against using a PC like a no-drugs campaign: “It crashes almost everytime.” I hear Dell.com are doing some great January sales offers! But just when it was all starting to sound like a Macintosh advert, Darkside (DJ/founder, GetDarker TV) proudly announced his PC loyalty, saying the lack of a mouse right-click menu on Macs swung it for him.
“Logan hinted that the freshest beats to be found are on pirate radio.”
Lo gan Sama (Grime DJ, Kiss FM), confessed that like a lot of other DJs today, instead of using turntables, he mixed from a Mac track list. He also commented that the UK Hip-Hop artists of today seem to share the same sound libraries as more mainstream artists like Tinie Tempah, Tinchy Stryder and Dizzee Rascal. Logan hinted that the freshest beats to be found are on pirate radio stations like Deja Vu, but with Grime and dubstep hitting the mainstream on Kiss FM and co, newbies might think that’s where the magic happens.
When it came to topics such as whether Myspace was dead all the panelists agreed but Bless Beats (producer of Wiley’s hit single ‘Wearing My Rolex’) modestly admitted that he wouldn’t be where he is right now without Myspace. Both Wonder and Darkside conceded that while MySpace can still be useful, emerging artists should also promote their music on other popular social networking sites, particularly YouTube, Soundcloud and Mixcloud.
The stellar question about music influence and inspiration churned out some household names. Bless Beats cited Nasty Crew, So Solid and Roll Deep as his musical influences, Logan acknowledged that EZ had inspired his DJing style due to his amazing technical mixing and his ability to drive the crowd wild; but his actual motivation to first play grime on the radio was inspired by the talents of Wiley and Dizzee Rascal. Meanwhile, Darkside’s most memorable early music encounter was with tracks by Wookie and EZ amongst others.
“Fatima mesmerized the audience with her powerful silky voice.”
After a thought provoking and inspiring seminar it was time for the open mic. Kicking things off was November’s winner Slough rapper, Byron who wowed the audience with his smooth, laid-back rapping style and witty lyrics. As a member of an alternative Hip Hop group, Nine High he has two mixtapes (which were a hit in Australia), an album and a tour under his belt. The open mic was mainly made up of emcees but singer, Emeddi blew the audience away with his gospel-tinged vocals. Air Born Mark, who was styled straight out of an indie band, got tight with his rhymes and even managed to find time for a paper plane throw or two at the audience, it was unforgettable - mostly for the right reasons! This month’s winner was Jamie, who received a massive applause from an eager crowd for his mellow rap on a Hip Hop ballad supported by the house band.
Finally, it was time for the showcase. Swedish-born singer Fatima mesmerized the audience with her powerful silky voice. Think funky soul-jazz however nothing describes it better than being there live. Fumin, best known as a founding member of Fire Camp and his feature on Lethal B’s original version of ‘Forward Riddim (Pow)’, kept it interesting with his track ‘Rich Man’, and even featured two members of the UD Creatives as backing singers. It was all good fun as Fumin cheekily slid in a few lines from ‘Follow the leader leader…’ over one of his tracks.
Despite the fact her featured guest artists were absent Brixton-based Selah belted out with ease her R’n’B release ‘Woman’s World’ and her funky house number ‘Out of My House’. In fact, her graceful movement on stage and her versatile vocal skills had everybody wondering why she even needed guests. Emcee, P Money had an easy ride as the crowd were already seriously high on the vibe. Hyping up the crowd with some furious grime, he finished with a killer bassline drop that would make anybody feel sorry for our neighbours next door - ‘Slang Like This’ was a mean dubstep finish to what was another sick night.
People say “start the New Year as you mean to go on”, but to be honest with such great acts to follow this month, it won’t be easy! Look out for next month’s Industry Takeover, ‘Talking The Hardest: Music & Politics’ featuring Ghetts. Some words of wisdom get your ticket EARLY to avoid disappointment!
WORDS: Angie Chan
Photography: Adeyinka Adepitan
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