What song reminds you of your childhood?
“Battle” by Wookie. I remember my mum blaring it out a lot. My parents were young parents, so they grew up with UK Garage and lots of stuff that I listen to now. That song has grown more important to me over time, and it just reminds me of being a kid and seeing my mum smiling and dancing. I had heard it all my life, but when lockdown happened, me and my wife were playing it a lot and we both realised that it sounds like a gospel song, when you listen to what they’re talking about. The words are just hitting differently now. Before, I just listened to it for the beats and the drums and the sound of it, but when you listen to the words, it's just like “Rah, it's deeper than I thought.”
What was the first physical record you remember buying?Kano, Home Sweet Home. I remember buying that in about 2005 with my pocket money. I was with my mum in Wood Green, and she gave me some money and said “pick whatever album you like.” And I think I picked that one, although it might have been Beats + Bars, the mixtape he did before Home Sweet Home. I can't remember exactly which one I bought, but it was definitely a Kano mixtape-slash-album. |
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What song reminds you the most of home?
Oh, I probably can't pick just one song. Can I give you an album? It could actually be Home Sweet Home, but for me, I think it’s Blacklisted by Skepta. Maybe because he is from where I'm from, so when he's talking about walking to the flats opposite Tottenham Police Station, I can see it in my head. I know what he's talking about, so it just feels like home to me.
What song reminds you of traveling to a specific place?I think it changes every time I go away because I'll be listening to something different, but right now I’m going to say J Dilla’s Donuts reminds me of travelling to Australia. Obviously I’ve heard the album before, but the first time I was kind of playing it a lot was when I was out in Australia earlier this year. So that’s the first one that comes to mind. Australia was amazing, and to see that people knew my music on the other side of the world was super inspiring and gave me so much energy as well. I can't wait to go back. It's just like England, but better weather, and happier people. |
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What song do you wish you had written?
“9 to 5” by Kano. I used to think, “man, I can relate to that.” He says a line in there, something about, “I was supposed to be a footballer, but they kept picking the other kid who was a foot taller / I got lazy and less enthusiastic, I stopped training and turning up to matches.” So I used to relate to that because I'm not a tall guy myself and when I would play football I used to think “Oh man, they’re not picking me because I'm short.”
What is the best song to play at a house party?
The best song is going to be “Candy” by Cameo. It gets everyone standing up if you want to break the ice. Even though some people play it at the end of a party, for me I’m playing that song early so that everyone can do the dance together and get it started.
What song did you play at your wedding?
We got married at the registry office so actually we didn't do a wedding, but we want to do that in the future. We’ve spoken about what songs we would want to play and we both have different ideas, but I think it's “Let's Get Married,” by Jagged Edge - “Meet me at the altar in your white dress,” that one.
What song would you like played at your funeral?
At my funeral, I want to play Dizzee Rascal, “Stop Dat.” Lift the mood a bit. It ain't got to be down. If everyone's crying, “Stop dat, start dat, get dat, what?” So that would remind people that's what I would want you to do.
You're abducted by aliens and when you wake up on the spaceship, they pass you the aux. What is the song that you're playing to convince them not to destroy Earth?