STYLES EXCLUSIVE TO
EDITOR’S LETTER Some times, the good guys really do win. Take Jermaine Scott, 26, for example. Just your regular guy from Tottenham, this father of one clearly had tons of talent, but could he take on the teen market and become as popular as a Tinchy or Chipmunk? After making his mark in The Movement and Combination Chain Gang, he killed the mixtape game with street-heaters like Teacher’s Training Day, and, finally, earlier this year, after endorsement from Example, Pro Green and Tinie, Wretch got himself a No.5 (Traktor) and a No.2 (Unorthadox). With the release of his second album, Black And White, right around the corner, it appears that Wretch’s roll is unstoppable. What makes seeing his success even more pleasing is that Mr. 32 is one of the nicest, most humble, down to earth and loveliest people ever. If anyone deserves success, it’s Wretch. We’re proud to have Wretch on this cover – he truly, truly deserves it. We’ve got quite a lot of talent this issue; new US spitter Kreayshawn is definitely About To Blow – Laura ‘Hyperfrank’ Brosnan tells us why. Other acts certain for success are 15 year-old Birdy and new R&B crooners The Weeknd and Frank Ocean. We also catch up with D Double E, who breaks down his Bluku Bluku EP, delve into the mind of Swizz Beats (and profile a whole host of new producers you need to know about) and meet actors Jack Whitehall and Harry Potter’s James Phelps. Sport commentator Chris ‘Kammy’ Kamara gets his pundit on and Cocknbullkid talks us through ‘turning’ pop. This is our first ever Love Vs Lust issue. Which would you choose? It would be irresponsible to the younger readers to not point out that whatever route you take, put safety first. Whether or not you love the person you’re sleeping with, whether you’re sleeping with them via a drunken accident, whatever you do, if you are going to have sex, make sure it’s safe. For me, right now I got a lot of love for a lot of things (and people) but I have serious lust for a holiday, my own flat and a big, massive bank balance. Luckily, I love what I do, so hopefully with a bit more hard work I can get a current account that looks as healthy as Wretch 32’s!
RWD TEAM Editor Deputy Editor Senior Staff Writer Staff Writer Contributing Editor Online Editor Contributors
Hattie Collins @dannywalker1 Nardene Scott, Jerry Gadiano, Chantelle Fiddy Tego Sigel Alex Johnson, Tajha Myer-Ferreira, Candice Carty-Williams, Laura Brosnan, Alesha Oner, Ricky Bains
Art Director Dacre J. Bracey Designer Chidi Ubani Fashion Stylists Nasrin Jean-Baptiste, Neesha Sharma, Patricia C. Williams Fashion News Ed Caragh Logan Style Pages Editor Irene Asanji Style Assistant Cheyenne Davide Illustrators Art Jaz, Jiro Bevis, Rachel Goslin, David Flanagan Photographers James Pearson-Howes, Andres Reynega, Kevin Joseph, Jake Green, Adrian Nettleship, Verena Stefanie Grotto Publisher Nigel Wells Senior Sales Matthew Richards Thanks Bob Austin
CONTACT RWD W107 Holywell Centre, 1, Phipp Street, London EC2A 4PS Tel: 020 3176 4299 Email: staff@rwdmag.com
Twitter.com/hattiecollins
RWD Magazine is published monthly by Rewind Creative Media Ltd. All material copyright (c). All rights reserved. This publication may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form, in whole or in part, without the express written permission of the publishers. RWD Magazine: 25p where sold
CONTRIBUTOR OF THE MONTH TAJHA MYER-FERREIRA London born and bred Tajha hunted us down to get a placement - after a string of phone calls and emails, she finally wheedled her way in - and we’re glad she did! Since being here she’s interviewed Tinchy and Bigz, re-organised our ‘social networking’ infrastructure, written news stories and generally been a massive, huge help! “I would love to become a music journalist, becoming established in time, and after living in Paris for four months, I would love to travel a bit more and see the world,” says Tajh, who says she “felt so welcomed at RWD compared to other work experience offices I’ve worked in!” For this Spinning addict who loves travelling, writing and Drake, there’s a bit of summer fun planned before returning to study. Twitter.com/MissTajha
Disclaimer: While every effort is made to ensure the information in this magazine is correct, changes can occur which affect the accuracy of copy, for which RWD holds no responsibility. The opinions of the contributors do not necessarily bear a relation to those of RWD Magazine or it’s staff and we disclaims liability for those impressions. Distributed nationally. RWD is a member of the Audit Bureau of Circulations
CONTENTS 01/08/2011
REGULARS
FEATURES
8-12 14 16 20-22
INBOX NEWS ENOUGH ALREADY: PITBULL ASICS ONE TO WATCH: BIRDY, SP, RYAN KEEN, THE GOOD NATURED, JOSH HILL 24-25 ABOUT TO BLOW: KREAYSHAWN 52-55 RWD & COME AGAIN: JACK WHITEHALL 82 FINAL WORD: JOE JONAS
18-19 46-51 56-57 58-59 60-61 62-63 64
STYLE GUIDE
UNWIND
27-31 32-41 42-43 44-45
STYLE: SHORTS SPECIAL FASHION: LIFE’S A BEACH FASHION NEWS: CHRIS GROVE OF PERCIVAL REFRESHED: MARTIN SOLVEIG
6 / RWDMAG.COM
67-69 70-71 72-73 74 76-79 80-81
FRANK OCEAN VS THE WEEKND WRETCH 32 SKYLAR GREY SWIZZ BEATZ CHRIS “KAMMY” KAMARA TRACK BY TRACK: D DOUBLE E COCKNBULLKID
GADGETS TO LUST AFTER... JAMES PHELPS GAMES FILMS GIG GUIDE: ALICIA KEYS AND WAKESTOCK FESTIVAL CHARTS AND REVIEWS
INBOX
HAVE YOUR SAY:
BIGZ
Welcome to our new look Inbox with a whole host of stats, facts and general nonsense for you to sift through. That’s it, sift... sift... The best of the bunch comes from James for his heartfelt letter. For his efforts she gets this ace timepiece from Nautica. Get yours for £155 from Nautica.com Send all your letters to: Attn. Editor, RWD Magazine, W107 Holywell Centre, 1 Phipp Street, London, EC2A 4PS or staff@rwdmag.com
LETTER OF THE MONTH
Hi guys @ RWD, I don’t know if you guys have a page where people write and stuff, but would just like to share something with you all. On your front cover of June’s issue, Ed Sheeran can be seen wearing a yellow band, if you zoom in you can see it reads Ben Lund, Ben was an amazing, talented, genuine person who was so wrongfully taken away from us in 2009, he was only enjoying a night out when he was attacked and murdered, all of which was unprovoked. A few of Ben’s friends went to see Ed Sheeran and threw a band on stage, and so he obviously felt it was right to keep it and put it on his wrist! I’m just writing to say all of Ben’s friends are absolutely amazed and stunned as to how this all got to be on your front cover! xx Vast Love xx Cheers Guys @ RWD Mag James
8 / RWDMAG.COM
Desperate for RWD, June edition... Hi, my daughter is desperate for RWD, June 2011 edition, as she is a huge Ed Sheeran fan. I am having trouble finding a shop that stocks the magazine and wondered if I could get it from straight from you? Please help a desperate mum. Sue Hey Sue, thank you and your family for your interest in RWD. Yes, that issue went flying out of the doors but, as always for special cases, we can hook you up - RWD Team You are his GIRL not his wife... Why is it that we feel that when we are in a relationship for a period of time we have to do these wifely duties, because we feel a sense of familiarity, all of a sudden we just start taking things too damn far. And you wonder why your boyfriend is getting bored and his eyes stray away to the next sl**... honey I will tell you why BECAUSE he feels married to you, and what do useless married men do? CHEAT. They end up with a mistress on the side. You are his girl so act like his girl... keep him interested, keep the air of mystery going. NO you shouldn’t have to prove anything but be yourself and if it’s meant to be then that is enough. Esther Alo Wow, thank for your rant Esther – sorry we had to edit it down, twas a lovely rant – we
respect you for saying what’s what. Let’s hope peeps listen. March’s Illuminati Feature Mad Paganism... Hey, in regards to March’s Illuminati feature, there were a few mistakes. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the piece and the mistakes are nothing to do with the people who wrote it, more the Church that skewered certain ideologies in a bid to wipe out Paganism. For example, Baphomet was actually the Pagan God of Fertility; however the more modern religions labelled Baphomet as a satanic beast in a bid to smear the reputation of Paganism, a religion that worshipped women, sex and nature, something the church felt was a huge threat to their all male hierarchy. So when people worship Baphomet, they’re either appeasing a strange goat fetish, or praising the miracle of child birth and the importance of women in our society, not Satan. Jake Hanrahan Erm, thanks Jake. Just when you think you know everything about Baphomet, goat women and weird fetishy folklore you get schooled beyond comprehension. RWD’s Pagan Unit
The Flygerian breaks down his lusts and gives us a little guide into affairs of the heart... “Right now I love and am lusting over your voice (laughs). Nah, my advice for love is all about honesty and having swag. The last thing I fell in love with was music. I love my new mixtape, Quantum Leap. I think it’s some of the best music I’ve made in my career. If you love great music then Quantum Leap’s for you. You’ve got Professor Green on there, Scorcher, Smiler, G FrSh, SAS, Chipmunk, Sway... What’s different is that I grow every day, we experiment with different sounds, we experiment with different flows and our ambitions grow greater and that transcends into the music. The better you become the better master of your craft you become. And if you don’t love it, you shouldn’t be doing it. (TMF). Twitter.com/ bigzflygerian.
RWDMAG.COM
19%
QUICK QUESTION:
RWDMAG.COM USERS CAST THEIR VOTE
LUST
Anon says “Lust. It all starts in the bedroom.”
Each month we give you the chance to answer our Quick Question.
56%
In a relationship what matters most?
Love and Lust (a bit of both)
22% LOVE
0%
Other (bank account, valid passport)
3%
Shareen Says “Love and Lust. It starts with the eyes and ends with the heart.”
WHAT DID YOU THINK OF BEYONCÉ’S GLASTONBURY PERFORMANCE?
I’ll Settle For Whatever I Can Get
(YES, NO, MAYBE?) IS DRAKE TOO WET?
54% 74% 37% 26% 9% YES
INCREDIBLE
TERRIBLE
With Jigga’s missus shaking her thang on the Pyramid stage – and bringing out a few surprises like Tricky (yes, Tricky) we asked readers what they thought of B’s performance. The answers were simple.
MAYBE
TOP TWEETS @RWDMAG: 1. @MrsChanelAndre: @RWDmag I want the one with @CherLloyd on it?! How can I order it offline?! :) 2. @andyvisermayar: Why is Cher Lloyd on the cover of @RWDmag? 3. @Willkay_oddking: @RWDmag That’s a real cute cover! 4. @Joshoshomusic: BIG UP @RWDmag for their ongoing support-check out ‘About to Blow’ – That’s me! One love
12 / RWDMAG.COM
Illustrastion by iamaflangan.co.uk
NO
MANNY NORTÉ
What’s happening guys?! It’s your friendly neighbourhood Norté again, coming to you this time with some love talk! For me, I’d choose love over lust as it’s more of a true feeling. Lust can be looked at as a bluff meaning one minute you’re on something, the next you’re not! So let me give you more of an insight into what I love: first off, if we’re talking about love songs mean, I’ve got to mention 702 I Still Love You, produced by the Neptunes. To me, that’s a classic R&B track that never really blew - LOVE it! Also it would be wrong not to mention Forever My Lady by Jodeci... possibly the best ballad in the modern day world?! JEEZ! What else do I love? The Apprentice on a Wednesday night with the banter on Twitter. As soon as it’s the “You’re Fired” bit on BBC, it’s onto jumping in the bath to get ready for my night ‘Different Strokes’ at Cherry Jam in west London. That right there is a perfect evening for me. I also love watching a good game of football especially when it’s Liverpool playing and winning without Fernando Torres... and yes I do support them! I love Chilli from TLC, Stacey Dash and Halle Berry... sorry, but I always have, and I always will. I also love what’s going on music-wise here in the UK. It’s so healthy and the quality is being upped everyday with talented new artists. This kind of stuff excites the hell out of me, I’m glad to be a part of it to be honest. In the next month, in fact for the next few, I’ll be working on a new project. I’ve got a new artist I want to introduce to the world; a fresh rapper from the UK who I reckon can definitely shake up the place! That’s all I’m saying on this for now, let’s just wait and see... Twitter.com/mannynorte and Mannynorte. com. Catch me at the RWD Live presents
The Energy Sessions, sponsored by Relentless Energy Drink, 27 July, The Garage, London. Tickets, £5, from Relentlessgarage.co.uk 14 / RWDMAG.COM
FIDDY’S WORLD OF WHATEVER... Seeking some self-improvement in her life, journo, consultant, blogger and mentor, Chantelle Fiddy (tries to) find a life. This month: Bars For Change As bars go, I love the chocolate variety - yes pull up the Cadburys one timeeeee. But this summer I’m messing with a different league of bars – Jody McIntyre’s Bars For Change. You may remember a few months back I was showing my love for Jody, the political activist, blogger and man about town who’s currently suing the Met and IPC after he was dragged from his wheelchair during the student protests. Having secured his own online Channel 4 series, launching July, produced by Windfall Films and directed by Luke Hyams (Dubplate Drama, Katemodern), I’m helping the man dem pull together the five protest songs, which will hit your screens every fortnight. Each film is a hybrid music video and documentary polemic that will feature new and up and coming stars of the grime and hip hop scene. Already in the frame are the likes of Mic Righteous, Naughty Boy, Ghetts, Mikill Pane, RoxXxan, Lowkey, Durrty Goodz, Jake Gosling and more. Using powerful lyrics influenced by Jody’s followers, curated by the artists, and shaped by Jody’s own inimitable style, the series will throw a blinding light on some of the problems young people face today. First up is ‘Who Polices the Police?’, addressing the issue of police brutality, specifically the controversial use of kettling. In ‘Britain: the Biggest Gang?’ Jody will look at Britain’s role in the international arms trade and in ‘Should we have a Monarchy?’, he’ll meet young people to find out their views on the monarchy. Spread through YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, iTunes, SB.TV and Mixcloud, each of Jody’s films will engage and inspire every young person in the UK. And that’s what we call setting the bar high. Bars for Change will launch online at Facebook.com/barsforchange and Youtube. com/barsforchange. Twitter: @jodymcinyre @barsforchange @chantellefiddy
Daniel Bdingfield with Jeremy Harding and Leftside... photo by Christopher Edmond
The Kiss DJ who kills it on decks around the world breaks down which of those four little letters he’s choosing...!
ENOUGH ALREADY: Pitbull Every time we aim the Enough Already crosshairs in the direction of a (poor excuse for a) music artist, and not just a sheepskin lined, fashion trend that only exists on the chubby ankles of an orange tinted benefit bandit (Ugg Boots), we have to be careful. Luckily every audio offering from Pitbull justifies his place in the Horrendous Hall of Fame... words by Danny Walker image by Jiro Bevis Born Armando Christian Pérez, Pitbull’s career started so well. Alongside TVT Records and Lil Jon (by the way, where is he now? Reports coming in that the dreadlocked sunglass wearer was seen in a ditch in Birmingham with a sign saying ‘Will make beats for food or Crunk Juice’ are unconfirmed) and, the Miami-bred rapper rose to the top middle of the game in a few short years. Who could forget his debut on Kings Of Crunk back in 2002, oh yeah...EVERYONE. Since then it’s been nothing but mediocre music. Although 2009’s annoyingly catchy I Know You Want Me and Hotel Room Service actually made an impression, we think it’s time this Pitbull was muzzled. To understand our yearning for Pitbull to put down the pen and pad (or the loser lyric book from which he callously carves his crap rap concoctions) you need to digest some of the sh*t he bilingually bellows. It doesn’t make sense. It’s like the 30 year-old rapper has commissioned a ten-strong team of mentally impaired inbreds to churn out his lyrics. “Why d’you think they call me Mr Worldwide?” rhetorically reverberates the intro of Pit’s latest album offering Planet Pit Planet 16 / RWDMAG.COM
Sh*t. Can we take a guess? Is it because he has to go from country to country and language to language for someone to actually like him? Take this Ivor Novello worthy wordplay for example, “Me not working hard? Yeah right, picture that with a Kodak/And better yet, go to Times Square, take a picture of me with a Kodak// Took my life from negative to positive... And I just want y’all know that... And tonight, let’s enjoy life...” What? Rhyming Kodak with Kodak? Taking holiday pics of you in Times Square? No thanks. How about we push Mr 305 down some stairs and get some snaps on a camera phone? Does that do it for you Pit? We’re just taking a negative (in this case your music over the past 12 months) and turning it into a positive (a non life-threatening incident which could injure your vocal chords). In fact, not many of you may know this but Pitbull inserted those cruddy Kodak comments because he’s part of the ‘So Kodak’ campaign... let’s just hope the rapper gets a lifetime deal with some Buddhist Monks. Firstly, he already looks like one and secondly, there’s nothing like a vow of silence to support the cause.
HEAD TO HEAD FRANK OCEAN VS THE WEEKND
FRANK OCEAN We like risqué crooner The Weeknd but we also like altR&B artist Frank Ocean. Well, we thought what better way to decide than put them head to head in a full on musical popularity contest. Referee - Nardene Scott. Singer/Songwriter Christopher Francis Ocean (He changed his name online via Legal Zoom so pre-2010 he was Christopher Lonny Breaux). -10pts Odd Future. Now repeat after us, “It’s the Wolfgang, It’s the Wolfgang, It’s the Wolfgang...” 10pts
AGE
159,058 FOLLOWERS
77
Supposedly chased down in his car by Chris Breezy’s relatives. And he’s also not too friendly with the LAPD after his brief arrest in April...
New Orleans, Louisiana (Lil Wayne, Jay Electronica, Louis Armstrong). 9pts
Considering he had the master video director Nabil Elderkin on the case, those views should be much more... 5pts
See this is why you shouldn’t change your name kids, or if you do make it one word, or something like Diddy oh sorry, Swag! 18 / RWDMAG.COM
341,000 VIMEO HITS
NO. TIMES SEX AND DRUGS REFERENCED
Beyoncé, Nas, Kanye and Jay-Z. 4pts
LABEL SITUATION:
nostalgia ULTRA. The label dropped Novacane which charted at... 8pts
THE WEEKND AGE
Singer/Songwriter Abel Tesfaye. If you say the first syllable of his second name it sounds a bit like testicle. LOL. 9pts Was once part of production/songwriting team, The Noise, which includes Doc McKinney and Illangelo (Drake’s producer). 7pts
58,279 FOLLOWERS
157
He’s a lover not a fighter....
NO. TIMES SEX AND DRUGS REFERENCED
Drake, has a few features on Take Care. 1pts
LABEL SITUATION:
UNSIGNED
House of Balloons Much, much, much more sicker than your average. 10pts
704,044 YOUTUBE HITS
Loads of naked chicks = huge online hits. 8pts
BOUT WON POINTS: 42 THE WEEKND WINNER
Sources: youtube.com, twitter.com, billboard.com, vimeo.com, tumblr.com
Toronto, Canada (Jim Carrey, Justin Bieber and Drake all fellow Canadians). 7pts
19
presents
ASICS BIKU CV
ASICS.CO.UK/SPORTSTYLE ASICS introduce their new low profile silhouette shoe; with its roots on the volleyball court, the ASICS BIKU CV is a great example of retro sport styling with an urban twist using clean lines and simple colours. It’s a real winner. Talking of which, we have three pairs to give away to three very lucky people. All you have to do is email (subject: ASICS) iwannawin@rwdmag.com and you’ll be in the running to get yours... Check RWDmag.com/terms for more.
BIRDY Hailing from a massively musical family, the classically trained pianist Birdy is winning fans famous and otherwise - at rapid rates, discovers Hattie Collins... With shout-out’s from the likes of Cher Lloyd (in the last issue of RWD in fact), love from Fearne Cotton, a sync in Vampire Diaries, and James Forde (Arctic Monkeys) and Jim Abbiss of Adele fame behind the buttons, things are looking pretty good for 15 year-old singer Birdy. “I’m very grateful to Fearne for introducing me and my song to so many people,” enthuses the softly spoken Birdy. “I never used to listen to the charts that much but I now I do! When I found out that I was in the charts I was at my Godmother’s house and we were all listening with great excitement. When it came on, everyone cheered.” Birdy picked up her first musical instrument at the age of four after encouragement from her musical family. Her dad and two brothers play drums, another brother is in a band, her sister plays flute and sings and mum is a classical pianist. “I wrote my first complete song when I was eight and have been writing ever since,” she points out. “I’m always writing something. I now have something like 50 or so songs in some form or another.” For the ornathologically named one, writing is more than just a creative outlet. “Sometimes I use it as a way to escape and when I write a song usually it is a way to express strong emotion,” she explains of
SP
songwriting. Most of my songs are love songs but they are always about people.” The track that RWD (and Fearne) loved is a cover of Bon Iver’s Skinny Love while the recently released Shelter, is a dreamily delicious track. “I have always loved the original of Skinny Love,” she says of reworking the song by the man featured on Kanye’s last masterpiece, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. “Although my version is very different from the original it just seemed to fit.” With her debut selling over 180,000 copies and with video views of over 3.5 million for the two singles, we reckon this Hampshire born talent who hearts The xx, Adele as well as Bach and Beethoven is about to be a name on everyone’s lips. “I was given the nickname Birdy by my parents,” she says of her pop star alter-ego. “When I was small, I looked like a Bird when they fed me and it caught on... At school I am known as Jasmine by my teachers and friends.” Call her Jasmine or call her Birdy, one thing is for sure and that is that this teen is about to be really, really big. “My parents worry that success might change me but I know my friends will be honest and tell me what they really think. I’m just going to try to be careful and always appreciate what I’ve got,” she decides of impending fame and fortune. “I am determined to make music my career. There are a million things I would like to try, but I hope by doing this I will be able to do them all.” Shelter is out now. YouTube.com/ officialbirdy
At 15, Birmingham boy Trevion Rowe aka SP didn’t know that spitting at school with the elders was going to have a big impact on the following four years. “I just thought, let me write. I’ve always been into poetry and I fell in love with it ever since.” Having already opened up for Tyga, Devlin and Example, the Vybz and Biggie fan has graced ILUVLIVE and Urban Development stages too. Check out his current Roots EP, fusing his Jamaican heritage with grime and there’s also the Funtcase single Gorilla Flex with more collabs to come. “I should be working with some more dubstep producers from Circus Records, the next one is Cookie Monster.” Expect grimy bars over Beat Geeks instrumentals and look out for new videos dropping, which the spitter shot in Thailand and Hong Kong. Spzabout.com (NS)
20 / RWDMAG.COM
RYAN KEEN
We first spotted Totnes born, London living Ryan at this year’s SXSW. Wielding his guitar, this flamenco inspired folkster caught the attention of both SBTV and Ed Sheeran, whom Keen, 24, recently supported on tour. “I think people from the scene can relate to my music because I write with honesty and integrity about both good and bad things that have happened in my life,” he decides of his urban love. Inspired by guitarists Don Ross, Eric Roche and “a great flamenco teacher”, Keen recently signed a publishing deal and landed his track, Aiming For The Sun, on Degrassi. “I wrote it when a friend passed away very suddenly which really changed how I viewed the world,” he says. With gigs, and collaborations afoot, we think Ryan is a man many will be more than Keen on. Ryankeen.co.uk (HC)
21
ASICS.CO.UK/SPORTSTYLE
presents
Photograpghy by Coco Zurita
THE GOOD NATURED
The festival season is underway and there’s a few bands standing out - particularly girls, with the likes of Warpaint, Those Dancing Days and in this instance, The Good Natured. Nardene Scott gave front woman Sarah a call to find out more about the EMI signed band. “Let’s say it’s electro pop but with a dark twist,” the asymmetric bobbed Sarah McIntosh explains from sunny France where the Skeleton singer is currently writing songs for her debut album due for release early next year. Since a youngster, it was clear that Sarah was going to end up with a career in music, from playing the violin and drums whilst the sounds of Blondie and Siouxsie and The Banshees filtered through her ears via her parents. With an equally talented close sibling, the idea of starting a band was almost inevitable. “I was gonna be the drummer but we needed a singer so I ended up doing that,” she recalls of the earlier stages of the band which featured a drum machine and her younger brother Hamish on guitar. “I studied Commercial Music at
uni but only for a term because things got serious quickly. That’s how I met my drummer George and I also met our manager too, so I dropped out because things kind of got really busy,” the huge Yeah Yeah Yeah’s fan says of the Good’s rise through the ranks. Soon after, with the help of Swedish songwriter/producer Patrik Berger (Robyn) the infectiously gloomy but edgy Skeleton was born, leading to ears at EMI pricking up. “I was writing about an emotional vulnerability. Although it’s got some sexual references it’s more like when you’re in a relationship and someone knows you so well you feel sort of naked,” Sarah explains of the single, which saw The Good Natured signed shortly after. After performing the track at Glastonbury with a broken leg - “It was an amazing experience and BBC Introducing were really supportive of us” - they also appeared on compilation Maison after meeting Parisian electro experts Kitsuné. Look out for future performances from The Good Natured (minus the cast) at V and a mini UK tour this September. The Skeleton EP is available now. Check Thegoodnatured.co.uk
JOSH HILL
20 year-old Josh hails from racing royalty - his dad is Formula One world champ Damon Hill, while his grandfather, Graham, was a three time F1 world champ. He also wears the same helmet as his elders - dark blue with eight whiteblades is just one way he sticks out on the track. This year, as part of Manor Competition, the most successful team in the history of Formula Renault, Hill will hope to follow up on a strong 2010, which saw him finishing 4th in the New Zealand Grand Prix and bagging himself Most Improved Driver. With the likes of Lewis Hamilton also competing in the single-seater champs, Hill faces stiff competition, but with Josh currently sixth in the series, we bet it’s not long before he follows in the rest of his family’s tyre tracks. (HC)
22 / RWDMAG.COM
ABOUT TO BLOW: KREAYSHAWN
Bursting at the seams with her fierce attitude, huge golden earrings and unique sense of style, Kreayshawn is the web’s latest epidemic that’s about to spread into the hip hop world. Laura ‘Hyperfrank’ Brosnan investigates...
While scientists around the world have been trying to figure out what’s causing this “swag” and just how it’s “pumping out of her ovaries”, Oakland rapper Kreayshawn has stolen everyone’s attention with her bass-infested YouTube hit, Gucci Gucci. Trying to pinpoint just how to explain her music, she politely butts in: “It’s more like a dance and dubstep kind of hardcore sound. I’m into the synth fantasy, and I’m kind of running with that.” Running with it? She’s pretty much sprinting, going from a small-time creative video director to trendsetting rapper in the space of a few months. But that clearly wasn’t enough for her, as at just 21 years-old, she’s also just landed a million-dollar deal with Columbia Records. “It’s definitely something that I’ve been taking one day at a time with,” she explains while reflecting over the last few weeks. Music may have seemed like just a casual experiment but it’s clearly been passed down by her mother, Elka, who was the lead guitarist in garagepunk band, The Trash Women. “I feel that has a lot to do with my influence when it comes to fusing genres together and the whole all-girl thing.” In the superficial world that hiphop has now become, with positive empowering females becoming ever harder to find – Natasha Zolotz’ Gucci Gucci has some underlying issues covered from a realist’s perspective. “Just don’t make them clothes make who you are,” she insists. “If you can’t afford it, then it’s all good, you can still look good with or without it, it doesn’t matter.” The last girls to rep it
elegant hipster fashion sense has got everyone just as excited. “It’s a sprinkle of a little bit of everything, it’s just all about wearing clothes with confidence,” the self-described cinematographer, pot smoker, Oakland representer, rap beast and screw head says. “For me, the 90s really inspires a lot of what I wear, just because it’s all crazy and thrown together items. Highwaist trousers or skirts, with really short T-shirts, crazy hats and crazy, big earrings.” She may look like Madonna, but she’s definitely going to be flossing like Ivana Trump, after her casual love for rapping has also landed her a dream role as video director for the new Red Hot Chilli Peppers music video. With industry co-signs from the controversial Odd Future and her blazing partner, Snoop Dogg, she’s hopefully about to be the crossover act who will take elements of underground rap and hold it down strong in the pop charts. The mainstream might not be ready for her authentic views, harsh tongue and eagerness to get you in the mood to rave, but as the former Ikea employee tells us, it’s not about to stop her just yet. “It’s something crazy, it’s something new, there’s all different types of people, I’m not mad that some don’t get it,” shrugs Kreayshawn. “I didn’t put it out expecting over a million people to watch it, let alone understand it. You just got to keep listening, soon enough it’s going to be something that they can’t ignore and they will have to just deal with it.” Kreayshawn.tumblr.com
“JUST DON’T MAKE THEM CLOTHES MAKE WHO YOU ARE. IF YOU CAN’T AFFORD IT, THEN IT’S ALL GOOD, YOU CAN STILL LOOK GOOD WITH OR WITHOUT IT, IT REALLY DOESN’T MATTER.” for the ladies were our very own Spice Girls. But now her crew – White Girl Mob – are ready to fill the void. “The Spice Girls played a big part in my growing up with just me just being able to put myself out there and be wild.” But which Spice did she want to be? “I was definitely Ginger Spice back in the day,” she laughs. Along with Lil Debbie and the recently freed V. Nasty, they’re definitely more Dangerous Minds (Gangsters Paradise) than BRIT School, with their strong-minded, yet ghetto mentality. While her rapping style has been compared to the likes of Gucci Mane and Lil B, her grimy but 24 / RWDMAG.COM
“I’m not out but I am proud of my sexuality whatever it is. I’m not a person who sees colour, or sees gender or a person that is concerned about any of that at the moment. I’m just living my life and doing me.”
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STYLE GUIDE SUMMER SHORTS | FASHION | FASHION NEWS | REFRESHED
>>
WHAT TO WEAR AND HOW TO WEAR IT...
PUMA Palm Tree puma.com, £35
>> 27
STYLE GUIDE
TRUNKS
FRANKS franksaustralia.com, £55
FREDDY freddy.com, £32
MCKENZIE Broderick jdsports.co.uk, £19.99
THE DUFFER OF ST GEORGE jdsports.co.uk, £19.99
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CHECKED
MINIMUM asos.com, £50
ALPINESTARS alpinestars.com, £45
SUPREMEBEING supremebeing.com, £45
PROTEST protest.eu, £39.99
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STYLE GUIDE
CHINO
LUKE luke1977.com, £60
WeSC 0207 836 4473, £45
RIP CURL ripcurl.com, £40
TRAPSTAR iamatrapstar.com, £50
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CARGO
THE DUFFER OF ST GEORGE jdsports.co.uk, £34.99
ALPHA INDUSTRIES saturdaycasuals.co.uk, £60
ADDICT addict.co.uk, £55
GIO-GOI bankfashion.com, £49.99
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LIFE’S A BEACH
STYLIST: PC WILLIAMS PHOTOGRAPHER: KEVIN MOROSKY GROOMING: ADJHANI BARTON MODELS: DAVID & ROLAND @ AMCK AND SARAH MEI SPECIALS THANKS TO CHRISTINA DALY AND THE WAVERLEY GUESTHOUSE
David wears jeans by Wrangler, T-shirt by Crooks & Castle, shirt by Penfield and bracelet by Icon Sarah Mei wears dress by Bench, jacket by Numph, pendant necklace by Claire’s Accessories, bracelet and stone necklace (models own). 33
Roland wears trousers by Marshall, polo by Luke and watch by Toy Watch David wears shorts by Supreme Being, hoodie by adidas, hat by Benjart and chain by Icon Sarah Mei wears hat by Bench, stone necklace (models own), owl necklace by Claire’s Accessories, Pink sports top by Bjorn Borg, vest by Nike, jeans by Levi’s and trainers by adidas
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35
STYLE GUIDE
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(Opp page top) Roland wears socks by Bjorn Borg, boots by Palladium, denim shorts by Bank, backpack by Farah and shirt by BAPE (Opp page bottom) Sarah Mei wears trainers by Asics, shorts by Supremebeing, black sports bra by JD, jacket by Nike, watch by Toy Watch, beanie by Penguin and broach (worn on beanie) by Claire’s Accessories Roland wears hat by Playdot, shorts by Luke, T-shirt by Puma, shoes by Vans, watch by Toy Watch and Jacket by Jeremy Scott for adidas (This page) David wears trainers by Vans, shorts by Penfield, T-shirt by The Duffer Of St. George, Jacket by Nike and chain by Icon
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David wears trainers by Hunter, shorts by Nike, T-shirt by PXL, shirt by BAPE 38 / RWDMAG.COM
Sarah Mei wears shoes by Pointer, jeans by Levi’s, black crop top by JD Sports, T-shirt by Puma and backpack by Aldo Roland wears shorts by 55DSL, trainers by Asics, T-shirt by Benjart and shirt by HL Jeans Co.
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Stockist Information 55DSL - 55dsl.com adidas - adidas.com Aldo - aldoshoes.com Asics - asics.co.uk Bank - bankfashion.com BAPE - bbcicecream.com Bench - bench.co.uk Benjart - benjartclothing.com Bjorn Borg - bjornborg.com Claire’s Accessories - claires.com Crooks & Castles - crooksncastles.com Duffer of St. George - jdsports.co.uk Farah - farah.co.uk HL Jeans Co - henrilloyd.com/hl-jeans Hunter - hunter-boot.com Icon - iconbrand.com JD - jdsports.co.uk K-swiss - kswiss.co.uk Levi’s - levi.co.uk Luke - luke1977.com Nickelson - nickelson.co.uk Nike - nike.com/uk Numph - numph.dk Palladium Boots - palladiumboots.co.uk Penfield - penfieldusa.com/uk Pointer - pointerfootwear.com Puma - puma.com PXL - PXLclothing.com Supremebeing - supremebeing.com Toy Watch - toywatchwatches.co.uk Vans - vans.co.uk Wrangler - wrangler.com
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(This page) Roland wears vest by NSW and shorts by Nike 6.0 (Opp page) David wears trainers by Nike, shorts by Farah, tee by Crooks & Castles, jacket by Nike and sunglasses by Aldo. Sarah Mei wears trainers by Hunter, socks by Bjorn Borg, crop top by JD sports, vest by Levis and jacket by adidas. Roland wears shoes by Pointer, jeans (models own) and polo top by Nickelson. 41
FASHION NEWS
LACOSTE TWIST IT UP There’s not much RWD like more than the clean line of a classic kick, so we were pretty darn pleased to discover that Lacoste have released a new collection based on their Rene Lacoste 1963 model. In an exploration of the classic shoe, Lacoste’s ‘Rene Twist’ range comes in five silhouettes; each style provides a unique, summery reimagining of the original design and modernises Rene Lacoste’s style, with sleek shapes for a strong but subtle footwear choice. Highlights from the collection include the Rene Nautical, crafted from a rich camel suede, with yachting-inspired accents of woven laces around the sides and heel, and the Rene Overlay, which gives an impression of a shoe-within-ashoe, with its neoprene lining. Lacoste.co.uk
URBAN MOBILITY: PUMA BY HUSSEIN CHALAYAN It’s most likely that you know Puma for their sportswear and retro kicks rather than design-led conceptual fashion, but last month RWD headed down to The Vinyl Factory, London, to check out the global launch of the PUMA by Hussein Chalayan’s AW11 collection, Urban Mobility. The Urban Mobility collection - a full range of apparel, footwear and accessories – is aimed towards the travel enthusiast and inspired by photographic lights and camera mechanics. This season’s key product, the Urban Swift trainer (pictured), was inspired by Chalayan’s Spring / Summer mainline collection, Inertia, which featured latex-molded garments, replicating the effect of movement and speed through the fabric; a comment on the pace of our lives. The Urban Swift are constructed around the silhouette of the classic Puma Clyde with additional injected molded TPU into the back panels of the shoe, creating the impression of speed and force. We reckon wearing them will make you feel like Usain Bolt, without having to move – our idea of a good workout! Urbanmobility.puma.com
DIESEL X ADIDAS ORIGINALS: COLLIDING WORLDS II Diesel is most known for its denim, and adidas Originals for its iconic lifestyle ranges, right? Well, now these two fashion giants have teamed up for a second collaborative project, Colliding Worlds II which sees Diesel redesign six of adidas’s most timeless styles. If you’re tired of stepping out of your house and seeing every man rockin’ the same kicks as you, this one’s you. With inspiration for the brands’ project coming from Diesel apparel, the six adidas restyles demonstrate a real laboratory
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of experiments – workwear, over-treated materials, trekking, rivets, canvas and waxed leather all feature. Each of the six designs is independent in style from the rest of the range. One particular stand-out is the punk inspired The Forum, an ‘all black everything’ design with stud and zipper detailing,. The Colliding Worlds II series will be available in stores from 29 August. Diesel.com and adidas.com.uk/originals
THE DUFFER OF ST. DANNY We couldn’t let this month pass us by without shouting out new menswear model (and RWD Deputy Editor), Danny Walker. The Duffer of St. George took the brave decision to include Mr Walker in the photo shoot for their latest campaign and we have to say, it looks pretty darn good.
CHRIS GOVE, PERCIVAL Worn by the likes of Rick Edwards and Daisy Lowe, Percival is a fledgling London-based brand renowned for their ‘anti-geography teacher’ fit and use of lasting and honest fabrics. Only in its third season, we caught up with owner, Chris Gove... What makes Percival different? We try to inject colour and contrast where possible, just trying to push the colour choices for people in our demographic, and trying to stay true to that as an ethos rather than using the same styles. For example, there’s a noticeable difference between our first and third season. What’s the ‘anti-geography teacher’ fit? We’re not anti-geography teacher, we’re just a bit more pro-PE teacher. We do put an emphasis on silhouette when it comes to styling and branding, but our sizes 4 and 5 are boxey sizes. Not everyone looks good in fitted stuff, so you have to cater for all body shapes. I’m a lanky 6ft person so prefer things fitted. How did you became the owner of a fashion label at just 26? Well, Luke (Percival’s co-founder) and I started [the label] when we were 26, we’re almost 28 now. It has been the steepest learning curve we’ve ever experienced. We can call it a success when we don’t have to freelance anymore. We still have to work a couple of days a week and do Percival every spare evening and weekend! But the fact that people like what we do and our team has expanded from 2 to 8 is a good sign. Percivalclo.com
Danny (RWD’s CEO of fun), joined the likes of Adam Deacon, Goldie and Oh My! to represent RWD in the Duffer ad campaign. RWD’s fashion team were busy at work in Berlin when the shoot took place, so the first we knew of it was when our phones pinged and Danny’s smiling face popped up on our little screens! The ever humble Danny had this to say about the shoot. “I feel privileged to be rocking Duffer in the latest campaign. As many of my colleagues know I’m a bit of a trendsetter when it comes to fashion – although that white tracksuit was a bit much – so this is just the next level.” Between posing for photos, Danny managed a quick catch up with Adam Deacon (we joke, Danny was working very hard) and asked him what importance Duffer played in the Anuvahood wardrobe. “What is good about Duffer is that it’s a make that a lot of young people wear. You walk around the hood and you walk around London and there is kids wearing Duffer, Deacon told Dan. “We’ve got this one scene when Kay/ Kenneth was in the estate and he’s got this blue hoodie on and it just works, cos the look was authentic.”
WE’RE NOT ANTIGEOGRAPHY TEACHER, WE’RE JUST A BIT MORE PRO-PE TEACHER. ...
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REFRESHED
Don’t you just love it when you find the right product, apply it and then women are lusting after you (No? You obviously aren’t using the right stuff). Legendary DJ and producer Martin Solveig tells us his ReFreshment routine... words by Danny Walker images by Bex Edwards “I’m tired most mornings, what should take me half an hour takes me more than an hour.”
“I don’t spend a lot of time on my hair; if you’ve seen my pictures you’ll know I’m not spending time on my hair.” RWD RECOMMENDS:
LOCK, STOCK & BARREL PUCKA GROOMING CREME
(groomingmen.com, £10.45 for 60g) For that carefree-yet-styled approach, British hair care brand LS & B have really gone into the lab to find out what a modern man needs. You don’t have to spend loads of time to apply this pliable style crème too. A small amount on your fingers is more than enough for decent volume.
RWD RECOMMENDS:
FREEDERM FAST TRACK
(freederm.co.uk, £6.39 for 25g) For any last minute face malfunctions it’s all about new Freederm Fast Track. Using the unique rapid action formula – going to work to help visibly reduce any unsightlies in just three hours – this is the perfect skincare solution for those who’d like to look healthier. For any budding DJs who are constantly on the move like Martin, this could be a life saver.
“I use a regular shampoo for poor hair. My hair is not greasy, it’s not dry or whatever... it’s simply poor. Weak [laughs].” RWD RECOMMENDS:
WASH & GO SPORT
“I wet shave. I use a simple razor, one of the ones you only change when you start to cut yourself a lot.” RWD RECOMMENDS:
BOLIN WEBB R1 MACH 3 RAZOR
(carterandbond.com, £34.50) We’re not sure whether to shave with Bolin Webb’s Mach 3 or to get in and drive it. Taking ‘inspiration from the world of premium sports cars’ this will truly stand out from the myriad of miscellaneous products that sit on your sink. Perfect for the wet shave, using Gillette’s Mach 3 head, the contoured handle will ‘handle’ any face. No more cuts.
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(At all good pharmacy’s and supermarkets, £1.99 for 300ml) We love the honesty, but don’t be so harsh on your hair Martin. All it needs is a little love and affection. Luckily Wash & Go Sport, with its 2-in-1 approach, is available for frequent use on all hair types. Yes, even weak/ poor hair. With your DJing life so hectic, W&G Sport will keep your hair clean and manageable.
“[Up and coming DJs/ Producers] can use the Palm Balm, it keeps your hands sweet and soft. So you’re able to type smoothly on the computer, which is very important. You can find the best Palm Balm in Marrakesh.” RWD RECOMMENDS:
TEMPLE SPA PALM BALM
(templespa.com, £18.50 for 100ml) Although you don’t have to go that far for Palm Balm (Marrakesh is pushing it) we found Temple Spa’s aloe, jojoba and vitamin E enthused palm balm to be most special. Well dapper for your digits.
“[Sometimes in the mornings] my brain isn’t connected, sometimes I want to brush my teeth with my razor, which is not a good idea. Sometimes I want to shave with my toothbrush.” RWD RECOMMENDS:
CLARINS MEN SUPER MOISTURE BALM
(clarins.co.uk, £19.20 for 50ml) Nobody likes dry skin (or shaving with a toothbrush), and with key nourishing ingredients like Olive Leaf you’ll be feeling your best all summer. (BR)
AFTERSHAVE OF THE MONTH TERRE D’HERMÈS, L’EAU D’ISSEY POUR HOMME (uk.hermes.com, £38.50 for 75ml) Another unique scent from Hermes, L’Eau d’Issey pour Homme is the ultimate in elegant men’s grooming products. After only six years on the market it has discreetly surfaced as a classic. Its combination of aromas including wood, spice and citrus gives a strong masculine character with a touch of class. Packaged in a stylish glass bottle it resembles the kind of guy that wears it (you can be that guy). A dash of this will ensure to seduce the ladies so next time you’re out it will do all the work for you. (AO)
MARTIN SOLVEIG Firstly, we love Hello. You’ve recently worked with Kele (of Bloc Party fame) on Ready 2 Go. How did you link up? Thanks, I’m super happy about the success Hello had. It was a gift working with Kele; he was one of my favourite singers to collaborate with. I think he is a unique vocal talent. It has some darker dubstep elements too... I’m a bit of an eclectic person, and so it is certainly true that dubstep has been an influence for me in the last year. It was interesting to make a bit of a song with that kind of vibe. It’s absolutely not a dubstep song but there is a little nod. Tell us about your album, Smash... It’s a soundtrack to all of the mini movies and videos I have been doing for the singles. It’s a very straight to the point energetic album. And later this year you’re performing at Smirnoff Sensation at O2? Yeah, it’s a great concept for a party and it comes from Holland. Basically it starts with a very simple point; everyone goes dressed in white. That creates a unity for the whole crowd. The super production makes the role of the DJ more of a collaboration, between the production and the people. It’s not like it’s your show and what you want to give the people. You’re part of a team. It’s really a very special and very good fun to play and apparently it’s very exciting for the people. Lastly, how long do you take to get ready? I take too long [laughs]. I need probably 30 minutes to get ready including shower time. Martin Solveig is performing in London’s O2 area on 13 August when Smirnoff presents Sensation lands in the UK for the very first time. Check out facebook.com/SmirnoffGB for a chance to win VIP prize packages
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NOT SO BLACK AND WHITE COVER STORY WRETCH 32
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COVER STORY WRETCH 32 9 March 1985 The son of a reggae DJ, he was born and grew up on Tottenham’s Tiverton Estate.
Wretch 32’s lifestyle might be ‘terribly wild’ - finalising his first album, Black and White, signed to Levels/ Ministry of Sound, touring off the back of Top 5 singles Traktor Ft. L and The Stone Roses sampling Unorthodox Ft. Example and being there for a five year-old son, Kyrayn. But there’s one thing Danny Walker knows about Jermaine Scott... not only will you never catch him on The Jeremy Kyle show, you’ll never see him with an bottle of Lucozade tattooed on his face... directed by DJB styling by Neesha Sharma grooming by Analisa Sarno
June 2006 Features in RWD Magazine.
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September 1996 Attends Northumberland Park Community School.
Ever since Wretch 32’s impromptu visit to the RWD office in May 2006 – when the Arsenal supporting Tottenhamnative handed me a copy of what I then described on my blog as a CD ‘well worth the £5’ – little did I know I’d regard the tracks on his debut, Learn From My Mixtape, so highly. Since then, not only do I still listen to that early body of work but I’ve watched him go from radio sets to Radio 1 A-list and still maintain credibility. Firstly, how is everything going? It’s been good, normally I’m a bit adverse to photoshoots but nah, today’s been cool man. Me and the photographer have been cool and running joke, and that’s how I like it. Yeah, we saw you in diva mode... Nah, you know what it is, I really like to look as normal and as natural as possible. Firstly, where do the numbers in Wretch 32 come from, people always ask me and I’ve never found out... They’ve always been my lucky numbers. When I sat down to write my first lyric, I wrote ‘Wretch’ and then I was gonna write 32 bars after that, I wrote ‘Wretch 32 bars’ and I thought, ‘That looks so interesting... let me put some numbers in the name.’ What did you listen to when you were growing up? Growing up I listened to a lot of dancehall, for me Beanie Man and Bounty Killer were the one. I kinda found rap late, once I got into it I was into Ma$e quite a lot. Good Ma$e or bad Ma$e? You know there was a time when he weren’t really cutting it... and there was Murder Ma$e... [Laughs] Yeah, not the hard one, the fun one. So what was life like growing up? Growing up was cool, my mum was really strict though. Extremely strict... And dad, he was a reggae DJ, right? Dad was cool, my whole life I’ve looked up to my dad. Yeah, yeah... Dad was cool. Let me tell you about the first time I heard about Wretch, some crazy came to the RWD office to drop off some CDs, which was great. What were you like at 2006 Forms The Movement alongside Ghetto, Scorcher, Mercston, Devlin and DJ Unique.
May 2006 First mixtape, Learn From My Mixtape is released featuring Scorcher.
the start... It’s mad because in the beginning, you just wanna be heard, you can just hear hunger and saliva, dripping from my mouth in the beginning. That was just me thinking about the maddest concepts and the sickest punchlines, the maddest flows. Half of them things, I couldn’t even perform them now. Cos I’ve left no space. The flow was so tight, there’s no gaps. Looking back at Learn From My Mixtape, are you proud of it? Yeah! Hell yeah, every so often I just sit there as an artist and think... ‘Let me see how I’ve evolved,’ have a listen, it’s weird. A lot of the things that I say, fast forward and it’s happened. Like, ‘I want my disc to be in every car like yearly tax’... That was just me, wanting to have the CD in their car. Now they’ve got my CD. What’s been your favourite track to date? You know what, I really like [J.F.L.O.W.S produced, reflective] All That I Need, I really like [grammar rich] Punctuation, My Life they were on Teacher’s Training Day... it’s difficult because different songs give me different things. Ok, now to your new stuff, did you think Unorthodox and Traktor would be so big? Traktor, I didn’t think would be a Top 10 if I’m honest. I thought Top 40. Not even thought, I hoped. You’ve got to remember that was my first proper release, everyone was like, ‘Nah, nah... you’ll be alright’ but you don’t know. People just might not like it. There are songs on the [Radio 1] A-List that just don’t go in higher, with Traktor I was just like, ‘I want to do something hard! I want to say motherf**ker on the chorus, I want to rap with a flow, I want to be funny, I want to have a dirty bassline and I wanted to go with this...’ they were like, ‘Cool, let’s go with it.’ With Unorthodox, I wanted to make a song that emulates British culture. The only voice I could hear in my head was Example’s. What do you think of his new hair? [Laughs] He couldn’t care less about doing his hair all nice; he’s a musician. He’s just like me, I can’t be arsed; >> 6 October 2008 Releases debut album Wretchrospective
‘WITH TRAKTOR I WAS JUST LIKE, I WANT TO DO SOMETHING HARD! I WANT TO SAY MOTHERF**KER ON THE CHORUS, I WANT TO RAP WITH A FLOW, I WANT TO BE FUNNY, I WANT TO HAVE A DIRTY BASELINE...’
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COVER STORY WRETCH 32
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Dec 2008/ Sept / Dec 2010 Features in RWD Magazine.
<< one hair cut, one level. I keep my grizzle/ my beard... [grabs chin] I’m not cutting this off. Have people asked you to de-grizzle? Yeah, ‘Neaten up.’ If I neaten up I’m Tinchy Stryder! Not musically but... he doesn’t have a beard. If he gets a bit of grizzle, he’s Wretch 32 [laughs]. Wow, that is a fine line... Yeah, someone has got to have the beard, someone has to be clean-shaven, someone has to have the afro. I’ve got to have that level one... Tell us why life is just black and white? I think everything is just plain. It’s just me looking at everything how it is, in black and white... it’s about seeing things for what they are! Tell us about the second album. It’s been a long time coming. It’s just a Wretch album, it’s with singles that have done well. Literally, the difference with this and Wretchrospective is writing; I’m trying to get better, I’m trying to get the choruses a lot better. I think my choruses haven’t always been strong. What producers have you got on there... We still got Wizzy Wow on there, we still got J.F.L.O.W.S. he done [All That I Need], which was on Wretchrospective. We got Future Cut, who made Unorthodox, we got a Labrinth beat on there. What would you say your favourite track on the album is? That is always a difficult one. It’s like asking which one of your kids you love more. I dunno... I like Forgiveness and a track called Please Don’t Let Me Go and Sane’s The New Mad; that is about me not playing it safe anymore... Have you had any regrets? When I did Punctuation a lot of people were saying to me that is was a mistake. People were like, ‘You don’t make no money off tracks like that’... I didn’t get bookings off it. Everyone else was getting bookings, I weren’t making no money. I was just getting more... I was going into schools giving talks. It put me into a different light. I think the good thing about Punctuation was that it showed that I just cared about not 18 April 2011 Unorthodox Ft. Example reaches No.2 in the official UK chart.
9 February 2009 Releases Wretch32.com which features Superhero Remix with Wiley.
making a hit and just putting out a song that I thought was sick. I could have made the cheesiest song. Maybe a song about Wotsits... A cheesy song about Wotsits, you’re a true lyricist... [Laughs] Yeah, and people would still say, ‘But nah... he done that one.’ I’m just glad I done it instead of Wretch Yeah, that would have got us some bookings, it would have earned a couple of hundred pounds here and there. I think now, I wouldn’t have been taken as serious, so everything has worked out. In terms of home life is your son, Kyrayn, a fan of your music? You know what? He’s probably more of a fan of Chipmunk than me! Is that bad? No, no! Because I realise Chipmunk is more catchy than me. There hasn’t been a song of Chip that he doesn’t like. He’s five. It’s weird because when I found out it was a boy and I was just having a conversation with my uncle, he was like ‘The boy is harder to raise than the girl’. I said ‘Why’s that?’ and he said because with the girl you’re going to show her so much love, you’re going to hug her and kiss her. With the boy, you want him to be a man so you’re trying be tough with him and it’s difficult to find the balance. What would be the one thing you’d like to pass on or teach him?
17 January 2011 Traktor Ft. L reaches No.5 in the official UK chart.
I don’t want him to think that anything comes easy because it’s hard, you know. My mum’s the queen of tough love man, that’s what she installed in me like if you fall over you get back up. My mum threw me out when I was 16 so I had to learn the hard way. What about your favourite tattoo? Probably the ‘3, 2’ on my face. When did you get that and why? I got this one first [points to left cheek], this was when my son was born it means ‘Father’ in Chinese and then I got ‘3,2’ probably about six months after. There is a lot of people jumping on the face tattoos, would you ever get an ice cream on your face? No!!! Maybe a choc ice... maybe a icelolly or a bottle of Lucozade [laughs]. If they paid you enough would you get a bottle of Lucozade on your face? You couldn’t pay me enough money to put a bottle of Lucozade on my face. And lastly, what’s next after your tour, what’s your next goal? I want the world to respect artists from the UK as rappers. When they do a list of the best worldwide rappers, I want one of us in that list. The single Don’t Go Ft. Josh Kumra is out 14 August, followed by the album Black and White on 22 August on Ministry of Sound/ Levels. Wretch32.com
WRETCH ON WRETCH
We ask the artist if he can recognise his own lyrics... This should be easy, I wrote them. “I’ve got a good heart...” Unorthodox!!! “And when I got introduced to ya...” Don’t Go! “It’s weird cos it’s busy in the bits...” Breathe (Shaa La La) “...but we still can’t find who’s p***ing in the lift.” Yep. Yeah. “They say you can’t die with your money so I don’t spend time counting my money,” Oh, Be Cool. Cool, cool... “No homo n*****, I’m no Bruno,’...
15 August 2011 The single Don’t Go Ft. Josh Kumra is out.
No Bruno... Ahhhh. Yes, we got him. [Bursts into rhyme] ‘I’m no Bruno, and I ain’t never been [mumbles]...’ Ah sh*t, what’s it called. It’s track one on Wretch 32.com, what’s the name? I know exactly what song it is... [pauses] I just can’t remember the name... ‘You got me up against the...’ Rope A Dope!!! He’s got it... “And I feel it in my soul...” Don’t Go... “...It’s like you’re always with me on the road.” So what is that, 6/6... Yeah, that is not bad for someone who wrote ‘em.
22 August 2011 The album Black and White released. Guests include Example, Chipmunk and Ed Sheeran. 51
JACK WHITEHALL’S GUIDE TO LOVE AND LUST
52 / RWDMAG.COM
JACK WHITEHALL’S GUIDE TO LOVE AND LUST Just when you thought Jack Whitehall was all about stand up comedy, ridiculing celebrities on Stand Up for the Week (including himself after his own cocaine shame last year) and being television’s comedic menace, the recently turned 23 year-old talks RWD through the world of Love and Lust... Story told by Danny Walker
Jack Whitehall was born Jack Peter Benedict Whitehall in 1988 to lovely parents Hilary and John. He went to a lovely school (Robert Pattinson attended, so you know it was pleasant). He has a lovely sister, Molly and a lovely brother, Barnaby. He loves Arsenal (“when they lost the Carling Cup Final. I was so depressed,”) he also loves the finer things in life (“I’m definitely the best on Call of Duty, people fear me online, when I get that headset on I terrorise and kill them all, I don’t hold back.”) and he loves performing in the Scottish capital (“Edinburgh’s got The Stand which is definitely one of the best comedy clubs in the UK.”) But did you know Jack Whitehall is hiding a secret, he’s never actually been in love!?!?! Sure Jack’s been in lust a few times, but never the real deal. He opens up to guide us through the pitfalls, of love and lust...
TO LOVE OR TO LUST, THAT IS THE QUESTION “I’m currently looking for lust as well as love... I’d like both possibly. Maybe I’ll find love off the back of lust.”
HOW TO FIND LOVE
“Don’t ask me, I don’t know how to find love, I’ve never managed to find the right person really. I look for the wrong kind of person. I want someone that will look after me. I want basically my mum – I don’t think I’ll ever find that.”
HOW TO FIND LUST “Student nights!!!”
THE CAPITAL OF LUST
“Of course the place to go for lust is... I’ve been watching Geordie Shore. It’s like the epicentre of lust, there’s so much lust in that city its secondary to Chlamydia in terms of where lust thrives... It’s incredible. They’re like rotting animals there, it’s so funny, just no respect.” >>
“GEORDIE SHORE IS LIKE THE EPICENTRE OF LUST, THERE’S SO MUCH LUST IN THAT CITY IT’S SECONDARY TO CHLAMYDIA IN TERMS OF WHERE LUST THRIVES... IT’S INCREDIBLE. THEY’RE LIKE ROTTING ANIMALS THERE, IT’S SO FUNNY, JUST NO RESPECT.”
Jack Whitehall has a go at simply assigning ‘Love’ or ‘Lust’ to the following celebrities: Lady Gaga, Carol Vorderman, Cheryl Cole, Megan Fox and Katy Perry... So firstly Lady Gaga? Erm... we can go clothes shopping in a butchers maybe? [Laughs] Yeah couple of steaks and she’s good to go. Would you lust over or love her? I would probably lust I think well actually I dunno, I worry in my lust am I the giver or the receiver of the lusting? I don’t want her bumming me. [Laughs] Carol Vorderman? Oh erm Yeahhhh. She’s a motherly figure so I guess love. Cheryl Cole? Lust. What kind of lust, good lust or bad lust? Yeah lots of lust. [Laugh] Megan Fox? Erm lust cos she looks like she’s f**king really irritating. [Laughs] ...and lastly Katy Perry? Erm well I think it would have to be lust because if I loved her then I would have to be like Russell Brand and I’ve really had enough people saying I’m trying to be like him so getting with his missus probably wouldn’t help.
53
JACK WHITEHALL’S GUIDE TO LOVE AND LUST
<< LUST ON SET
“Right now I’m in the middle of filming Fresh Meat with Joe Thomas [Inbetweeners], everyone’s hitched up, I’m the only one that doesn’t have anyone in my life. I’m up there feeling all lonely in my Winnebego crying into scripts. It’s fun though, I’ve actually done a lot of sex scenes and I’ve never done them before which is quite a bizarre experience, I have to wear these posing socks.” 54 / RWDMAG.COM
CAN POSING SOCKS OF LUST LEAD TO LOVE?
“No! But I was worried about getting aroused. You’re there but with like 10 members of the crew around you who are all suppressing sniggers.”
THE LAST PERSON I LUSTED OVER WAS…
“[Underwear model] Rosie HuntingtonWhiteley. She’s fit isn’t she? She’s also related to my nanny, the lady who
bought me up. We had no idea as she only announced it the other day and I was like, ‘Well you could have erm, told me that earlier’.”
HAVE I EVER HAD MY HEARTBROKEN?
“Yes, I’ve been dumped by text; that was pretty sh*t. ‘Just can’t see you anymore,’ I’m over it now [sobs uncontrollably].
“LADY GAGA? I WOULD PROBABLY LUST [AFTER HER] I THINK WELL ACTUALLY I DUNNO, I WORRY IN MY LUST AM I THE GIVER OR THE RECEIVER OF THE LUSTING? I DON’T WANT HER BUMMING ME.” A QUICK GUIDE TO DOING A SEX SCENE
TOP TIP: NEVER LUST AFTER THY NEIGHBOUR (OR SOMEONE CLOSE TO YOU)
“I’d never do it because I’ve had it done to me. My best mate goes out with my sister. [I found out by] walking in on them!!!”
FINALLY, LOVE OR LUST!!!
“Well I haven’t really had the first one so I don’t have anything to compare it to. I’d like to find the first one but at the moment I have to put up with the second.”
For the full interview – where Jack Whitehall talks FIFA sessions, confronting career-threatening scandal and writing that killer stand up routine – check RWDmag.com. Jack will be doing two separate shows in Edinburgh, Let’s Not Speak of This Again and Back Chat, followed by live dates nationwide in the Autumn – check out jackwhitehall.com for all bookings
Firstly, there’s light on you because normally you end up doing them the last scene of the day, which has to be closed set so only people that are strictly necessary are there. You’ll always do them after you’ve filmed from like six o’clock in the morning. They film the morning after first, then the actual sex which is quite a good way of doing it. Imagine, [you could look at them and say] ‘Do I really want to get jiggy with it?’ It’s funny, Kim [who I did the scene with] she’s lovely, she’s got a boyfriend of seven years, he’s a guy she’s grown up with in Wales he’s a proper big Valley boy, kick the sh*t out of me with his little finger so I was desperate not to get any arousal cos if he found out he’d come round and beat me up. Lastly, it’s weird, I bumped into one of the girls I’ve done one of the sex scenes with the other night when I was out at a bar with friends. I’ve bumped into people I’ve had actual sex with, which was pretty awkward, but it’s even more awkward when it’s people you’ve done [sex] scenes with. 55
INTERVIEW SKYLAR GREY
OUT OF THE WOODS
Having co-written some of the past year’s most successful hits, Nardene Scott meets Skylar Grey to talk tea, new celeb buddies, Marshall Mathers and the journey to her upcoming album Invinsible. image by Karen Storey
“It’s surprisingly blue skies and quite sunny and I’m not very pleased. I was looking forward to the gloom,” the all black everything singer/songwriter Skylar tells RWD on the roof of Universal’s HQ in west London. Although this statement may seem strange to most people, when you’ve been living in southern California for a while it makes sense; it’s also one of the reasons why Holly Brook changed her name. “Grey is my favourite colour because it represents the unknown where all your possibilities lie and Skylar comes from the grey skies,” she explains of her name change. “I feel most creative when it’s raining, storming and sad.” Em’s Love The Way You Lie, Diddy’s Coming Home, Dre’s I Need A Doctor, Lupe’s Words I Never Said... all of these would not be the hits they are today without those unique hooks, but the talented 25 year-old has struggled to make it to this point. “I have been in the music industry for a really long time,” she points outs. After dropping out of high school (already having three indie albums under her belt) and moving to LA from Wisconsin, things started to look up after Skylar signed to Linkin Park’s Warner Bros imprint. Although this turned out to be the first lesson in industry know how. “I got a publisher but everything else crumbled, my financial situation went downhill and my personal relationships dwindled away, everything fell apart.” So the tea fanatic moved out to a cabin in the woods of Oregon, which is where the oolong obsessive wrote Love The Way. To call this song a success would be an understatement; garnering awards galore, the video has had over 350 million views and topped charts across the globe. Yet it was all done over email between the woods dwelling woman and producer Alex Da Kid. The relationship between the two 56 / RWDMAG.COM
was obviously a hit, as the pair moved on to Diddy Dirty Money’s Coming Home. “It finally validated what I was doing,” the onetime folk singer says . “All my life I’ve been fighting to do music. I think by the time the Grammy’s came around it all made sense.” Just because she’s worked with such icons - “Dre was one of the sweetest guys I have ever met and Diddy was funny as hell,” - doesn’t necessarily mean the small town girl grew up around hip hop or even knew who Dre was. RWD hears there was even a little Google action before I Need A Doctor! She might have ‘forgot about Dre’, but it was Marshall who ensured the singer’s vocals stayed on. “He stood up for me. They said that we should get Gaga or someone and Eminem was like ‘Why? Don’t take her voice off the song. It was cool that he stood up for me”. Her debut, Invinsible [sic], will only feature herself and Alex, however. “Even though it’s just the two of us, every song sounds completely diverse because we pushed each other so much,” she says of the album containing solely Da Kid beats. “It’s hard to juggle 10 boyfriends right? So I want to stick with Alex.” Also don’t expect to see any more appearances on Detox etc. “I don’t like to repeat history,” she smiles. No worries Ms. Grey, we’re sure there’s more history to be made. Invisible is out 11 September. Invinsible dropping later this year. Twitter.com/skylargrey
“Team Love - I’m more of a romantic person!”
“THEY SAID ‘WE SHOULD GET LADY GAGA OR SOMEONE’ AND EMINEM WAS LIKE ‘WHY? DON’T TAKE HER VOICE OFF THE SONG. IT WAS COOL THAT HE STOOD UP FOR ME.”
57
ART BEAT INTERVIEW SWIZZ BEATS
Since ruffing up hip hop with DMX back in the ‘90s, to injecting Kanye’s Power with a little Snap, Swizz Beats is three decades deep in the drum-bashing game. Hattie Collins catches up with the NYC composer to see how art, music, love and trainers inform his life...
Something not everyone knows about Swizz is your interest in making and collecting art. Tell us about your introduction to the art world... My love from art came from living in the south Bronx, hearing about people like Keith Haring and being surrounded by graffiti everywhere - even on the trains. Now I have hundreds of pieces. From Dali’s to Basquiat’s, Warhol, Shephard Fairey... Haring... Banksy... I have a Damian Hirst... I have a lot of art. The Dali I have - it’s drawn in pencil and it has all the iconic Dali symbols in it. It’s pretty amazing. What enjoyment do you get from art? The enjoyment is in knowing that art is timeless. It’s priceless. There’s no right or wrong way to appreciate art - it’s your expression. Art isn’t for everyone. I like mixed media. Some people may not like that, and may only like realism or photography... you just have to open your mind up and see what you like. You have a bunch of art tattoos too? [Shows a Basquiat tattoo] I got that, this one’s a Shepard Fairey. I have a Hirst tattoo, a Mohammad Ali, a Keith Haring... Reebok Back! How come you chose to 58 / RWDMAG.COM
work with Reebok, as opposed to any other brand? It came about through a mutual friend - I was in the middle of picking something different to do, coming from Christian Laboutin [Swizz designed sneakers for the fancy French footwear company]. I wanted to do something closer to our culture and I’ve always been fascinated by Reebok. So I analysed the situation - every other company already has this all-star team - and there was simply space for me at Reebok. It’s a place I can build something and be responsible for that. It’s mega. How has Reebok come back so hard? The main thing is directly injecting into culture. A lot of people have ads on TV and stuff - but that goes over people’s heads a bit. Not a lot of people are taking the time right now to be different. Reebok caters to different markets from the basement to the penthouse. Like Reebok Back, they shot that video. They got the world saying ‘Reebok back’. They appreciate those spontaneous things because after all, art is freedom and expression. When cool people are approving these things, everyone’s open-minded and it’s the whole family the sky’s not the limit, it’s just a view. What are you listening to right now? On my way here I had Rick Ross The Boss. I don’t listen to my own stuff too much. After I work on them, they’re done. I like music from around the world. I’ll have Adele, Rick Ross or Fela Kuti or some vintage Carlos Santana. Is it true you’re setting up a duet with Alicia and Adele? That was um... wishful thinking. I haven’t spoken to Alicia seriously about that. I would love to be responsible for that collaboration. Just a stripped-back instrumentation, a piano or maybe a violin... something which would represent real, authentic music. Seeing my wife perform at the Royal Albert Hall recently with just a piano I was like, ‘Imagine her and Adele teaming up on something like that... it would be legendary. If we could get Alesha, Adele, and Sade? Overload. Tell us about your new album, Haute Living, with Kanye, Mary, Bono... I have the best people involved in this project, I have seventeen bangers, seventeen missiles to launch. Growing up in the south Bronx, did you think you’d end up working with Bono? I never thought any of this would happen. He’s one of the funniest guys I
ever met, too. He has an amazing spirit, and he’s always there for me and my wife. He’s an amazing person and I’m blessed to have him in my project - he really wanted to. He came and sang his part two or three times, just to make sure everything was straight. How would you describe your relationship with Jay-Z and Kanye? With those two it’s like brothers. Kanye is like my younger brother and Jay is like my bigger brother. I’m in the middle. It’s an honour to work with both of them. I have them both working together on the Watch The Throne album and seeing that process was like ‘Wow...’ Everyone came a long way. They work the same way a little bit. What can we expect from that? Greatness but I hate giving up other people’s stories. You’ll see soon. How was working with Nicki Minaj? A breath of fresh air. It was like, finally, I’m back in the studio with a female artist. The last one before Nicki was Eve. You see Nicki, so young and so focused - it’s fun times. I’m about to do it again, too. For her new album. Are you still in touch with Cassidy and DMX? I’m back and forth with Cassidy. I started Cassidy from the bottom up and he decided to go and do his own thing and I let him. Despite having a lot invested in him and him wanting to just up and leave, I respected it. Now, when he calls up and it’s so urgent and plans don’t work out - what am I supposed to do, jump off the boat? We can have a man-to-man conversation. Not on Twitter.... [But] I support him, I support DMX, but it’s about timing. There’s only twenty-four hours in the day, you know what I mean? Who is the greatest producer ever? The greatest is Quincy Jones, who has the most experience and has broken the biggest records of all time. Competing with Thriller - who can do that?
SEEING MY WIFE PERFORM AT THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL RECENTLY WITH JUST A PIANO I WAS LIKE, ‘IMAGINE HER AND ADELE TEAMING UP ON SOMETHING LIKE THAT... IT WOULD BE LEGENDARY. IF WE COULD GET ALESHA, ADELE, AND SADE? OVERLOAD.
Swizzworld.com. Twitter.com/ therealswizzz. Reebok Classics are available from JD and retailers nationwide. Werclassic.com
“One million per cent love. It’s a love generation.” It’s 3-1 to love!
59
UPFRONT WITH... CHRIS “KAMMY” KAMARA
UPFRONT WITH… CHRIS “KAMMY” KAMARA Very few football pundits can claim to unite fans the way Chris “Kammy” Kamara does. Kammy’s enthusiasm, natural charisma and the occasional hilarious slip-up are coupled with a knowledge of, and pure love for, the beautiful game which make him one of the most popular personalities in the game. Tego Sigel caught-up with the Middlesbrough born defender the week he came down from a charity hike up Mount Kilimanjaro this summer to talk Transfers, FIFA, Barcelona and a possible Team GB...
Are you a fan of the transfer window? I think it restricts the clubs to be fair but it’s set in stone. There’s nothing you can do about it at this moment in time, so you’ve just got to play it as it is. The fact is, it’s slowed down a lot since it’s been applied, because we used to have plenty of money and we didn’t worry that we’d see a player and as soon as the season ends buy him. Now, because of the wages people are earning, they wait until the very last minute, sometimes once the season has started, they wait until the last minute before they know their commitment. Do you think the Transfer Window is a rule designed by FIFA and UEFA to limit the growth of English football? Yeah, I really believe that. I believe that we have been victimised over the years, I honestly believe that. If you look at the rankings today that we’ve been moved up to fourth, is that something to appease us? It can’t possibly be down to what happened in the World Cup or what has happened since. It just sounds ridiculous. Is that because we challenged Sepp Blatter’s position and now he wants to make us feel more comfortable, higher up the rankings within FIFA? It doesn’t make sense. If they’re going to put us higher up the rankings, they have to come out and justify their reason for doing that and there’s not, it’s just the case that England are now higher than they possibly were, or deserve to be. I can 60 / RWDMAG.COM
remember the World Cup in ‘66 because I was fortunate enough, I was young enough to watch it on the television but for the rest of the people, my son’s will never see a World Cup in this country. Not in my lifetime.
“I DON’T THINK BARCELONA WOULD WIN THE PREMIER LEAGUE, I REALLY DON’T, BECAUSE IT WOULD BE TOO PHYSICAL, TOO HIGH-TEMPO” Do you think Sir Alex Ferguson’s changing much with the players he’s brought in or do you think he’s just going with what’s been successful for the last 20 years? When you lose to Barcelona, obviously Sir Alex is a wonderful coach and the best manager of my lifetime, but I just wonder whether you go and you sit down with your coaches and you have a philosophy and a plan, or you think ‘We’ll never be able to do what they’ve done, we’re never going to be as good as that’. I don’t think Barcelona would win the Premier League, I really don’t, because it would be too physical, too high-tempo. I watch the Spanish football all the time and it’s a game of chess when Barcelona play teams, it’s like war, they wait for a team to make a
STATS
Born: Middlesbrough Debut: Portsmouth, 1975 Date of Birth: 25 December 1957 Career Appearances: 733 Career Goals: 85 Position: Defender/ Midfielder Clubs Played For: 9 (Portsmouth, Swindon Town, Portsmouth, Brentford, Stoke City, Leeds United, Luton Town, Sheffield United, Middlesbrough, Bradford City) Total Transfer Fees: £412,000 Clubs Managed: 2 (Bradford City, Stoke City) Catchphrase: Unbelievable Jeff! Honours: 989/ 09 Championship (Leeds)/ Promotion as manager of Stoke City (1995/96)/ Chris Kamara was named one of the Black Collective of Media in Sport’s most influential black people in football. Twitter Followers: @Chris_Kammy 243,801
mistake and as soon as they make a mistake or have a player out of position they capitalise on it and in the Premier League they would find it very, very difficult. They would find playing that football very difficult. What do you think about there, potentially, being a Team GB? I’m looking forward to it now! If it was to happen and obviously we sat in a room last night and worked out who would be available, the players that would carry the British flag so to speak in terms of football, it would be exciting to be in with a chance of actually winning a Gold medal. I still maintain that if there is a football tournament, which there will be, in the Olympics, that we have to be involved, it’s as simple as that. We can’t not be involved and it’s not about amateurs anymore. Because a lot of these people within the Olympics, through all these events earn good money now. Very, very good money. So they’re able to enjoy that lifestyle of being successful as well as competing in the Olympics. So why shouldn’t football have professionals? Now all football fans have the chance to let your voice be heard and pick your own GB Football Dream Team by visiting skysports.com/WashandGoDreamTeam. If your Dream 11 matches Kammy’s, you could be in with a chance of winning an ultimate football trip to Brazil.
61
BLUKU BLUKU TRACK BY TRACK D DOUBLE E
One of the UK’s leading lyricists D Double E hardly needs an intro. We’ve lost count of how many times he’s been between our pages, so being special, he treated us to an exclusive listen of his new EP. Nardene Scott allows the E9 spitter to break the eagerly anticipated release down, track by track... image by James Pearson-Howes
ON BLUKU BLUKU FT. DIZZEE RASCAL...
S-X has been sending me a few beats still and this beat was the one that I was feeling. I just laid it down on a practice one, just like murking and then I laid it down properly. When Dizzee heard it, he was just like ‘Yeah man I’m feeling it’ and then he dropped a verse on it as well, it wasn’t even planned. The video is already done, it’s looking live, Tim & Barry and Ben Drury shot the video. Boy, I definitely have some new phrases but right now it’s Bluku season.
ON LYRICAL FARDAH...
Logan does the intro on this one hailing me up as that Lyrical Fardah but yeah there’s a lot of good MC’s man. I don’t really look at MC’s to challenge them, I’m on my own thing; like every MC has their own thing it’s just which one works and which one doesn’t. I know my skills definitely work so because I know that, I’m alright. This is produced by Musical D too from Dirtee Stank.
ON PUT THE MONEY IN IT...
This track is just like a schooling track; just telling people it’s not worth it, d’ya know them ones... like I went in on this one! Footsie on production, it’s one of them tracks where I just went old skool on them, a lot of energy. Footsie is a big producer still, more time he’ll just build a beat and if he can see me on it, he’ll give it to me. 62 / RWDMAG.COM
ON LET IT BLOW...
It’s Footsie again!!! Yeah man people begging man, that’s what made that concept come about. I’ve had the deepest ones like people offering me a sip of their drink, swapsies and just one person coming up to me out of the blue like ‘Can I just have two draws’ and just walk off, it’s mad! If you’re a smoker then you know what I’m talking about.
ON BE LIKE ME FT. SMURFIE SYCO...
It’s dubstep but it’s got a different sort of swing to it, Smurfie Syco is the vocalist on this. Smurfie done the chorus ‘You wanna be like me’ after I done what I done so it might have added more of that aggressive ooze to it. The first verse is just about a little kid watching me on TV and he’s an MC trying to make it and I say ‘Yeah maybe’ and then the next verse is on that vibe where guys are trying to copy me but it’s nothing because I’m blessed and them man are stressed. The third verse is like you just want to be like me and light up the dance like me. I like that ooze that Smurfie did because I want people to think about it.
ON FLAVA...
I’m from the jungle days, so it’s got that little old skool jungle vibe and yeah Toddla T smashed it. Basically we went to do another tune with Toddla, (Gyptian remix) and he was like, ‘Oh I’ve got a
FACTS ABOUT THE BLUKU BLUKU EP 30-40 tracks were originally recorded for the BB EP with beats from Silencer, Modestep, Shy FX, Cage, Redlight, Doorly and more. The Bluku Bluku EP had been a year in the making except in January the project was totally switched around leaving four months to put it together. RWD met D Double E at the viral shoot for Lyrical Fardah just before the interview; there’s going to be visuals for every track off of the EP. Expect a Rapid production DEE jumped on called Pumpin It Out to drop as a free download soon. There’s talk of a Bluku Bluku Pt. 2 this year with an album dropping 2012 so we’re guessing those extra tracks will be getting an airing soon.
little beat here mate, dya wanna have a little butchers?’ and then it was like ‘Oi jack ‘em!’ I layed it down that minute done and dusted as soon as he played it; I was like saaaafe, lenged him.
CATCH ME IF YOU CAN FT. EXAMPLE...
I met Example in Ibiza for the first time and we was hanging out because he knows my manager Cage and my tour manager and he came up to me like ‘Yo D Double E, the vibe is just right tonight, I feel live tonight’ he was spitting me my bars and just like yeah we should do a tune together. I met him again and again and finally exchanged numbers and he came to Dirtee Stank laid down the chorus and it fitted perfect with Skream on production. Bluku Bluku is out June 25 You can catch Twitter.com/DDoubleE7 on tour supporting Sean Paul, also performing at upcoming Global Gathering and Outlook Festivals.
“Love. There’s quite a few nice celebrities. There’s nice like Cheryl Cole or nice like Nicki Minaj nice, one is more of a goody goody and one is more of a baddy but they’re both nice...I’m a love guy man, my mum brought me up well.” 4-1!!!!!
63
INTERVIEW COCKNBULLKID
COCKNBULLKID Get ready for the “youthquake”, as Victoria Park once again plays host to this year’s Underage festival. One of the most anticipated artists set to play alongside Florrie and Janelle Monáe is Anita Blay, AKA CocknBullKid. The Hackney singer and writer has come a long way in the last few years, moving away from gritty homegrown electro-pop to an album woven with flowing melodies. Candice CartyWilliams grabbed her for a chat..
What was the reason behind the transition from your bedroom produced MySpace era songs, like Clean Apart to your polished album sound? Well for me, this has all been a complete learning process. So from then until now, in my MySpace days, the songs I’ve been writing, and the decisions that I’ve made, it’s all been about finding myself. That’s why the album is called Adulthood, because it’s basically been about me growing up and developing my sound. You’ve been writing for other artists, such as Nicola Roberts. Do you see yourself as behind the scenes? Yes, for Nicola, as well as other artists, and what some people don’t realise is, I started out as a writer and see myself
64 / RWDMAG.COM
as that foremost. I’ve pretty much always been obsessed with learning how to master the perfect pop song, so when some reviews for my album said I’d ‘sold out’ because essentially, I had learnt how to write a confident pop song, I was baffled. Where do your pop writing influences lie? Growing up, I was a super pop head - a massive Britney, Christina, 5ive, East 17 fan.... Are you happy with Adulthood? The whole thing has been about finding myself and my sound, and every decision I’ve made shows that. I felt with my earlier stuff it sounded very frustrated, and Adulthood is about trying to be coherent in what I’m saying. That’s what pop is.
So what’s the plan now? More touring, I’ve got a fair few festivals this summer ... plus I’m going to start writing for the next record as well as for other artists. Tell us about Underage Festival... I’m really looking forward to playing Underage in August. I always get asked by the younger fans to play gigs so I’m very excited to finally get the chance. I’m fully expecting unadulterated Red Bull fuelled madness. I wanna see the kids lose their sh*t! Cocknbullkid plays Underage Festival 5 August, Victoria Park, Tower Hamlets, E3. For tickets underagefestivals.com. Cocknbullkid.com
UNWIND
GADGETS | GAMES | FILMS | GIG GUIDE | ALBUMS
>>
THE BEST OF STAYING IN... AND GOING OUT... SAMSUNG D8000 55” SMART 3D LED TV
(samsung.co.uk, From £1800) If your current HDTV (if you can call it that) is non-3D, far from colour-rich and lacking ‘apps’ like iPlayer, Twitter and Skype, not to mention a full web browser then you need to take out a miniature loan and upgrade your sh*t. There’s something about Samsung’s sexy Series 8 LED Smart TVs that make us want to stay in. Forever.
ETS GADGUST TO L ER... AFT
>> 67
UNWIND GADGET GUIDE
GADGET GUIDE: THE BEST OF SET TOP BOXES
Is it ok to be romantically involved with an inanimate object? We’re not saying we are or anything, we’re just asking... Words by Danny Walker
VIRGIN MEDIA TV POWERED BY TIVO® 1TB
(virginmedia.com, £199 plus XL Package costs £26.50 p/m) Terrestrial television? What the hell is that? You mean there was a time when you could only get four/ five channels on a non-HD TV? Anyway, enough reminiscing about the Dark Ages as Virgin Media have brought the weird and wonderful world of TiVo to our (Geordie) shores. Despite knowing very little about TiVo itself, apart from being included in lethargic Pitbull lyrics and mentioned in almost every US show, great excitement ensued after finding out the service was UK-bound. When the 1TB black box finally landed, that exhilaration continued.
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SETUP TIME
Being three minutes shy of the recommended 40 minute installation time was a great start for this V+ HD upgrade and it was a case of good things coming to those who wait when the menus and (slightly bulkier) remote were finally ready to be messed with. The first thing you notice about the new ‘Home’ interface is the variety of shows displayed in an interesting carousel called the ‘Discovery Bar’. Everything from Family Guy to TopGear is showcased and along with the inclusion of apps, games and YouTube, the functionality of the service is enhanced tenfold. Coupled with ‘Suggestions’, On Demand programming and an excellent 14 day TV Guide, the TiVo experience is a huge leap forwards.
QUICK TIP: HOLD THE ‘POWER’ BUTTON ON THE REMOTE FOR A FEW SECONDS AND IT WILL TURN YOUR TV OFF INSTEAD OF THE TIVO BOX.
THUMBS UP/ THUMBS DOWN As well as the massive yellow ‘Pause’ button in the middle of the remote (which is very handy. If only life had one of those) you’ll notice the control has little Thumbs Up/ Down buttons. It took a little getting used to but these are very powerful additions and very integral to the TiVo way of life. Using the amount of Thumbs Up you give, the smart little lifesaver will go and find ‘suggestions’ based on what you like. A thumb-shaped barometer of cool if you will. Three Thumbs Up on Jezza Kyle and you’ll get shows like Maury, thumbs down on Doctor Who and all that sci-fi shod will be rightfully ignored. Remember to rate shows wisely and TiVo will eventually learn what you like to watch. It’s already started reading my mind and taped Eastenders (I know, I know), IT Crowd (I don’t even know how it knew I liked that) and The Cleveland Show. The latter being a slight mystery, as I haven’t rated any cartoons. Maybe it thinks Bear Grylls and Cleveland Brown are similar?!?!
TIVO VS. V+ HD So how does the TiVo compare to Virgin Media+? We put the two head to head to see which comes out on top... TiVo Virgin Media TV powered by TiVo® 1TB Setup Time: About 37 Minutes Time Instructions Were Used: 1 Time(s) Tuners: 3 Hard Drive Space: 1TB, up to 500 hours of standard TV Reason for buying: Recommends and automatically records shows for you, just like mum...
Virgin Media TV V+ HD Box Setup Time: About 20 Minutes Time Instructions Were Used: 0 Time(s) Tuners: 2 Hard Drive Space: Up to 80 hours of standard TV Reason for buying: Isn’t life all about HD now?
THE VERDICT
Buyability: If you have the monies it’s definitely worth upgrading, especially as you won’t have to delete those randomly recorded episodes of Man vs. Food you’ll ‘watch one day’. Longevity: REALLY didn’t like the lack of reminding facilities, but with updates this machine could be running things for a while. What your friends might say: “So why don’t we see you anymore?”
QUICK TIP: IF YOU WANT TO RECORD FROM YOUR COMPUTER/ PHONE CHECK OUT VIRGINMEDIA.COM/TVGUIDE
WIN THE PHONE OF THE MONTH + FESTIVAL TICKETS NOKIA C3
(nokia.com, From £Free) Just when you thought QWERTY keyboard-touting phones were losing the battle to touchscreen devices, Nokia drop a super smart, super slick handset to mix things up. The Nokia C3 is the first device in Series 40 to sport such a keypad layout and with Wi-Fi, 2MP camera, up to 8GB of memory and a bright colour rich 2.4 inch screen, this is a device that should be on your radar. Available in golden white, slate grey and hot pink. Nice. We’ve linked up with the good guys over at Nokia to giveaway a C3 along with tickets to Underage Festival (for you and three friends). So to be in the running all you have to do is visit the comps page on Facebook.com/RWDmagfans 69
UNWIND WITH... JAMES PHELPS
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Unwind With... JAMES PHELPS For more than decade, 25 year-old James Phelps has played prankster Fred Weasley in the most important film franchise of a generation. With the release of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 this month, he finally says goodbye to the character he’s been playing for almost half of his life. Tego Sigel caught up with James to talk about finishing the series... image by Ben Gold bengold.co.uk
How does it feel knowing you’re this close to the ending of such a massive period in your life? Surreal, I guess is the best word to describe it, because, for eleven years I’ve known it was going to come to an end. Now it’s here it’s kind of not actually [laughs]... because we haven’t had the premiere just yet it hasn’t exactly sunk in but I know that once we come back from doing all the promotional stuff that’s when it will sink in I think. What was the final day of filming like? I tried to appreciate everything that was there one last time - everything that I took for granted beforehand, all the sets and that kind of stuff and was aware that it wasn’t going to be like that again. What’s your best memory from the 11 year period of working on the film? My best memory would be the premiere for The Half Blood Prince. It was in July and I’ve never seen rain like it in London, it was insane. It was literally like a flash-flood had just happened and they reckon there was still around seven-eight thousand people in Leicester Square for it. The roar when we got out of the car, the roar of the crowd was incredible, it just gave testament to how much these movies mean to people. I think being so close to it, we don’t really appreciate it so much, but then you see how much it means to everybody. It was quite touching really. Have you gotten to grips with how
I THINK HARRY POTTER IS REALLY JUST GOING TO GO OUT ON THE BIGGEST HIGH THAT ANY FILM EVER HAS DONE. much Harry means to people? No [laughs]. I know it means a lot to people but I don’t think I’m fully aware of it. I think maybe I don’t really try to be as aware because a lot of the time it takes the pressure off playing these characters that people love so much from the books. Do you still struggle to keep the secrets from the films before they’re released? Slightly. There are actually some things that happen in this film that I really want to talk about but obviously I’m not allowed to until after 15 July. It’s a bit frustrating in that respect but it’s also great to see the anticipation building and building and I think it’s really just going to go out on the biggest high that any film ever has done. Wow. You’re that impressed with the final film? Yeah, from what I’ve seen. I haven’t seen it completely but from what I’ve seen, a good 50% of it, it really is, even for a non-Potter fan, you will just be blown away by the effects on it and the performances by certain people. I remember when we shot the scene with Ralph Fiennes, this is without all the digital effects on him and all that kind of stuff, it was just... there are bad guys
in movies and he is just another level, incredible to watch. Where do you think it rates in terms of the franchise? I think it’s going to be the best one. I think because it’s moved away from the first two movies which were aimed towards a much younger audience and now you could go and watch it with an older brother who’d never gone and seen a Potter and be blown away by it I’m sure. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 is out now
Lust! I lust the Aston Martin DB9, because I was lucky enough to take one of those on the last tour when we were in Belgium, we were able to take one of those out on the test track and take it through its paces and since then I’ve wanted one. I’m in lust with that car. After love-boosting comments from Bigz and Manny Norté, Phelps makes it 2 to Love, 1 to Lust...!
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UNWIND GAMES
GAMES A whole host of games for you to salivate over... words by Danny Walker
MONTHLY MUST TRY UFC PERSONAL TRAINER: THE ULTIMATE FITNESS SYSTEM THQ PS3, Wii, Xbox 360
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If you’re fed up of being bullied by your little sister, it’s time to get your UFC on. Grab some imaginary gloves, hit some fictional pads and start some mixed martial arts in the privacy of your own home. With fun and fitness intertwined – whilst actually giving you the ability to work up a sweat – UFC’s debut entrance into this flooded market is surprisingly good. With contribution and input from some of the
sport’s champions, like ruthless Cain Velasquez, you’ll (kinda) be learning MMA moves, studying the art of kickboxing and honing in on a few callous crunches from the world of Muay Thai. Before you know it, you’ll be the heavyweight champion of your own house. You’ll love the use of the brand here, the helpful tips and the occasional feeling that it’s doing something to turn that beer barrel into a six pack.
ADVANCE PREVIEW OUT 06/09/2011 RESISTANCE 3 Sony PS3
Insomniac Games are back for the fourth game – if you count the wanting PSP spin-off Resistance: Retribution – in this everevolving first person shooter series, for what is looking and playing like a must-own title. For those who have dabbled with the demo you’ll agree that it’s living up to the movie-like teaser that Sony unleashed late in 2010. Taking place four years from where 2 left off, you’re back in the mucky boots of rude Sentinel Joseph Capelli (who fittingly replaces K.I.A. Nathan Hale) and using brains, brawn and PlayStation Move, you’re once again up against all the Chimeran goons have to throw against the human race. We can’t wait.
REVIEWS: INFAMOUS 2 Sony PS3
Infamous but not infamous enough.
GRAND PRIX STORY Kairosoft Android
Now and then, a ridiculous mobile title comes along that we play until our fingers hurt and we start missing deadlines: this month Grand Prix Story ticks that box. Manage your F1 team to podium success or the scrapheap by choosing the right mechanics, improving your driver with various skills and being the Eddie Jordan of the mobile world. Looks like pixilated excrement, it’s actually well worth a shout.
TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON Activision PS3, Wii, Xbox 360
Picking up where War for Cybertron, Revenge of the Fallen and obviously the memorable original left off, Dark Of The Moon pays homage to previous enjoyable titles whilst improving gameplay, controls and general likability of the series. The only problem though is that the franchise might be slightly let down by the one player campaign.
GAMING FACTS Resistance 3 features 16 player multiplayer, twoplayer online and local/split-screen co-op gameplay allows players to team up with a friend during Capelli’s journey to New York. Big. The original Resistance 3 teaser has had over 760,000 views on YouTube. It’s pretty brilliant. To coincide with the launch of inFAMOUS 2, PlayStation collabed with 2000AD creator Pat Mills and comic book legend, Howard Marks, to create a series of celebrity (Gaga, Bieber, and Beyoncé) superhero comic strips. Gaga appears half nude in hers, nice.
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UNWIND FILMS
FILMS With a host of sexual scenes (love or lust heavy, you decide) Unwind’s film selection is star-studied...
A DAY IN THE LIFE Lions Gate Films Cert 18
As rap-opera’s go (I made that up because I don’t know what to call this) it ain’t half bad. Directed, produced and written by Onyx member Sticky Fingaz with an estimated budget of 3 milli (they must of had THE best wrap party ever) it was good to see the likes of Omar Epps and Mekhi Phifer onboard alongside his boys Treach, Fredro Starr et al. The film follows the gang leader Stick (played by Sticky Fingaz obvs.) who proves just how hard it is to quit the game; cue street shoot-outs, needlessly naked chicks and just straight bars; seriously there is no dialogue, like at all. (NS)
FILM OF THE MONTH FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS Warner Bros. Pictures Cert 15
With a ‘horrible’ premise – three employees Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day plan to exterminate their superiors – we were more than intrigued by Michael Markowitz’s (Becker) black comedy. Loving the crudeness of lustful Jennifer Aniston, the bluntness of Colin Farrell and the ridiculousness of Kevin Spacey, it’s all about the plotting and the scheming nature of the disgruntled workers. With additional help from the likes of ‘MF’ (played excellently by Jamie Foxx) this is a funny/witty night at the movies (DW)
image by Paul Hampartsoumian
UNWIND GIG GUIDE
GIG GUIDE ALICIA KEYS, PIANO & I @ THE ROYAL ALBERT HALL, LONDON, JUNE 2011 It’s not often that an artist’s debut album becomes an all time classic. Alicia Keys’ debut, Songs in A Minor celebrated its 10 year anniversary last month with a re-release and to mark the occasion Alicia took to the stage at the Royal Albert Hall to perform the album in its entirety, backed only by her piano. With tales of how NYC had influenced a young “baggy jeans and Timbs”-clad Alicia, the singer launched into a rendition of Mary J Blige’s 1992 classic, Real Love, as well as hits from Marvin Gaye and DeBarge. Leading us through the album, Alicia’s performance skills became evident as she quickly warmed up the audience with a rousing sing-along to Prince’s How Come You Don’t Call Me Anymore?. Predictably though, it was Fallin’ that stole the show. Going on to perform each of her subsequent singles, seeing Alicia perform almost her entire body of work makes you realise what a consistent artist she is. Song after song, you are reminded why you own the entire Key’s collection. (CL)
JULY 28 Josh Osho @ yOyO Notting Hill Arts Club, London 28-31 Camp Bestival Ft. Breakage, Jess Mills, Clare Maguire, Ed Sheeran + more @ Lulworth Castle, Dorset
AUGUST 2 Together Pres. Tonight Ft. Plasticican, Katy B, DJ Zinc, Scratcha + more @ Amnesia, Ibiza 3 The Doctor’s Orders @ Cargo, London
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4 Sean Paul, D Double E, The Heatwave, Mz Bratt 02 Academy, Bristol 5 Todd Edwards, Tomb Crew, N-type Hatcha @ Fabric, London
5-7 The Big Chill Festival Ft. Kanye West, Janelle Monae, Jessie J, Chipmunk + more @ Eastnor Castle Deer Park, Herefordshire
Underage Festival Ft. Giggs, Janelle Monae, Spark, Roll Deep + more @Victoria Park, London
5-29 Edinburgh Fringe Festival Music, comedy, dance, theatre, culture @ Various venues Edinburgh, Scotland
One Love Peace Festival warm up party @ Brixton Jamm, London
6 Man like Me +more @ The Nest , London
Switch Ft. Funk Butcher, Chuckie, Pioneer, MA1, Versatile, Coldsteps + more @ House and Terrace, Greenwich
Jimmy Carr @ Plymouth Pavillion, Plymouth
Field Day Jamie xx, SBTRKT, Jamie Woon, Cocknbullkid @ Victoria Park, London
12-14 Standon Calling Festival Zinc, Sinden, Herve @ Standon, Herefordshire
Field Day Afterparty Ft. L-Vis 1990, Benga @ XOYO, London
13 Butterz & Hardrive Party Ft. Terror Danjah, Swindle B2B Royal T + many more @ Cable, London
8 ILUVLIVE Ft. Calibar, Ny + more @ Hoxton Bar & Grill, London 11-14 Beacons Festival Ft. Jamie Woon, Hudson Mohawke, Girl Unit, Toddla T @ Heslaker Farm, Skipton 12 Reggae Roast @ C.A.M.P, London
Annie Mac Presents... @ Koko, London 15 Hot Wuk The Heatwave, Sticky, Spyro, Mighty Moe @ Fabric, London 16-27 Belsonic Festival Ft. Rizzle Kicks, Dizzee Rascal, Maverick Sabre @ Custom House Sq, B’lfast
UNWIND GIG GUIDE
WAKESTOCK, ABERSOCH, WALES 8 - 10 JULY 2011 We catch a train and a bus all the way to lovely Wales for a stellar weekend of wakeboarding, cider, camping and music from Example, Kelis and Chase & Status... images by Sam Bond It’s RWD’s third year at the wakeboarding festival that is always drenched in sport, sounds, good times and yes, occasionally a little rain. This time we experienced the festival courtesy of head top specialists New Era and no amount of precipitation could damage the spirits of us, the wakeboarders or the amazing acts that performed - and for once the weather was brilliant and sunny! Double win. Thursday night kicked off with Toddla T and Serocee blazing some massive beats as the sun set, but it was Friday when the real action began. After a hard day on the waves, festival goers, riders and ravers caught Chase & Status, who played the set to end all sets - they might even have topped last year’s incredible performance. The Royalapproved Ellie Goulding meanwhile got us 78 / RWDMAG.COM
all Starry Eyed with a string of hits, making it tough for the likes of The Noisettes, Example and Biffy Clyro to match up to on the third and final day. They did a great job however (Example was of course amazing with festival ready smashes like Won’t Go Quietly, Hooligans and latest smash Changed The Way You Kissed Me which was immense live) while Biffy did the damn thing with Mountains and Bubbles. Kelis was also a big hit with her Mikshake and new Calvin Harris collab Bounce, leaving headliners the Wombats to close the party to end all parties with their indie-pop bangers Moving To New York and Tokyo. Once again, we had the best time thanks to the New Era crew as well as being surrounded by the rolling hills, blue sea and (in the main) big blue sky. It might not get
the fame and acclaim of bigger feasts like Glastonbury, but if it’s an intimate experience with some of the biggest names in pop, dance, indie and urban, Wakestock is the one for you... Get involved next year. wakestock.co.uk neweracap.com
“EXAMPLE WAS AMAZING, WITH FESTIVAL READY SMASHES LIKE WON’T GO QUIETLY, HOOLIGANS AND LATEST SMASH CHANGED THE WAY YOU KISSED ME, WHICH WAS IMMENSE LIVE...”
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UNWIND REVIEWS
REVIEWS KOZZIE
UKG / GRIME / DUBSTEP CHART BY DJ CHEWY 01 D DOUBLE E
The Problem’s Started No Hats No Hoods
HUDSON MOHAWKE Satin Panthers Warp Records
Things have gotten a little darker for the experimental Scottish producer this time around; even, dare we say, a little grimy when it comes to tracks like Thunder Bay. Just when you think music was becoming too lazy and formulaic, in come producers like Hudson shining brightly amongst the drab soundscape. If you’re into atmospheric but up-tempo beats with a heavy hip hop/ R&B influence, this is the one for you. Track To Check: Cbat (NS)
Although just 39 minutes in length, south London’s Kozzie causes all kinds of problems over 12 of the grimiest, face-distorting beats we’ve heard in recent months. With production from Spooky, Mensah, SX, Cotti, Royal-T and Darq E Freaker you’re treated to a host of untamed ear-pleasing energy. The immense, reload worthy Spartan Remix and the bass-heavy Riding Out are great but it’s on insightful My Life in which he excels. Almost a 4/5. Track to Check: My Life Ft. Cylena Cymone (DW)
Bluku Bluku (Dirty Stank) A killer track alongside the E3 African self-titled Dizzee Raskit. 02 CRAZY COUSINS
CYHI THY PRYNCE Royal Flush 2 G.O.O.D Music
The raspy vocals of ATL’s CyHi make this a soothing mixtape for the summer. With appearances from Pusha T, Yelawolf, Big Sean, Trey Songz and tracks courtesy of J.U.S.T.I.C.E League, No ID and Kanye, it’s exactly the type of free download we appreciate. Tracks for the club, the night after the club and covering about before Thy Prynce could make it into clubs, this is a solid mixtape from the royal rapper. Track To Check: Thousand Poundz Ft. Pill & Pusha T (NS)
VYBZ KARTEL
NERO
CSS
Kingston Story
Welcome Reality
La Liberación
Mixpak Records
Mercury/ MTO
V2
It’s impossible to put aside the cake soap and the weave when you think about this album because despite the talent of Adidjah Palmer he’s definitely created the most amount of hype around this release. For the newcomers which this build-up has attracted, I’m sure they’ll be more than impressed by Kingston Story. There are a couple of tracks on here too, don’t get it twisted Breathless, Freestyle, Go Go Wine, but there’s a lot of wetness in between them and I hate skipping through albums. Track To Check: Freestyle
Nero make the sort of music that were the world ending, and their music was being played through some kind of intergalactic sound system, you’d kind of feel euphoric rather than sh*t-scared. It’s defo music to die to. In a really, really good way (if dying in a fiery ball of flames can ever be good). The production is so epic, so uplifting, so massively, hugely massively huge that even the most ardent anti D&B/ dubber will have to coincide that this album is seriously, seriously sick. Track To Check: My Eyes (HC)
Lovefoxxx and her Sao Paulo bandmates return with more genre-dodging, festival-infused frivolities flavoured with the sound of Brazil, Dalston, and thanks to Ratatat and Bobby Gillespie from Primal Scream, lots of odd bleeps and big guitars. Upbeat in the most part, besides her ode to former Klaxons boyfriend Simon You Could Have It All, the fivepiece have nearly perfected the art of patchwork sounds from the underground with a mainstream twist, though inevitably this might be too ‘edgy’ for some. Track To Check: City Girl (HC)
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Arch Your Back Ft. Omarion (Disturbing London) This could be the contender for the hottest jam of this summer. 03 RAS KWAME
Dan Man Ft. Junior Tubby (Orange Hill Productions) This is is the electrobashy tune of the summer. 04 MONIQUE LAWRENCE
Casanova (White) The Fuzzy mix gets you all funky, this is an excellent tune. 05 ARTFUL DODGER
Could Just Be The One (Workhouse) Respect to a founder of UKG Spoony with this killer remix. 06 JOKER
The Vision (Bad Records) Still holding firm with this overinfectious vocal monster. 07 PETER JORDAN
Step Out Dub Ft. Joe B (Westway Records) A house banger getting support from the garage/funky scene. 08 SKREAM
Thoughts Of You (Soundcloud) There’s no stopping this Croydon composer. 09 STRAGO + SNOOKS
Kuru/ Infect (Niteshade Inc) Getting mad support from Rinse FM DJs, Kuru is the lead track. 10 DJ MADD
The Battle/ Secrets (Wheel & Deal) Pounding with stinking bassline throughout, this is a gem.
MONARCHY Around the Sun 100% Records
WILEY & DJ WHOO KID Creating A Buzz Volume 1. Free Download
This grime-led, on-point lyric fest is the latest instalment from the G-Unit DJ after successful link ups with Giggs, Tinie and Skepta. Although “hosted” by Ashley Cole, whose annoying voice is peppered on a few tracks, the short and slick mixtape is a raw slice of London living for our American counterparts. As Whoo Kid puts it in the video interview, ‘Music] crackheads will be like... Ahhh who is this guy from the UK?’ Track to Check: Don’t Throw It Away Remix Ft. Tony Yayo (DW)
The only way to describe the long awaited debut album from dance-inspired duo Monarchy is a colourful electro-tinged pop explosion that wobbles from classic to cliché in quick succession. Sugary vocals meet catchy electronic arrangements to provide, in the most part, a decent execution of their opening musical offering. We would rave about it but there’s just a little too much regurgitated Erasure for any one sitting. Track to Check: Gold In The Fire (DW)
AMPLIFY DOT
WU TANG
Born Ready
Legendary Weapons
newBRAN Ent
Ent. One Music
It’s about time we start seeing some female MCs come to the forefront and this year might be the year for just that with RoxXxan, Lioness, Nolay and Leshurr all doing their thing. A. Dot too is defo holding her own, with punchlines for days and flows that loop over everything from hip hop (Cameras Ft. Little Dee) to grime (Humanoids Ft. Marger) to a few more lo tempo tracks like Warning Shot Ft. Cherise. Things even get a little bashy on Dem A Watch Me. Track To Check:Boomerang Love Ft. Cherise (NS)
The Wu are back and as with every time they head back into the scene, there’s an ample air of anticipation around the accompanying release. Legendary Weapons doesn’t disappoint with more than half of the album being solid, (I’m just not a skit person) in particular the title track Legendary Weapons, but also get very involved with Drunk Tongue, Black Diamond and Meteor Hammer. No doubt Wu Stans will be on this. Track To Check: Diesel Fluid Ft. Method Man, Trife Diesel and Cappadona (NS)
ALBUM OF THE MONTH TODDLA T Watch Me Dance Ninja Tune
Yes. Just yes. This album has got so many future bangers ready to fire straight off the back of the Shola Ama featuring Take It Back. Love the bashment of Streets So Warm, the oldskool sounds of Cruise Control and the Fruity Loops feel of Cherry Picking. With guests including Skream, Roots Manuva on the does-what-it-says-on-the-tin of the title track and Ms. D on the dreamy lovers rock of Fly, this Carnival ready record has it covered from the BBQ to the bedroom. Track to check: Badman Flu (AO)
RWD’S REWINDS
J2K Ft. Kenzie May W.T.F (Electrik) Wiley Don’t Throw It Away Remix Ft. Tony Yayo (Mixtape) Lewi White Ft. Ed Sheeran, Yasmin... Young Guns (White) Modestep Sunlight (White) Nero Promises (MTA Records) Emeli Sandé Heaven (EMI) Marger Ft. Molly Shadows (Kushwave) G FrSH Alone (Disturbing London) The Thirst Damn Girl (White) Ms. Dynamite Neva Soft (Dynamic Ventures) Professor Green At Your Inconvenience (Virgin) Master Shortie Social Groups (Jive) Sway Song For The City (Dcypha) Tempa T Fletcher (Freestyle) Mellowhype 64 Fat Possum Dot Rotton I Want To Annoy Yo (Island) Lil Wayne Tunechi’s Back (Young Money) Pusha T Ft. Tyler, The Creator Trouble On My Mind (White) Oh My! Kicking & Screaming (Free Download)
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FINAL WORD: JOE JONAS
If you’ve been reading the mag from cover to cover, you’ll know that love has prevailed! 6-1 to LOVE! Hattie Collins turns to newly solo Joe Jonas, to see what the Evangelical Christian and (one time) wearer of a purity ring thinks of love and lust...
Ok, straight to it. Love Vs. Lust. Your opinions please Joe Jonas? (Pause) I think... this is going to sound cliché but everyone searches for love, don’t they? I feel that’s the best way to think about life. Everyone’s just looking for the right person to love and be happy with. So love. What/ who does Joe Jonas love right now? My dog [laughs]. His name is Winston. I miss him. He’s an English Bulldog. Who/ what is Joe Jonas lusting after? Wow... Hmm... My iPad? [laughs] I love it. I’m obsessed with it. Really. You look all grown-up with your stubble. It’s a bit weird, TBH. People do have that surprise factor when they don’t see us for some time. And they see us grow up and we grow scruffy and taller and everything. It’s a great opportunity with this album to show that I am getting older and I’m changing with the songs I’m writing and the lyrics I’m talking about. I think I’ve made a more mature record than what I’ve done before. Who’s the song I’m Sorry about? Taylor Swift? Demi Lovato? Ashley Greene? 82 / RWDMAG.COM
I’m Sorry is a funny one because I talk about a lot of things but I still don’t want to say who that song’s about. I want the audience to be able to relate. Basically it’s saying I’m the one that messed up in that situation - I didn’t cheat or anything but I broke up with a person and wanted to be back with them. When things get to that point, all you have left to say is ‘I’m Sorry’. With your relatively younger audience, did you have any hesitations in working with Chris Brown on See No More? I feel that for me, we kept it about the music. That was the biggest thing for me. He’s a very talented musician and when we got in the studio together everything came together quickly. He lives in the studio - he played me like a thousand songs and we were like ‘Ok, we need to write together!’, so the next day we wrote that song in two hours. It really happened naturally. There wasn’t much hesitation - I was just writing with another artist. What are you listening to at the moment? I’m into a lot of dubstep type stuff at the moment. [Laughs] We went to the DJ tent at Coachella and they were playing
some dubstep - I was just pumped. Kanye’s new album as well is really good. It’s really artistic. And the new Adele album - I just love it. Oh and I love Tinie. I saw him at Coachella. We were going to try and do something together but the scheduling didn’t work out. Hopefully in the future. What’s been the highlight of being a Jonas Brother? And now going solo? The best high so far I think for me was playing to an audience with Stevie Wonder. That was amazing. Paul McCartney and President Obama were there too, at the same concert. That was just crazy - it was the most nervous I’ve ever been. I want to achieve making a record people can relate with and have fun while listening to it. I guess to continue making music and maybe doing a bit of acting down the line, and eventually to do something random like open a restaurant. I guess we’ll have to see what the future holds. See No More is out 8 August. Twitter.com/joejonas