words: Jay Diamond technical: Spoon
From the conception of the hip hop era, Grandmaster Flash and the
Furious Five brought hip-hop from the parks of 137th Street and Gunhill Road to radio stations across the world. They evolved from free parties in the Bronx to The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Alongside feel good party music, tracks like ‘The Message’ reflected a social commentary and paved the way for artists like Boogie Down Productions and Public Enemy. How then, did Scorpio from the Furious Five end up being a feature artist on an unsigned band from Warrington’s newest release?
It’s simple. "They stood out" says Scorpio.
China White are essentially Liam Croaker and Antony Egerton. They’re down to earth, chatty, what you see is what you get types. Ant mainly does beats, and Liam sings. Working with their producer ‘Latch’ in the studio, the live element includes guitarist Jon Lord and percussionist Adam Baldwin. They don’t like to categorise their sound too much taking influences from a range of genres; but profess hip hop is at the heart of what they do. "We just throw everything in the pot and pull out the best bits" says Ant.
The whole process was a whirlwind. Initially approaching Scorpio on
Myspace, within a few weeks, Scorpio flew to the North of England to
provide input on the track before flying out to Canada on tour.
Scorpio receives a massive amount of requests from artists for
feedback on their music, he is a legend after all, but China White “were different” he claims. Sharing knowledge of commercial song structure and formation; Scorpio had the whole studio electric with his presence and his professionalism.
Liam sees it as two ends of a genre coming together: "Yes
this is different than what the kids are being forced to listen on MTV and the radio but it's still HIP HOP. Don't believe the hype kids, there are no boundaries." There’s a general consensus that artists can have strong underground followings, but don’t cross over commercially because of industry and media imposed restrictions.
The track in question ‘Aggression’ is about just that. One man’s anger unleashed on another. The lyrics are strong, complemented by Liam’s husky style and Scorpio raises the bar further with his rap and musical input. The track has heavy commercial appeal, a high profile artist like Scorpio can open a lot of doors and engage people who might not have usually taken the time to listen. "It's definitely more radio friendly than the rest of our work but without losing the China White edge", states Liam.
As yet unsigned they still landed a distribution deal with
˜Somuchsoul” in Canada.
Scorpio, despite his untested experience, is still humble in the
studio process. He clearly knows what works, and offers suggestions,
but never tells anyone ‘how it is’ and was very clear about staying true to China White’s sound. When the photographer arrives he makes sure the lads are stood central with him in the background. "This is about China White", he states: "it’s their music". Scorpio clearly believes these guys have potential. He flew himself to the UK, and plans to come back to discuss the promotion and a possible video.
Jay Diamond (Lady Jay Uk from Manchester’s Unity Radio) provided
backing vocals for the track and had the team over for an interview on her weekly Mix N Blend show. It was here that Scorpio revealed that he would soon be hosting a new Yo! Mtv Raps in the very near future. When a listener asks about his view on British hip hop, his views are clear: "Stop imitating Americans, It sounds wack!". He doesn’t rate rappers who don’t use their own accent and try to dress like their American counterparts.
How refreshing!
Scorpio has a lot of positive words about the UK industry, although he is under no illusions it has some room for growth. He even goes as far as announcing he would love to live in the UK! Maybe not Warrington, but still!
China White have strong interests in collaboration: "the more people you work with the more you learn musically and on a business level" Ant explains. Indeed. Future projects involve the beautiful voice of Rowetta from The Happy Mondays. Watch their space!
-
Jay Diamond
'The DisFUNKtional E.P' is available to purchase at:
HIP HOP LEGEND CHILLS IN WARRINGTON