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  Baby J Interview
interview 0350 added 18.11.05 words: Nikesh
technical:
QED
Some people may know Baby J as the guy behind some of
Skinnyman’s more classic tracks off “Council Estate of Mind,” others may know him as one of the first UK hip-hop artists to have a creative meeting discussing working with the Wu (and have things come out of it)… most of you will just know him as Derby-repping producer-extraordinaire, Baby J. He’s got a new album out at the moment, featuring collaborations from Skinny, Blade, Laurissa, Mpho Skeef and even some guy called m-one from dead prez and this other crew called the A-Alikes… Not bad for a bloke from Derbyshire.
Nikesh caught up with him on email to discuss breasts, tireless work ethics and working with Shabazz the Disciple and Poetic.
Introduce yourself to ukhh.com and tell us the most childish thing you've done this year?
 All power to the people, my name’s Baby J. Er, I don’t know if I’ve done anything that childish recently… I’m a dad so usually I’m pretending to be responsible. I do spend a lot of time sucking on breasts, does that count?
Why FTP? What does it stand for?
FTP means Fuck The Police. It also means For The People, Feed The Poor, Follow The Panthers, Free The Prisoners, Fight The Power, but the main one is Fuck The Police. The reason we say fuck the police is not just because we don’t like getting caught breaking their laws, it’s because we recognize that the system doesn’t work in the interests of most of the people and the police enforce the laws that the system sets. So in saying FTP we’re kinda sayin that shit don’t work, things are getting worse not better and we aint tryin to take it no more.
How did you go about putting the album together?
Most of the tracks came about because I was working with the artists and I picked my favorite track out of the work we did together. I tried to be around people that are on the same shit I’m on. You know, you keep people around you that think and move in the same way you do and in music it’s the same thing, so the people on my album are the same type of people. As for sounds etc, I just go for whatever makes my head nod or my heart beat, you know, it’s a cliché but true - if it moves you, hopefully it will move other people too. I usually start with a sample or a sound and build the percussion and other instruments around that. Normally the beats are done first and then an emcee jumps on it, but sometimes they write the song first and I’ll build the track around that. Actually, that’s how it worked with Shystie on her track [‘The Rain’].
“...FTP means Fuck The Police. It also means For The People, Feed The Poor, Follow The Panthers, Free The Prisoners, Fight The Power...”
Is there stuff that didn't make it to the album that you're hoping to do a lost tapes with?
Yeah. I really wanted to put out a shorter album but its hard taking tracks off. One, because I like the tracks; and two, because when you take a track off you drop an artist off the record. There were a lot more artists I would have liked to have been involved in this project. I’m not sure what I’m gonna do with the tracks. I think Headnod’s gonna do a 7” with a few tracks on and I’m thinking of selling some as downloads through my website
(www.babyj.biz)
Tell us about the new album you're working on with Blade.
 It’s been an honour to work with Blade. He’s one of the pioneers in the scene, so when he approached me about working with him I was like “wow, this is BLADE wanting to work with me!” You don’t get that very often… as ill as Skinny or Klash definitely are you look at them as your equals… but Blade…. And for someone that’s been around for so long he’s really open minded in the studio, we worked on tracks together from start to finish from concepts to picking beats to hooks so it was a great experience being able to work with him. The album that I’ve produced is called ‘Guerilla Tactics’ and is out February next year. The fifth track on my FTP features Blade too.
What equipment do you use? How did you get into hiphop?
I think I got into hip hop from being into soul and funk first. When I used to hear the hip hop tracks using the breaks I knew, it made me get interested in producing and think I might be able to get in on that. I got a PC with Cubase SX and an Emu ESI32. I also got a midi keyboard and a S2000 but I don’t really use the S2000 much. Oh yeah, and a whole lot of records!
“...as ill as Skinny or Klash definitely are you look at them as your equals… but Blade...”
How did you hook up people like dead prez on album? When will we hear your Wu track?
I met Dead Prez back in like 95, just before they got signed and I’ve been cool with them since. I met them through Lord Jamar (from Brand Nubian). He was working with Shabazz the Disciple doing production. I was working with this guy called Klass from Wu-Tang who was brought in by Shabazz to help work his project. I’d heard DPZ ‘Food Clothes and Shelter’ and wanted to know who it was so Lord Jamar introduced me to M1. The Shabazz tracks I did were my Wu tracks! I also worked with Poetic from Gravediggaz.(RIP). It’s been amazing to have worked with all of the above and to have Shabazz and Dead Prez on my record is an honour.
What's next for you?
 We got my FTP album in stores! Only a tenner! Go cop it! We got the ‘Antourage’ album (Yogi, Rukus and Shade One). That’s out December 2005; the lead track ‘Soul Clap’ is out mid November 2005. Blade – ‘Guerilla Tactics’ LP goes in stores February 2006. The ‘It’s Your Time’ 12” drops after in mid January 2006. My singer Laurissa – who’s on a few of the FTP album tracks - is coming with her own full LP in 2006. It’s got a hip hop meets soul sound it and is gonna be big. I got tracks on the new Moorish Delta 7 album which is hot. I’ve done a joint with Tib2. There's a new A-Alikes LP ‘Kill the Middleman’ - that’ll be in stores and available through my website towards the end of this year. And there will new LPs from Yogi, Rukus, Shade One and SkinnyMan (if I can get him in the fuckin studio!) So yeah, you know, keeping busy…
Who do you think is making waves in UK hip-hop?
My camp! Ant Family. Standard. Have to shout out Sway for his work ethic and ingenuity. Moorish Delta 7 gonna be big in the 2006! Klash’s new LP is ridiculous with the best work I’ve ever heard from Joe Buddah. Sterling and Tib2 LP will be hot. On the business side watch out for 2rype.com, Dat Sound, Kemet and All City.
“...I just go for whatever makes my head nod or my heart beat, you know, it’s a cliché but true - if it moves you, hopefully it will move other people too...”
Shameless plugs and shout outs...
 My website - www.babyj.biz
My album – Baby J presents… ‘F.T.P.’ out now!
Shout out to the people that support hip hop in the UK. It’s your scene not ours. Thanks for all the support you’ve shown me so far…and… fuck the police!
-
Nikesh
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