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  L.Man Interview
interview 0541 added 26.10.07 words:
Ben Spurr
technical:
Spoon
I'm sure you have all seen L.Man on Channel U by now, whether it's on
the introspective track 'Pushin' or the street banger 'Hold It Down'.
Equally at ease over a Grime or Hip-Hop beat, L's is currently touring the
UK with the mighty Skinnyman. After his high energy performance in
Nottingham, Ben Spurr spoke to 'that white kid' on everything from the
Skinny hook up to his forthcoming album.
 Give us a brief history of L.Man:
Radical me L dot Man, the most underrated, impatiently waiting, lyrical
ejaculation, the most underrated I'll shit all over your clique, I don't
need no ones help, take that in with two brandies and coke, I love ya!
Ok nice! How did you hook up with Skinny and Mud Fam?
I done a tune called 'Children in Need', he gave me his album and then
he heard my mix tape and then it was one of them things like 'I like your
style' and he was like 'yeah, I feel you', you know what I mean? It was a
love thing from early and I could see he was more on the positive thing.
Basically you know I was on the same kind of vibe. He is like the legend and
I am like the up and coming artist, you know what I mean, like the next to
take over so it's like we had to come together and do that track so, yeah.
'Children in Need' is a big tune, you know it was about the children around
the world in children's homes and foster care so nuff love to them, keep
your head up, every days a struggle but remember there's light at the end of
the tunnel.
Is there enough money in the UK Hip Hop scene to earn a decent living
from your perspective?
Right now I'm not seeing much money at all from it, you know what I
mean? Obviously I've been told by olders it's like a grind and you've got to
be on it. Obviously I could be on the road shotting a couple ounces, a
couple boxes and shit but I chose that I can't have clouds over my head to
the point where I can't write and I'm scared of man running in my house
because I've got some fucking food for them you know what I mean? There's
just so much shit going on in South and all over the UK right now.
"...
I understand I'm never going to be the next Skinnyman, I'm the next L dot Man
..."
You still living in South?
Yeah, I'm living in South Brixton, you know what I mean? I feel like
I'm not even living in London no more, I'm so much out in the country.
Were you in Ibiza this Summer?
I was in Ibiza, I fucked up Ibiza man it was a good look, you know what
I mean? Hold tight my Ibiza massive, my Ayia Napa massive.
Do your sponsors pay for those sort of trips or what?
Yeah, yeah, yeah I had some over there, hold tight Love Dough they were
sponsoring the whole night in Es Paradis.
You have a Grime MC background but New Age Army shows some mature,
conscious Hip- Hop- which route do you see your album going in?
 You know my album is going to be all over the place. I take every mix
tape as a step forward, I look at every mix tape as a practice session you
know what I mean? If you listen to 'Fact's Of Life' there was some mad shit
on there like I had Crunk, Grime, Rn'B, Hip-Hop, Bashment, everything. Then
it came to 'Impatiently Waiting' and I decided to step my level up on the
lyrical side. The next one was 'New Age Army ', now that's more Hip- Hop.
The album is going to be like musical Grime and Hip- Hop innit. Like I don't
like Grime, I'm not a big fan of Grime, don't get it twisted, that's where I
was brought up from and you've got to have a couple of hype lyrics on the
side to get the crowd pleased, you've got to have those crowd pleasers.
That's what comes across to me, you've got plenty of those sing a long
lines that gets the crowd hyped but when I bought 'New Age Army' I was
surprised because there were a lot of social commentary Skinnyman type
tracks like 'Children in Need'…
Yeah, I understand that you know what I mean? I understand I'm never
going to be the next Skinnyman, I'm the next L dot Man; impatiently waiting,
lyrical ejaculation. I come from the underground, I'm pure, I'm original,
I'm ready to expand, I'm ready to come out like a flower now you know what I
mean? L dot Man stands for Lyrical Metaphorical Articulate Natural Sound,
it's the new age, new age army, yeah!
"...
I don't like Grime, I'm not a big fan of Grime
..."
What's your thoughts on the direction of other UK heavyweights like Kano
getting prime time radio with that track he did with Craig David and Lethal
Bizzle who is now in NME every week going down some sort of indie route?
I don't mind it at all, if you can keep the fan base, like the street
fan base as well as do all that…
Do you think they are moving that way purely for units?
 Erm, I don't know, I reckon everyone like 'Rahhh, mans just thinking
about the money and the hype' and it's not even that, mans got to live out
here and that's the truth, like every mans got to live. If you're an
established artist, you're not going to be selling drugs on the road, innit,
your going to want to expand. You want your fan base to not just be on the
streets but to extend to the white back packers, the indie kids and I'm all
for it, you know what I mean? But don't just go straight in to it and forget
about the block. Like that's what I think about Dizzee Rascal. No
disrespect, but I think he went too indie and then he went too rock n' roll
and he ain't done a Grime…. I reckon if Dizzee Rascal did a Grime tune now
yeah, like 'I Luv U' or something like that, I reckon it would blow up the
streets, you know what I mean?
Why is Dizzee so commercially acceptable?
He don't spit about no politics, he's not on that politics stuff, like
that deep stuff. He's more catchy lines like 'hey, hey, lets have a party'.
They won't get a conscious rapper from the underground scene and put him on
because I think majors is kind of scared.
"...
Say if I got the promotion that Dizzee Rascal got yeah? I would be fucking massive!
..."
Like it is too close to home, there is too much truth?
Yeah, too much truth and people like me and Skinnyman will open the
truth and say it how it is you know what I mean? That's how I think it
should really be and I reckon if they signed a rapper like that from the UK
then I reckon that person would sell so much units if they got that right
promotion. Say if I got the promotion that Dizzee Rascal got yeah? I would be
fucking massive! The thing is, they don't want to bring me in because of the
pure fact I will spit the truth. They want people to go 'Heeey, Hoooo!',
they want the party poppers and I'm on that deep shit innit?
Any final shout outs or plugs you want to get off your chest?
 Yeah, I wanna big up my N Double A man dem you know right now there not
with me, I'm on tour. Hold tight my dogs, I love my dogs, innit? People
don't understand yeah, see my dogs, yeah, I've got so much love for them.
Hold tight JD and Diddy yeah, my babies yeah, like when you're on tour and
your away from your girlfriend and your animals it's emotional because you
have to stay on the roads and you can't go back to the ends because you're
like all over the place. Hold tight my fans, hold tight people supporting
the UK movement. I'm not gunna lie, after the last year, yeah, I've been
like putting down the Yank stuff and just listening to UK and there's so
much talent out there right now. Man dem have to get on there, support the
cause, support the movement, everyone do your music, spit from the heart and
spit basic reality and that's all I wanna hear from you blud. I don't wanna
hear about you shanking and shooting the next man, like raaah, you're
beating yourself up man, hold it down, y'get me?
-
Ben Spurr
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