You may already be familiar with the name SuparNovar , having featured alongside Foreign Beggars, Skinny Man and Genesis Elijah. Kane recently caught up with rising young rapper SuparNovar for a brief chat before one of his shows.
Having come to prominence in 2001 with his debut single ‘When SuparNovar Explodes’ he has continued to work hard at his craft, clocking up valuable studio time to go with his distinctive cadence. The results can be heard in various mix tapes, two volumes of his own ‘Explosive Muzik’ Cds’ as well as support slots for the likes of Ghostface, DJ Premier and M.O.P. and finally his long-awaited debut album ‘From The Beginning’ on Kemet Entertainment.
In fact I am greeted every morning by the sight of his face on promotional stickers at Tottenham Court Rd station. A good example of a young English Hip Hop artist on the grind…
For those who don’t know could you please introduce yourself?
My names SuparNova, I’m a rapper from North London, Holloway Road and represent a crew called FlipdaScript formerly known as the Mud Family, and my crew Explosive Muzik.
So what got you into music in the first place, in particular Hip Hop and mc-ing?
Well I’ve been following Hip hop from about 8-9 years old, my older brother and his friends were listening to it, I was looking up to him. When Wu-Tang, Nas came out..I just got obsessed with it from then on. It wasn’t until I was about 12 that I started MC-ing. My mates use to come round and we’d mess about free-styling over some taped beats, then one day I bought a mike and haven’t really let go of one since.
You’re probably best known through your connection with Mud Family, how did you hook up with them? and what’s the situation with your own crew (Explosive Muzik)?
I met Skinnyman on Holloway Road, gave him a tape and he liked it he got us some radio play then I started to open up for him on his shows and tours. My crew was around before and throughout that but over the years’ people have done their own thing, a few have been locked up. Mud Family, they’ve all started doing their own thing as well. But it’s kind of turned full circle now, as were (Explosive Muzik) have all got back together and are really getting on it now.
Can you remember your first ever show?
Well I did a few things’: open mike ciphers, stuff like that. But my first proper show would have been in support of Mud Family at Subterranea, late 1999. Skinny did a free event, heavy night.
“…I met Skinnyman on Holloway Road, gave him a tape and he liked it…”
So does Mud Family still exist?
Erm..well I’m not too sure to be honest.
What makes your music different from others within UK Hip Hop?
Well I think I’ve got the rough side of things, what I’d describe as my explosive side but then there’s also another, more emotional element. Like the song ‘Full Circle’, which is a really personal song where I really put my soul into it, just reflecting my life and experiences.
What about the business side of things, how are coping with the preparation for your forthcoming album release?
I like to be involved in what’s going on, it’s a pretty personal relationship between myself and the label (Kemet Entertainment), we make decisions together. I’m always informed about what’s going on and I like it that way, rather than being in a situation where I don’t have much control.
Tell me a bit about Kemet, I know they’ve had a few previous releases but aside from that I don’t know much else?
Well they released the Klashnekoff album as well as a few 12s’, which is why they put mine back till now. They’re also releasing Mr Ti2bs album, as well as running a few nights.
We are coming to the end of the year now, how do you think it has been for UK Hip Hop? What can we hope for the future?
It’s been a strange year, pretty quite on the promotions front, a lot of club nights closing down which is disappointing. But towards the end of the year I think there has been a lot of quality product being released; Braintax’s album, Kyza’s and Sir Smurf Lil. So we can definitely take heart for 2007.
And personally?
I hope to get out there and put on as many live shows as possible, but also get back into the studio and record some more material. I don’t want to be sitting around waiting to make a follow up. I don’t want to have a big gap between albums’, I want to get straight onto the next, that’s really important to me.
“… I don’t want to have a big gap between albums’, I want to get straight onto the next…”
That seems to be a big problem within UK rap, the gaps are to large between releases. It may not always be the artists fault, it could well be down to hesitant labels.
That’s why I’m so happy to be signed to Kemet, they don’t want to sit around. I’m signed to a two-album deal and they want to get on with it.
Didn’t you shoot an impromptu video in Brighton, tell us a bit about that?
Ha, ha. That hasn’t actually come out yet. I was talking to a friend of mine at a show in Brighton who made the first video, ‘All The Way’ and we both agreed that it was such a good location we was like ‘f**k it, lets just make another one now’. So we managed to convince some guy who was filming the event to lend us his camera for a bit. It still needs a lot of work but we got some great shots, should be heavy when it’s finished.
As an independent artist how do you feel about file sharing on sites such as this?
I think it’s a good idea. If it’s just one then it’s good for the fans, giving them something for free. And if people like it (the album) then hopefully they’ll go out and buy it.
But surely there’s a fine line?
Well that’s up to the artist to monitor (this particular site). I think maybe a song every few months is fine, an instrumental, a dub. I’ve put out tracks every now and then on my myspace for download.
You’ve mentioned a few times about live shows, is that the most enjoyable aspect to making Hip Hop for you?
Yeah definitely. It’s all about the interaction you get from a live show, you can’t beat that feeling. You can maybe exchange messages on a forum with fans but it’s not the same.
Any last shout outs?
Yeah to my man Rapper Ragz, who’s locked up, you can check him out via my myspace page. To everyone at Explosive Muzik, FlipdaScript, Kemet and everyone who has supported my music up to now. Peace!
Supar Novars ‘From the Beginning’ is out on the 4th December from all good record shops, and January 1st from the not so good ones.
– Kane