FRSHRZ

Pass The Torch For Ty ‘Event Review’

August 30, 2021 by Theo Specone

The legendary MC and producer Ty sadly passed away last year (2020) due to complications from COVID, very quickly tributes poured in from acround the globe as well as in the UK. It was an impressive roll call of artists too El-P, Questlove, Idris Elba, Omar, the list goes on. It’s clear he had respect on a global scale and that his music created a sizable impact. On top of that Ty was a grassroots community activist too, only adding to his impact, his loss was a devastating blow to black music. In the midst of a pandemic it was impossible to truly honour Ty and to process his loss. Covid restrictions meant that his family, friends and fans could not come together to celebrate his life in a manner befitting his legacy.

With restrictions easing up in 2021, a group of Ty’s creative friends and collaborators planned a gig in his honour, to be held at the Jazz Cafe on his birthday, August 17th, the gig was divided into 3 acts, just like a movie or a play. DJ Bounce was the DJ for the entire evening and warmed up the crowd as the venue filled up with friends and fans of Ty. He played classic hip hop tunes and an assortment of well known and more obscure tracks by Ty, a great way to get everyone in the mood as people got their drinks, bought Ty merchandise and greeted each other like long lost friends. Ty, known as the gatherer of the village, was living up to this reputation with the Pass The Torch gig.

The second part of the evening belonged to the special guests, a blend of seasoned veterans and new talent. It was only fitting. Ty was well known for championing talent, old and new, giving them platforms on his radio shows and his Pass The Torch shows. Terri Walker, BREIS, Seanie Tee (Featuring Prolific), Logic, FRSHRZ (Artcha, SKANDOUZ & Dray Styles), TrueMendous, Mas Law and Obi Joe, all put on great performances, getting the crowd further hyped with their skilled stage presence and their effortless ability to communicate and interact with the crowd. Trumendous continued her run of destroying the mic with her ferocious rap skills and relentless flow, it’s clear she’s winning new fans for every live performance, the future of hip hop is bright.

Then came the final act, the organisers of the gig had assembled a band of musicians, Ty’s original touring band to play a select set of Ty’s back catalogue. Ty’s backing singers, Nomvula Malinga and Ladonna Marie provided backing vocals to the band and each song had a different UK MC rap Ty’s lyrics.

This was emotional, at times people in the crowd were teary, at others times full of joy and at other times just getting hyped. It was a masterclass in performing, the level of musicianship from the band* was world class. They were playing music that Ty had crafted, composed and produced, it was a reminder of just how musically minded Ty was, he was nothing short of a genius when it came to composing and arranging tracks.

The set was beautifully curated, including classic Ty tracks such as Groovement, Haha, Look 4 Me. Great musicianship, world class vocalists and the cream of UK MCs…they say good things come in threes and these three elements created a set that was the perfect way to close out the night, it was an emotionally cathartic and fitting way to end the night.

We’ve all been starved for live music, for the human connection that comes with that and the communal aspect of bonding over incredible music. This was a great way to return to enjoying the experience of live music, quite frankly it’s set the bar incredibly high, just like Ty did during his illustrious career.

Words by Haroon

Photography credits @paulhiphop

*Band Details / Richard Spaven – Drums / Jason Yarde – Sax / Robin Mullarkey – Bass / Eric Appapulay – Guitar / Dave Okumu – Guitar / Ashley Henry – Keyboard / Philip Harper – Percussion / Harry Brown – Trombone / Mark Crown – Trumpet / Sam Crowe (guest) – Keyboard

SKANDOUZ ‘Nettie’ Review

February 3, 2021 by Theo Specone

London based rapper, author and radio personality SKANDOUZ releases his debut solo album ‘Nettie’ on Club FRSHRZ, an independent alt. Hip Hop and Soul record label based in the capital. The 15 track release is filled with refreshingly positive, uplifting goodness, although saying that, the album’s namesake is taken from his Auntie Nettie, who sadly passed away in 2009, but who indirectly inspired what has been described as a ‘multi-layered Hip Hop musical experience’. So something that was born of grief can actually turn out to be a rather positive look on life, as well as becoming yet another album released during the chaotic end of a covid-rife 2020, demonstrating capacity to prevail over adversity. This piece of work was 10 years in the making, covering a range of topics like black empowerment, race, marriage as well as other challenging subject matters, it also features a full ensemble cast of producers and guest artists, so it’s a regular cavalcade of talent on this one. Although this is SKANDOUZ’ first solo venture, he is no stranger to releasing music, having already featured on various works as one third of FRSHRZ, an energetic rap collective alongside stable-mates Artcha and Dray Styles. He has also collaborated with UK legends such as Rodney P, Blak Twang and TY, TY unfortunately having passed away in 2020, prompting SKANDOUZ to write a touching tribute piece called “Letter to my big bro” that you can listen to here. Over the years he also partnered with Tom Foolery Beats as host on the “Connoisseurs of Hip Hop” (COHH) radio show, impressively delivering over 250 live radio sets which featured on Itch FM and Reels Rebel Radio. COHH are known for their special guests and exclusive interviews with some of Hip Hop’s biggest legends which include Chuck D, Pete Rock, DJ Jazzy Jeff, Talib Kweli and many more. This radio partnership culminated in a self published book ‘The Interviews‘, which committed to paper all of the wise words of their many guests, definitley worth a look.

SKANDOUZ clearly possesses a wealth of experience and knowledge, but what was this primary outing as a solo artist actually like, we took a visit to Kentish Town to take in the sights and sounds..

The album opens to a jump up Juke 84 beat on ‘SKANtro’, which includes a series of shout outs from some of the biggest artists who have ever graced the stage, from both sides of the water. The track ends with the lyrics “..can’t fathom how you keep giving the N word power..”, which transitions into one of the COHH interviews with Public Enemy’s Chuck D, who speaks around this sentiment, then intros SKANDOUZ, an epic way to start any album.

“Words do hurt and when you let people get away with calling you that, expect them to treat you any old way too”
Chuck D, Public Enemy

‘Clap Ur Hands’ is produced by SKANDOUZ, this is one of three tracks he constructs himself on the album, droney bass compliments a sharp hammond organ, with some accented snares and punchy wordplay. The titular ‘Nettie’ features on the first half of the album, Law OS produces some warm soulful samples that blend with a hard bass drum and ends with the echos of Nettie talking about queuing outside London’s Koko to see Coldplay, a lovely eulogy for a dear friend, RIP Nettie. ‘Kentish Town’ produced by Swift Ra has a haunting vocal sample and some gorgeous piano coursing through it, with slower pacing allowing for faster double time bars jointly delivered alongside fellow Kentish Towners Dozer Carter and Trigz. The middle of the album hosts a couple of hype tracks, ‘Groove N Sway’ and ‘Work+Play’ courtesy of !LLMIND and Chrom3, the latter of which sounds like a club remix, these are a long way from the usual innercity doldrums of many London artists, all exciting stuff.

“They don’t understand about the struggle and strife, better leave this town if you want my advice, I’mma stay here this is what I call life, nw5, nw5..”

Songs like ‘Nuffin on my Mrs bro!’ produced by Deejay LoK and ‘Anniversary’ produced by Nino Sipiano make for a refreshing change as to context and portrayal of women within Hip Hop, they encourage the listener to cherish their partner and celebrate them, in comparison to the womanising exploits of many of our beloved artists (naming no names!). Also ‘Anniversary’ has to be the first of a kind in terms of it’s content within rap music (Tweet me if I am wrong), it’s a serenade that features Tony Rotton and Gee Bag, conjuring up some 90’s flavours and allowing the ukhh veterans to decalre love for their respective partners, the track shows a certain vulnerability that has to be respected, “salute long lasting marriages, we need to celebrate that more in this hip hop ting”, really nice work. This is followed up with similar sentiments on ‘Lady’, the second song produced by Nino Sipiano on the album, SKANDOUZ is joined by Mas Law and some powerful vocals on the hook by Lara Lee. FRSHRZ reunite on ‘Nu Nation Rising’, a high energy number produced by Mezkla, featuring expansive hook vocals by Jah Mirikle. Another stand out on the album is ‘Headnodder’ produced by Joffsta and Drum@Tix, a track that nicely builds beats that bounce, fresh bars and easy hooks on a dreamlike sound selection. There are too many songs to mention but the noteworthy sign off is ‘Hip Hop World’, produced by Jonathan Vears featuring Elsa Chapman, a theatrical number that rises to a crescendo of strings, where SKANDOUZ and Elsa’s vocals coalesce into a sugary blend, finalising a worthy solo effort.

The album is for anyone wanting to hear a wide range of producers building rich soundscapes around SKANDOUZ’ smoothly crafted word play. There are a number of fantastic vocalists and noteworthy rappers who make an appearance here and clearly he is not scared about trying out some different things, most of which land, it is a creative, versatile piece of work, full of different sounds and styles.

Nettie is out now on all digital channels and limited edition vinyl (coming soon), grab yours now.

Did you like the album, which songs were your favourite? Tweet me your thoughts.

Words by Theo Specone

UKHH Extra: Here is an interview with IAMHIPHOP magazine, where SKANDOUZ discusses at length the new ‘Nettie’ album, give it a watch here.

Additional photography credit for top banner image: Oliver Whitehouse (Sektion Red)

Dray Styles – FXCKIT

December 13, 2020 by Theo Specone

SKANDOUZ – Kentish Town ft Dozer Carter & Trigz

October 10, 2020 by Theo Specone

The first single taken from SKANDOUZ debut Album ‘Nettie’ (Coming Soon). Available on ALL digital platforms https://backl.ink/142762857

Dray Styles – Keep Going

August 6, 2020 by Theo Specone

Dray is currently part of a hip-hop collective called the FRSHRZ who have had show’s in Europe and performed at various venues around the UK and having worked with a number of artists such as Rodney P, TY, Logic to name a few Dray is an artist who is now approaching his music from a different angle.

ARTCHA – Brand New

August 6, 2020 by Theo Specone

North London artist and producer seems set to release a range of music this year. He began with the warmly received Avalanche ft. Benny Bizzie, then released EGO Playlist and continues with the smash Brand New.

SKANDOUZ – Letter to my big bro (Ty Tribute)

July 25, 2020 by Theo Specone

Written & Performed by SKANDOUZ, video by Sektion Red.

Directed by Oliver Whitehouse.

FRSHRZ – Whats Love?

February 15, 2018 by Nick Russell

The London based hip hop group FRSHRZ who have been pushing that true school rap for a few years have just released the video for ‘Whats Love?’ from their FRSHRZ EP which came out last year. Artcha, Dray Styles and Skandouz get Keesha Simpson on the hook for this track which delivers a great alternative meaning to the concept of love.

Grab from your preferred streaming platform here.

FRSHRZ ft. Mas Law – EA Sports

December 1, 2017 by Nick Russell

New video from the London based trio of @DrayStyles @Artcha and @SKANDOUZ who have gone international! The three of them headed out to Hip Hop Kemp festival in Czech Republic to shoot the video with Mas Law, who is producer of the track and drops some guest vocals too.

EA Sports focuses on the ideas of of motivation, hard work and passion, all of which are essential ingredients for success in the music game!You can find EA Sports on their latest ‘FRSHRZ EP’ which also features Rodney P, Si Phili and Logic!

Follow the group on Twitter and Instagram.

Earth 2 Tom – The N_Wrd ft Frshrz

May 24, 2017 by Nick Russell

Dope new track which sees Frshrz (Artcha, Skandouz, Dray Stylez) jump on this golden era hip hop beat from production duo ‘Earth2Tom’ about revisiting the meaning of the N Word featuring some dope lyricism and historic sound clips of Quincey Jones and a from documentary called the ‘N Word’ referring back to racial issues.

Available to buy on https://earth2tom.bandcamp.com