Dj Hype Interview
Pyroradio.com caught up with Dj Hype a true pioneer and legend in the game. After 20 years in the game he’s still going as strong as ever. With a string of successful compilations, his Kiss radio show every Wednesday, a number of successful record labels, his hugely popular night at Fabric and bookings all around the world Pyroradio caught up with Hype to see what’s been going on.
Pyroradio.com: How’s life treating ya?
DJ Hype: I just got out of prison after me ten year stretch and I’m looking for this cunt Hype who’s been using my name, nah I’m fine, everything’s great and lovely. Life’s treating me good better than ever I think, I’m appreciating everything from the music to the Dj`ing to the radio it’s all going well.
Pyroradio.com: What drives you to keep going?
DJ Hype: Because I love it I suppose. Sometimes it becomes a routine and a job, but you have that with anything you do, know matter how great your job is, it can get routine but I dunno you know I think I have a passion for it, I’m apart of the foundations and I love it so much, everything drives me, the music, the people, the people probably keeps me going the best, not the magazines, the interviews don’t get me wrong you have to do all that stuff but just the simple person that comes up in a club and compliments me is what keeps me going because there might be times when I’m not critically flavour of the month with journalists and whoever but the kids in the party globally are always very passionate and all ways show me love so I think that gives you the confidence to know that whatever people say it doesn’t effect you because you see the audience every week buzzing off what you do. People power!
Pyroradio.com: How do your mates who you grew up with perceive you now that your Dj Hype?
DJ Hype: I haven’t even left my old friends there still my friends now, and if any one knows my history they know I started with a couple of guys called Shut Up And Dance and all them lot and Daddy Earl who’s now touring with me all over the place, he’s featured on tracks I’ve done from 1989 to vocal ling the Dubplate Killers track I did last year, if you listen to my show he done the HYPE HYPE HYPE, all my close friends I’ve got a lot of respect for them and they’ve got a lot of respect for me that’s why were still friends and it’s not just on a music level, anyone that knows me knows iv got my feet very much on the ground, I think that’s another of the reasons I’m here cos I’m not superstarred off if you know what I mean, you know people when there young have a short bit of success then it goes to there head and all of a sudden he’s walking around like there better than everyone, I’ve never been like that, and my friends still in the manor I’m no better or worse than them I just happen to be in the public eye more but that don’t make me better than anyone and my true friends I value them, especially in the last five to eight years cos in this game you move around with different people and I am a person who has gone around with different people but I always end up going back to my original friends and realize the language we speak and area were from is very unique, growing up in Hackney in the 80’s it was a different. Original but still fun time and I’m sort of from that era and so are they, I’m still in Hackney every week mate, I’m a loyal guy
Pyroradio.com: How do you deal with all the touring and travelling around?
DJ Hype: I just get on with it, I just get into machine mode and get on with it, remember I’ve been doing it a long time, tomorrow(Wednesday) I’m going France then I come back and on Thursday I go up north somewhere, then the next day I go off to Belgium, the next day I’m in Liverpool, Birmingham and Innovation and that is sort of a snap shot into what I do in a week, then cramming in my radio show in-between, we’ve got six labels as well, my fingers in all the pies! I’m enjoying it, I’m waiting for something to go wrong it’s going so well. My life has always been peppered with tragedy all my friends have matured into good people at last. Musically the artists are maturing a bit more as well, there are some that have a lot to learn with there attitude. I think there’s a lot of unity at the moment, obviously people are gonna like different sounds but it seems good at the moment , I’ve never publicly slagged off other styles of Drum and Bass like I’m superior to you I think the global industry is appreciating that now. A couple weeks back I played out with Goldie, Sub Focus, Pendulum, Shy FX it was a nice across the board line up with individual styles that can gel now, the audience are open minded to it all now and that’s probably why I enjoy it so much cos obviously I get tagged as jump up but I always tell people what’s ‘Jump Up’ define that to me I dunno what your fucking talking about, does ‘Jump Up’ mean the crowd goes crazy well every Dj wants to be like that.
Pyroradio.com: Do you think over the years there’s been a bit of snobbery in the scene?
DJ Hype: Yeah that’s with all music though I think, I said a statement in Atmosphere that said I’ve been in this game since day minus, I started Dj’ing when there was one deck, there was no such thing as two decks that’s how fucking old I am, there’s always been two types of people, the people who love the music today whatever style it is and then there’s the type who liked it a year or two ago and moan that it’s shit now and it’s been like that every year. I’m tough skinned when people have opinions, everyone has an opinion, the difference now with forums and that is that it’s given everyone’s opinion public, back in the day you might pick up the paper and read the journalists view and you might not agree with it, you’ll shout what a bloody idiot and put the paper down, but now everyone’s view is broadcast, I call it too many chiefs not enough Indians, everyone thinks there the authority on it all, same with football you sit with five people everyone will be like this players shit, we should buy him and keep going on but none of us are football managers are we, I always tell my artists too stay away from that, I’ve seen artists get suckered in to all of that, do what naturally your good at, I play out every week luckily and my audience is there, so if I’m packing a club and the audience is going nuts, then I look in a forum and someone’s telling me I was rubbish what do you think I’m gonna crumble up die over it, if I’m so rubbish why am I still here twenty years down the line at the top end of my game, the proof of the puddings with the eating and I’m the proof in the pudding, you can slag me off that’s your opinion but you can’t force people to like me, I think for every person that likes me there’s probably two that hates me and that don’t matter if you’re a footballer, actor, Dj or whatever, if your in the public eye your open to criticism good and bad and none of us like it, I’m surviving it I’m very content, I’ve never been this content, if anyone knows me they know I’m moaning about something, I’ve got probably the best night in London at Fabric the last Friday of every month and this the eighth year of doing it, I’ve got my radio show every Wednesday, I travel the world Djing, I’ve got a nice family of artists around me, my partner at my night Playaz (Fabric) Pascal me and him have been friends since 92 and I don’t think we’ve ever had an argument, my agency everything at the moment is good, I’m not saying it will last forever but I hope it is, so far so good.
Pyroradio.com: What are your thoughts on Grooverider’s situation?
DJ Hype: He done a silly move and he’s paying the price that’s it, I don’t want to talk about it, I’m not in the position to talk properly about it, I aint got nothing but respect for him but it’s unfortunate what happened that’s all I’m gonna say on the matter and I hope he gets out soon. I’ve been a bit disappointed with some people who’ve gone in too one like it’s a joke and it’s a bit funny but well that’s you, I’ve got nothing but respect for the man, he’s been around as long as me and it’s too easy to take the piss.
Pyroradio.com: Who do you thinks gonna be big this year producers, dj’s, mc’s, promoters….?
DJ Hype: I dunno I can’t predict the future it’s a policy of mine, obviously I’m gonna big up my own camp because I’ve seen them grow in the last few years Hazard’s gonna have a fantastic year, G Dub are growing all the time, Linx, I like a guy called Zero T at the moment, I’m always quiet cynical of the guy that comes with one hit and who’s flavour of the month and everyone’s kissing his arse, then let’s see if you can stay there then, most of them only last for a couple years where there in the driving seat then they back off for a bit.
Pyroradio.com: Do you think the business model has changed cos of mp3’s and all that?
DJ Hype: Not for me I know how to do my shit, too many people don’t know what there doing, it’s just a format, I run a tight ship. Pascal run’s the ship more than me cos more hands on with finance and accounting and I do find were doing fine! If you’re making good quality music and you’re presenting it the right way it sells, the Mp3 thing yes you can get access quicker but there’s no quality control but again there’s a market flood of tunes, of artists, of dj’s and out of it comes really good acts. It’s only affected people who had big offices and had loads of staff and spent it on marketing, it’s harder to make that money, but I’ve never been that way, I base my stuff on natural sales and what goes out there works, it’s tried and tested, not everything I put out is the biggest thing in the planet but I constantly put out a good roster of drum and bass, predominantly dance floor if you wanna call it that. If you ask me who’s playing music from my camp it’s everyone from LTJ Bukem, to Goldie, to Andy C there all playing something of mine so I can’t get no better than what I’m doing, the only thing I’d like to do what I’m not doing is to do some videos cos the video market isn’t doing it with Drum and Bass, I look at Drum and Bass on MTV will look it and think fucking hell is that it, it’s all old videos.
Pyroradio.com: What have you got in store for 2008?
DJ Hype: At the moment it’s all about my artists I’m just djing and giving them the guidance that will hopefully help them, I hope to get in to the studio this year but looking at my Dj schedule it looks pretty difficult but I do wanna start writing again even if it’s not to release anything, I enjoy writing music, I just don’t like the pressure of doing it and then playing it Saturday night to see if everyone enjoys, I’d to do a couple of tracks that I don’t care if you don’t like it it’s just a track, with the camp I’ve got I have to keep up with them and everyone else in the scene, I’m hoping you’ll see some stuff but at the end of last year I thought I’d have stuff out but now I’m not so sure, maybe this year will be a learning curve to build up to 2009
Pyroradio.com: Last question if you were a pigeon whose head would you shit on?
DJ Hype: Gordon Brown and the Labour Government and what’s that other fucker Ken Livingstone the biggest crack dealers going, they take all our money and do fuck all about it, education is shit, the NHS is shit and half the people in this place don’t even know what’s going on, then everyday he’s smiling and tell me how great my life is with his one eye
http://www.playazonline.co.uk/
http://www.myspace.com/hypehypehype/
Be sure to check out Drumandbassarena All stars 8th of Febuary at the Coronet
and the next Playaz night at Fabric 29th Febuary two big nights!!!!
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