MT: I hear what your saying. Things just evolve and move on. I think 2006 is gonna be a hot year for British hip hop. Skinny’s good, Yungun is ready to blow and Jesht, Roots Manuva etc are all on fire!
FR: So listen, keeping it moving - give me the good and bad points about being a ‘scratch’ DJ for a living and then I’ll give you mine
MT: OK firstly I’m more of a hip hop DJ now than a ‘scratch DJ’. I like to play clubs more than I like to do little scratch nights. The best points are really just travelling, meeting people, making contracts, rocking the clubs u know… its what I’ve wanted to do since… erm… I can remember.
FR: And the bad points…
MT: It’s quite lonely travelling and its not always possible to take your boys with you.
FR: Yeh I’m very much with you on that. I mean when I was a lot younger I hated planes, travelling - the whole bag. But if you do what we do you have to learn to deal with travelling to strange places you would never of dreamt of going to. I mean if you’re going to play abroad somewhere, its very much like work. Your’e going to do a job and although everyone thinks its very glitzy and glamorous… its not. It’s lonely. If it’s a work night and you’ve got a gig we usually end up going on our own right? You know the story Mark… all our mates have been to all the clubs by now, drunk all the free beer – so they don’t really wanna come out every weekend anymore. I think a really big gig abroad can be one of the loneliest places in the world. You’ve just done your set, smashed the club and your sitting backstage in a corner on your own… thinking… fuck me I wish I was at home watching telly with my missus!
MT: saying that though sir, I wouldn’t want to do any other job!
FR: Definately sir, I agree entirely! I just like a moan. Right before we go, you got any big ups Mark?
MT: Yeh Yungun, Tommy Evans, DJ Renegade, Addict and my Extended Players Crew – DJ MK, Harry Love and the mighty Shortie Blitz.
FR: I’m gonna shout out DJ Lil Guy, Bombay Monkey’s, Koobs, Kela, Wrec, Addict and oh yeh… my misses! PEACE!