Hiya Startzy, thanks for joining us in the virtual RGM lounge today. Grab a brew and take a seat.
What made you decide that music is a thing for you?
I’ll be real—music is one of the few things I genuinely care about. I’m a fan first. Anyone who knows me will say, “Startzy don’t react to much,” but not with music. You can draw me out with music. I can talk about music with you all day. Then, I fell in love with creating through tapping into a new level of expression and getting crowd feedback from grime sets when I was younger. That developed into making songs and generating a buzz in my area.
Introduce us to you and your musical history.
My first conscious memories of music stem from my dad playing “2Pac – How Do You Want It?” at the house parties when I was a kid. It’s still one of my favorite songs to this day, by the way. Then it was school—someone banging on the table with a pen, and me rhyming whatever I thought would get the maddest reaction. Fast forward a few years, and I’ve got videos on Channel U (or AKA, whatever you want to call it). This was all while I was still in school, so it was a mad time.
Then I started selling mixtapes around the area before eventually branching out wider. As noise began to build up, I signed a distribution deal at 16. Working away, I found myself opening for some grime legends like Ghetts and Kano. My interests and cultural influences have taken me down a variety of lanes with my art.
What’s the live music scene like in South London right now? Anyone we should be looking out for (aside from you, of course)?
It’s alright, you know, but with the internet and social media now, it’s like everyone’s from everywhere. You can be big in a city you’ve never even been to and have little impact in the city you live in. It’s like a beautiful chaos. One artist to check out though is Jay Alexzander. That’s my boy—he’s cold. He’s the only feature on my mixtape No Gree For Anybody. We might have a project dropping together in the near future too.
I’ve seen a lot of people struggling for support recently online. What’s your view on the industry?
Like I said, it’s a beautiful chaos, innit? Talent has very little, if anything, to do with success in this game, unfortunately. It’s a popularity contest, and if you can generate a big enough following, that’s your audience right there. Music is subjective, too. What’s fire to some is trash to others and vice versa.
Two things about me, though:
- I love music—I’ll make music as long as I can.
- I’m a hustler—I know how to move and shake. I’ll always eat.
I believe in myself, I believe in my art, and to be honest, once people hear me, they normally believe too. The skill nowadays for independent artists is cutting through the noise. There’s no qualification needed, so a million new artists pop out daily. That’s the con, but the pro is there are no rules, and if you do cut through, the rewards are sweeter than ever.
Where do you feel you currently sit within the music industry?
I’m a hybrid. Not too many artists switch lanes as effortlessly as I do without stalling, if you get me. I did a freestyle with DJ AG the other day that was grime, and it’s going crazy on socials. Then I did a rap freestyle in my car that was just as well received. My first two singles off my mixtape No Gree For Anybody are afrobeats and a wavy afro-fusion style.
I think what helps me make it cohesive is my personality. People buy into me as well as the music, and it all makes sense. Plus, it’s good music. I get messages daily from people discovering me for one sound, then discovering another sound and being blown away that I can do both at a high level. It’s a blessing, truthfully.
Tell us two truths and a lie about you.
- No Gree For Anybody is one of the best projects you’ll hear this year.
- I was in the top set for English all the way through school, even when other factors entered my life.
- A lie about me? That’s a mad question. I dunno—ask someone I’ve ever told no! Haha.
Do you ever worry about people taking things the wrong way or cancel culture? Discuss…
Nah, man. I try to be impeccable with my word. I know what I say and what I mean, but I don’t intentionally try to offend anybody. I’m from Mitcham, and I’m Nigerian & Dominican. Respectfully or disrespectfully, I’m not losing any sleep over that. It’s all love, but nobody made me, so nobody can break me.
Do you sign up to any conspiracy theories? If not, why not?
Nothing in particular, but I’m not naive to what’s going on. I’m just more of a practical person. Are we gonna do something or just talk about it? ‘Cause I’m busy, you get me? Get in position and make the moves—that’s how I operate.
What was your best experience on stage?
I did a show in Cardiff a few years ago, and the love was crazy. It had me thinking, “Do I know these people from somewhere?” They loved me like they’d known me since I was a young man, but I ain’t ever been to Cardiff, bruv. It was lit. I just fed off their energy, and some of them still hit me up on socials today.
What was your worst experience on stage?
I can’t say I’ve had any, and I pray it stays that way.
Tell us something about you that you think people would be surprised by.
I’ve never smoked or done any drugs in my life—that tends to shock people. It just never interested me. I like money and girls—that’s always been my thing, and I didn’t see anybody getting money and girls by doing that.
What are the next steps you plan to take as an artist to reach the next level?
I’m gonna keep dropping music, experimenting with different sounds, and really try to push myself and the boundaries on a global scale. Stay tuned!
I hear you have new music. What can you tell us about it?
So my latest release is a mixtape called No Gree For Anybody, which is Nigerian Pidgin for “not agreeing with anybody.” Being such a diverse artist, people around me tend to be reactive when I drop something and want me to go down that lane for the foreseeable future. For example, my most streamed song is Spicy , which is quite a slow, chill type vibe. I’ve got people on my case telling me to make another one of them. Then, I’ll drop another one of my most popular songs, Commotion, and the same people will say I should stay in this lane. If I listened to them, neither would have come out, and then it would be, “You need to drop more music, man.”
I’m not saying don’t listen to anyone at all; it’s just a form of expression that really resonates with me. It happened again with this mixtape. The first single, Wahala Don Enter , was buzzing here and in Nigeria, which was an afrobeats song. The follow-up, In My Cup , is steadily rising to be a fan favorite off the mixtape, but it’s not full afrobeats either. I think you just have to let me create. This is art—you can’t regulate it like that. Big up the supporters and everyone who loves what I do enough to care, though. I truly appreciate it. Keep running up the mixtape! HERE
What was the recording process like?
The process was dope. Everything was made from scratch with Michelin Shin, aka Barthez (that’s what I call him anyway—if you watch football, you’ll know the old-school bald keeper). But there’s genius inside that bald skull of Shin’s, and we work well together. Everything was a vibe—nothing was forced, no egos, just work. That’s my brudda. He produced 11/12 tracks on the tape. I’ve only got the one feature on this project, and that’s my boy Jay Alexzander. Cold singer—he killed it. Watch out for him, and we’ve got something special dropping in 2025, God willing.
What was the biggest learning curve in writing the new tunes?
Probably figuring out what food to order, haha. The creating part is what I was born to do, so it’s natural.
Would you change anything now that it’s finished?
I’m really proud of this project. I made bold choices, and I love how they manifested. People are loving it too, which is sick as well. I guess, just for the sake of exposure, I would’ve liked some big global features. But even that couldn’t come at the cost of compromising the art.
Is there anything else you would like to share with the world?
Make sure you lock in with me—the ASBO season is 12 months a year, 365 days.
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