I swear that the older you get, the quicker time passes you by; it's quite scary if you think about it. It doesn't seem that long ago I was writing last year's round up!
Normally I'd end up doing a long, drawn out post about important events which have happened this year, alongside any musical and personal highlights. This year, I'll keep it brief and to the point, as I have to leave the house to go DJ in a little while...
In short, the UK "Urban" scene is on top form at the moment. Whilst I don't necessarily agree with this tried and tested formula of making 125-130bpm Electro pop tunes, artists such as Tinie Tempah, Plan B broke the mould and did something different, whilst Skepta made Grime history by making a tune with Diddy. JME put out the best UK album of 2010, Elijah & Skilliam created one of the most exciting records labels, whilst Spooky, Teddy, Rude Kid, Swindle & Terror Danjah all put out some amazing tunes. 2011 definitely looks promising, with artists such as Wretch 32, Jessie J and Yasmin all set to blow.
Speaking of Yasmin, I also want to give her a massive thanks for bringing me on board as her DJ. Recording at Maida Vale was an incredible experience, and has definitely been one of the highlights of my DJ career so far. I also want to thank CJ Beatz & Mistajam for giving me the opportunities to produce guest mixes for their shows on 1Xtra, and also Marco Del Horno for inviting me on his Rinse FM show earlier this year. Watch out for him in 2011.
Other highlights include winning the Dogs On Acid x Urban Art Forms DJ comp, and achieving 3rd place (again) at the DMC World Team Championships with Bionic Stylus. Considering we had even less time than last year, I was really happy with the routine we put together. Whilst I've officially retired from solo battles, I'll still be keeping an eye on the DMCs, especially now that they've introduced DVS into the competition. Props to Sally DMC and Tony Prince for keeping the art of turntablism alive.
We also saw Dubstep became the "cool" thing to like, with students all over the UK pestering me for Mt Eden, or any of the tracks that they hear on Radio 1. In turn, most of the Urban DJs who had jumped on Funky in the same way became Dubstep DJs all of a sudden. I've been playing this music for a good few years now, and once the mainstream hype is over, and those £50 DJs who will play anything to get a booking jump on to the next fad, I'll still be championing my style of Hip Hop, Dubstep, Grime and Experimental/Electronic music. Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere :)
Once again, I've the had opportunities to play at some of the best club nights around the UK (Goonies, Murkage, Bigger Than Barry, Bad Intentions, etc), play at the Urban Art Forms festival in Austria, get booked to play in China (even if the volcano ruined it!), and continue to meet some amazing producers, DJs, and some interesting characters along the way. Whilst some months have been quiet, and whilst there was the odd setback here and there, I'm still grateful that I can continue to do what I love and get paid...and with a digital label on the horizon, potential tours, and continued support from you guys online (Shouts to Khal and DJ Nappy), 2011 can only be bigger and better.
There are too many people who I'd like to thank, so I won't make this long post even more unreadable by writing a massive list; so to everyone who's worked with me, booked me, supported my tunes, bumped my mixtapes, or taken the time to say hello to me this year, thank you. Have an awesome new year and I'll see you all in 2011, fully refreshed and ready to go!
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