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A veteran of UK hip hop, Insane Macbeth has been around for over two decades. For those of you who are not familiar with him, he’s a producer, artist and has his own label, Insane Recordings. Although he’s witnessed a lot of change in the UK music scene, he likes what he’s hearing from the new crop of artists that are making their reputation on the underground scene, specifically, in Brixton. “A lot of acts coming through are youngsters; acts such as PDC, SMS and Dutty South. The Icepick and myself are the older generation, veterans of the UK rap scene. All the youts are working on mixtapes and DVDs to promote their music. That’s what bubbling in Brixton, South London right now.” Explaining the divide between himself and the new talent that’s currently out there, he said: “I’m completely individual to those acts. I don’t know any of those guys. The Icepick roles with Dutty South and they’re part of his click, the HQ Squad. They’re a lot younger than us and we’ve just re-emerged from the scene,” he explained. “We’re doing our thing, they’re doing their thing. They represent the youts and we represent UK hip hop culture, the older generation, although we represent the street as well.”
Originating from North London, Insane Macbeth relocated to the south of the Thames when he was young, and has been a part of the South London scene ever since. “I was born in Stoke Newington in North London and I moved to South London, Brixton, when I was 12. I grew up in Brixton all through my adolescence to my adulthood,” he said, telling how he truly represents the South. “I represent Brixton SW9 and SW2. Although I still know people in Stoke Newington, I grew up with people like Spoony from the Dreem Team.” Given his upbringing, does he think there is a distinct divide between the music on the north and on the south side of the city? “Not really, I would say the main difference is between South London and East London. South London is more street and hip hop based, and East London deals more with the Grime scene.” Insane Macbeth is not afraid to call himself a legend, but for people out there who don’t know his history, he explained why he deserves the title. “Basically my history and my catalogue. Anyone that’s into UK hip hop should know what I've done. If they do not know my history then they’re not aware of the whole of UK hip hop.” He continued, “People who’ve read interviews with me in the past know that I have been around since 1982. I was with Tim Westwood of Radio One the other day and we were reminiscing about back in the day, ‘cos my history is that deep. I am a legend and The Icepick is a legend as well. The new consumer and the new artist should pay some respect ‘cos we paved the way for UK rappers and producers now.” Despite his longevity as an artist in the British music industry, Insane Macbeth has never performed live. “Essentially because I’m a producer,” he told, explaining his reasons for this. “However, The Icepick and myself plan to do shows and a little UK tour once we’ve recorded a three track EP called ‘The Heat’. I run the label Insane Recordings and I produce beats; that’s my role, but doing shows is something I’m thinking about for the future.” So what’s the major focus of the prodigy at this point in his career? “Right now, I’m promoting the new single on my imprint Insane Recordings. The artist is myself, Insane Macbeth, featuring the legendary Icepick. The single is called ‘True Heart’ and it’s backed with the Icepick freestyle and ‘True Heart’ instrumental. There are 500 limited edition red vinyls for collectors. It’s distributed by Boombox Network Distribution and Cargo Records Distribution.” He went on to give an overview of his single that’s currently in stores. “The single is just talking about street poetry. It pertains to the lives of Insane Macbeth and the Icepick. Obviously there are some battle lyrics in there, just a reflection to our world view.” Insane Macbeth revealed his major aims for his twenty-third and twenty-forth year on the scene. “I wanna make some money out of this now to be honest. I think I'm definitely due to make a change out of my music. To re-establish Insane Macbeth as a force in the UK rap scene in regards to production, but also re-establish The Icepick as he hasn’t had something out in a little while. I want to be relevant in 2005 and 2006.” Is there anything else he is hoping to accomplish over this coming year? “I’m looking for Insane Macbeth to get signed to a major (label) either here in Europe, Japan or in the US. I don’t mind where, as long as they know how to promote my product and myself in regards to my image. I plan to go to New York later in the year to shop a deal. That’s what I wish to achieve.” Discussing the different skills involved in music production, Insane Macbeth revealed how his passion for working behind the boards came about. “Although I tried, I could never write lyrics but I always understood the science of sound, so really production was natural for me. I tried being a scratch DJ but again that didn’t really work out,” he laughed. “Making beats and production was something that I was interested in and was something that I could do.” Being a veteran of the industry, the producer/rapper knows a lot about the music business. He suggested four elements that would help a music consumer take their interest in music to career level. “The first thing I’d suggest is although everyone wants to make money and a lot of people want the fame, you’ve got to love music. Secondly, you’ve got to understand the science of making music. It’s not just a case of buying a sampler and thinking, ‘Yeah, I can make beats.’ Thirdly, try and be different; don’t be afraid of being creative. Fourthly, don’t have ‘yes’ men around you. If someone doesn’t like your stuff it normally means that it is good and that they don’t understand it. Those are the four main points of advice I have for anyone who’s looking to get into making music.” Moving on to a more serious note, he discussed what impact
the terrorist attacks in London has had on his career and on him as a
person. “I wouldn’t suggest that it has affected me at all really. I guess
that obviously any event that occurs either in Brixton or in London at
large can influence the emcees that I work with who write about those
subjects. Me as a person? I wouldn’t really suggest that it has affected
me too much, but of course artists get their inspiration from all sorts
of experiences, whether it’s personal experience or experiences in the
environment.” Does he believe that it has had an effect on the music industry
at large? “Not really, but nothing’s selling right now in the music industry
in London or in the whole of England. It seems like people are not really
buying product. I’ve found this from both promoting and releasing this
new single. The Grime scene isn’t really selling either,” he commented. With a new single and more material out soon, Insane Macbeth is looking to win over a new audience, and prove exactly why he deserves to be called a legend. Check him out now and decide for yourself…
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