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 Slicker than your average music star who has been a 5 time MOBO winner is back! Famously known for featuring on the Artful Dodger track “Rewind” and debuting as a solo artist with “Fill me in” Craig David has achieved maximum success being Born to do it and loving every moment of it!
I caught up with him to talk about time in America, what’s he been up to? and his comeback album.
So it’s been a long time since you’ve been on the scene and you literally just came out of the blue on Kano’s new single. How did that come about?
We’ve got a mutual friend Fraser T Smith who plays the guitar with me for five – six years. He does acoustic stuff and then turned to production, he worked with Kano “typical me” and he was talking about Kano, and I always ended up walking pass him in the studio and we would say “hi lets’ work together” again and again and nothing would happen. Then one day he came into the studio I had just finish and I had a few hours free and I said “Hey Kane let’s just do this, let’s make track!” So we done “This is the girl” and “Bad boy” (another track on Kano’s album). I like Kano he is a very cool guy.
Throughout this time what have you been up to?
I’ve been working really hard trying to get back in touch with the scene and what’s been played in the clubs. When I would DJ it’s all about the reaction of the people and if everyone is going crazy am I going to reload the track. So I felt I have lost that for the past three or four years. Spent a year writing the album doing it the way I wanted to do it and then I went on the whole journey from being in London then Cuba.
Trust me the title of your comeback album. What’s the reason behind the title?
Well it’s quite simple really I just felt that I sold a lot of records, I’ve been around the world twice over met so many nice and different kinds of people and it got to a point in my life where I can really speak my mind and not feel that I was overly influenced by the people. And I said to management “Hey trust me, let me make a record that represents me!”
Why am I making albums with mid-tempo and ballads when I look in hindsight to other records except “Born to do it” I love writing songs where I can express myself and be emotional with the lyrics. But I don’t want this album to be an emotional one, I wanted to make it more infectious and hooky like “Hot stuff” rather than to much about lyrics.
Thinking how you originated out of the Garage scene. Have you considered going back to the scene? Because you know funky house is big right now!
I think the garage scene…well the garage scene I came out of it’s no longer there. When “rewind” dropped that was the big underground anthem. Now they talk about it like it was a pop track, people would go crazy for that song. But the culture changes and now the Grime scene is coming to a point where it’s fading out. When something gets embraced it becomes quite commercial vibed and a lot of people get on it. Then the underground feel they got to gain on it and make it dark and underground. Then they realise there’s no vocals or melody you know where’s the Rosie Gaines closer than closer and Tina Moore Never gonna let you go, so that’s why funky house will come back round and then it will go so… but I do love funky house. It’s cool!
You spent a lot of time in the US. What was it like there? Did you meet up with any of your idols?
It was an amazing experience. The UK has so much to offer concerning style, fashion and multiculture of the arts growing up here. In the US… you can tell it’s quite segregated but in LA you can bump into all the actors/actresses. In New York from P.Diddy to Irv Gotti, 50 Cent it’s a normal thing.When I played out the House of Blues in LA, it was… incredible. Janet Jackson and Missy Elliott was there on the first night which was cool and the following night was Jennifer Lopez it was cool. Then the third night Beyonce was there she looked stunning just stunning, beautiful. Then when I performed “Fill me in” and I realise that the band was focusing on someone in the crowd so I looked to see this guy with glasses on bobbing his head and looked closer and I thought wow! Stevie Wonder not the fact that he was there but the fact that he was singing “Fill me in” it was ridiculous. A very amazing experience in America.
You been around of years and has had legendary artists such as Elton John make compliments. Are you quite overwhelmed by the success?
I’m very blessed, I feel I worked very hard to achieve a lot of things and it’s a lot about being at the right place at the right time. Having good people around you to guide you. Some of things people have said are flattering and I want it to continue. I wanna be as current as I can in the scene and… I just wanna be around baby!
What is next for you? Is there is a greatest hits album on the way?
Well there’s this record and there will be a greatest hits album on the way.
Hot Stuff to be released 5th November taken from "Trust me" album.
Interview by : Tayna Royes
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