 Gaining his first taste of commercial success in the UK scene through Ms Dynamite’s breakthrough single ‘Boo’ and then following that with massive anthems like ‘Champagne Dance’ by Pay As U Go Cartel, the underground club smash ‘Things We Do For Love’ by Kele le Roc and ‘Hype Hype’ by SLK his hunger for overground admiration has not dwindled. The South-London based producer and DJ has taken it upon himself to start up his own movement, under the name of Dirty Pop. “It’s a hybrid of house, r’n’b and pop with an edge, I see dirty pop as a culture that just happens to be music as well” explains Sticky in his N1 studio. A new musical concept headed by a man with Sticky’s credentials and experience can only mean another interesting chapter in the already lengthy tale of one the UK’s top producers.
How did you come with the concept of dirty pop?
We did ‘Mr DJ’ but Charlean and I looked at it as crossover house tune whereas others were looking at it as an urban tune and because Gappy [Ranx] was on it some saw it as a bashment tune as well. So I thought to myself, ‘what can I call it?’ it’s pop with that dirty sound to it, it’s like Ronseal, it does exactly what it says on the tin! When I think about making a dirty pop tune it’s like a film, for example with ‘Triplets’, there are three versions and each one is a different colour so to speak, I want it [music] to be more of an experience. If you look at the structure [of a film] and think about it, it works. With a good film people always want to see a sequel, it’s something you recognize along with something new as well. It’s like designer music; a designer genre, like the Gucci of music and I think by using the name ‘pop’ we can keep our own identities and gain that wider appeal.
What was the key factor in you starting up dirty pop?
It was New Years Eve 2006 and I was just talking to my people, we were all making loads of tunes and I thought to myself look at all these talented people around me and none of us can get a deal. If I can’t get through then how are these other people supposed to get through; like look how much work I’ve done, why hasn’t it gone any further? Then you’ve got to take a look at yourself, you can’t just blame everyone else. Look at the past, evaluate it and make sure you take out all the good bits and put them together. I think the word grime killed me because they made a name for it. I was doing big tunes under the name garage and then grime came in. At Sidewinder they had an award for ‘Best 4x4 Producer’ and ‘Best Grime Producer’, so where do I fit in? Wiley won ‘Best Grime Producer’ and it had to be Wiley, so where do I fit in? I’m not grime; I’m not 4x4 so I’ve just got relegated because of the name grime. If garage is dead then what category am I in, so when grime came in everyone was like it’s about grime it’s not about garage so then effectively it’s not about Sticky. I still want to have that MC element in dirty pop but only like a 16 bar feature and focus on the singer more. It will get into the bashment side and the grime side later, but for now it’s at the house stage; we’re at phase one. It’s a story I’m looking to do for 20 years at least and create a legacy.
What would attribute the new rise in house music being played in more r’n’b and hip-hop clubs?
All the English forms of dance music came from house and it’s created all these different genres where people are getting paid. Even though some of those offshoots don’t even sound like house; they’ve come from it, done their own thing and its gone back into house. I think the progress of bashment and house is crucial, 10 years ago you couldn’t hear bashment in a Yates Wine Bar, but today you can. The faster house tunes are at the same tempo as bashment so if you dance to one you can dance to another. But the perception of some who are just put off by the name is just music apartheid, its ignorance. You just got to look at music as music. That’s why I don’t like to be put into a pigeonholed; I’m a garage producer, but I play hip-hop and r’n’b with the Ill Kidz as a DJ, I like music! When I started playing garage I just played what I heard and that influenced the beats I made, anything I played out as a DJ and got a reaction with I would want to recreate that myself, because it’s just music.
How did you hook-up with new singing sensation Kyra?
I’ve produced a tune that should be on her album, it samples the ending theme from Scarface. I see the track as a dirty pop track even though she is mainly from an r’n’b background. It’s just a pop song with an edge, that idea came to me when I was in the states and I was watching Scarface and I heard the end, and I’ve seen the film loads of times before but that time I just heard it differently and I thought it might work. Then I thought about what beats were around that time, by Snoop Dogg. It’s the same original beat from the film but just based around the Snoop Sample.
Whatever happened to Lady Stush after the buzz of her tune ‘Dollar Sign’?
She just need developing, I wanted Stush to stay with me and my production team. We had a choice; either put out every tune she’s done and run on the legacy of ‘Dollar Sign’ or come out in her own right as an artist and make sure she’s ready when she goes out there. It is a difficult job being an artist, especially coming from the underground and still trying to be credible in the commercial world. They [the music industry] saw her as some sort of pop act, like another Ms. Dynamite, that was the whole point; because Dynamite decided to do her own thing so there was no one there to cater for that audience. Because she’s from the underground she might not have seen the importance of breaking that mould whereas now you’ve got Shystie, Lady Sovereign etc and they came from that underground scene. It’s just paying your dues really and coming up as an artist in your own right. She [Lady Stush] has recently recorded a track with Groove Armada and she’s got a track called ‘Bad Girl’ coming out soon.
Do you think being a DJ helps you as a producer and vice-versa?
I think being a DJ you always get a reaction from what you’re doing, so it’s kind of like you’re an A&R as well. It gives you the inspiration and the knowledge. You can hear a tune on the radio but you have to go out and see the reaction and if you do it as a job, even better.
Who’s been supporting so far in this early stage of development of dirty pop?
DJ Cameo from BBC 1xtra wants to back it so much so hopefully we’ll end up on Radio 1 with our own dirty pop show. All we want to do is make hits and make music, this vehicle [dirty pop] is where we can all do that and benefit at the same time. It’s like we’re just friends and we just happen to do dirty pop, we just do it.
The Dirty Pop launch party take places on Bank Holiday Sunday 6th May 2007 @ Funky Buddha W1.
For more on Sticky and the Dirty Pop collective check out: www.myspace.com/stiktoe and www.myspace.com/dirtypopuk
Words by Dane Bradshaw
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