2010: looking forward

Nice start to the new decade...



Grime takeover on the cover of The Guardian's Film&Music supplement.

Last time I interviewed Tinchy Stryder's Ruff Sqwad crew, we met on a gusty flyover in the east London district of Bow, and talked in the flat MC Fuda Guy grew up in, sitting on the bunk beds he shared with his brother, grime producer XTC. This time around, Tinchy is being ribbed for requesting orange juice "with bits in". "You're such a diva now!" his manager chides, "you've changed!".



Foreign Beggars on the cover of The National's 'M' Magazine.

Beneath the gusty 4pm dusk of a London winter lies Mindloop Studios, a subterranean, soundproof haven from the noisy streets above. It’s a plush set-up, with fancy espresso machines, comfy sofas and framed platinum discs belonging to Whitney Houston and forgotten Irish megastars The Corrs. It’s not the most likely environment for hip-hop, but then neither, arguably, is Dubai: rap music has come a long way in its three decades to become the international lingua franca of a globalised popular culture.