Often referred to as one of the UK’s most under appreciated rappers, TE dness has been in the game for over ten years; with a steady release of mixtapes, singles and visuals he made sure that his name was not to be forgotten.
He has seen a big turn around of artists in the industry and knows the in’s and out’s of making a successful track from experience. But, his knowledge doesn’t stop at music; running multiple successful businesses such as skincare brands and clothing lines, TE is not one to settle for minimal satisfaction.
With his latest project about to be released at the end of April, we caught up with TE dness to talk about the current state of the UK music industry, his entrepreneurial thought process and what we can expect from him in the near future.
Your last project, Trapicana came out some while ago. What have you been doing since then?
“Trapicana was like the second part of Trap Nominated, but less trap. It was inspired by trap but a lot more musical. I’m working on another project right now, it may just be the third instalment to April Showers, but I haven’t actually decided on a name yet. It might be April Showers 3, definitely a mixtape but maybe not that name.”
“7AM Out of Town” was one of your most recent visual releases, that track is very real and relatable to a lot of people in the music industry. Do you think it’s important to make relatable music?
“I think it depends sometimes. I feel like my music is more of an expression of me, so if you don’t relate to it, it doesn’t mean that you can’t take something from it. But, I feel like when people do relate to it, obviously they kind of bond with the music a bit more. But I don’t go out of my way to make it relatable.”
The visuals for “7AM Out of Town” also featured your daughter, was this important to you?
“Yeah, because one of the lines in the song which talked about my daughter. It said about my trap line ringing when she’s around, it’s a really hard-hitting line and with the whole vibe of the video I just wanted to show her.”
With this being said, you’re very open in your music. Are there any aspects of your life that you wouldn’t necessarily talk about in your music?
“No, I think that as an artist I kind of put myself in a position where I am vulnerable and I think that I open up in a way that a lot of people don’t and it kind of shows a different side to just your everyday trap artist or rapper. It’s important to me to show all aspects of my life whether it be family or the things that I go through that are not so good and obviously the wins as well.”
On that note, whilst being in the music scene what has been your highlight of your time being an artist?
“My highlight is just being able to keep expressing myself with different people, I like meeting new producers and new artists who help me bring out another side to my music. So sometimes I might jump on music that isn’t necessarily trap music or anything I’ve done.
With that in mind, which of your songs was most out of your comfort zone?
“Maybe “Ride With You”, it’s a song that I made for my daughter. I was comfortable doing it because it was a real expression but a lot of the singing and stuff was obviously outside of my comfort zone. But it was good and I enjoyed it.”
So, you’re a business man and a man of many talents. From a skincare brand to a clothing line and a rapper; you handle a lot of things at once. How important do you think it is to have multiple focuses?
“With the level that I’m at musically, I understand that I can only grow. As long as I keep working, I can only get bigger and once I get bigger, my influence will increase and being able to sell things at that level will be easier. So, I thought if I start now then when I get to that level, it’s like I will already know the in’s and out’s and the do’s and the don’ts. I think it’s very important to have other avenues of income, but also just to display entrepreneurship. Music is a business itself, so you kind of have to show that you can run a business. But, at the same time, I like fashion and I’m getting into it more and things like that so I’m learning to understand.”
Where is your influence of that from? Because artists such as Jay-Z have a lot under their belt other than music.
“I do look up to people like Jay, he’s a good role model for a lot of rappers that wanna do a lot of business things because he exists beyond music, it’s never just a conversation on music. The ultimate thing is to have an abundant life and to just be able to do what you want, when you want and that obviously takes multiple incomes. Taking inspiration from people like Jay-Z is a good way to put things into practice, I also look at people like Nipsey Hussle as well. It’s all about making these other avenues of income, not only to help your life but to display your skills and yourself in different ways.”
You’ve been doing music for quite a long time, how important do you think it is to stay consistent? Do you find it difficult to stay motivated?
“I lose motivation all the time, just because of how long I’ve been in the game, but I’ve realised that with what I have been doing and how long I’ve been doing it, it is helping me build a very solid foundation. A lot of people that listen to my music become fans or they become attached to my story. It’s not just a hype and you hear it once because everyone else is listening to it. Artists that are just popular from hype don’t really last long, if you notice, there’s a few artists that blow up really quick. But, in order to sustain it and maintain it, they need to get a lot of people involved who know the industry so they can help them.”
So kind of like Not3s and Yxng Bane because they have the likes of Relentless and Disturbing London behind them?
“Yeah that’s a good example, but with Not3s his first song took off very quick. But as I said, he’s got a team around him that helps and know the music industry so they can keep him on track. I think that aspect of it is very important.”
When it comes to your music it seems a common opinion that you’re under-appreciated in the music scene.
“Yeah, definitely not underrated but underappreciated might be a good word. I think I’m just not as popular as I could be. I think that is what it is, because with me it’s not that people hear my music and then don’t like it or people hear it and don’t think that I’m good, it’s just that not enough people have heard it yet. I feel like nine out of 10 people like it. I don’t make bad music, the type of music I make is just not bad music.”
One moment in your career most memorable has to be your Tim Westwood Crib Session. You’re one of the only people to do a crib session alone, usually artists are surrounded by people. Was this intentional?
“I’m not even gonna lie, I was supposed to be with other people but the day before I did have time to prepare to do it on my own. It is important for me to make that statement, although it doesn’t have as much views as the rest, I feel like if you put that side by side with anyone else’s, that’s the only one with a lone artist so I feel like it’s a good display of my talent.”
Since you’ve been in the industry for a while, how have you seen the UK rap scene develop as it’s grown in popularity over the past few years?
“It’s a lot less authentic, it’s a lot less about talent, it’s all about numbers and what’s popular. It’s just a lot of the same formula. I feel like a lot of people know how to make a good song which people would like. It’s just easy, there’s a method you can follow and you can jump on that and make a hit but it’s gonna sound like someone else or it’s only gonna last so long and people will only know you for that. It’s important to just be careful and not be too easily influenced by other people.
“Like, Not3s for example, he’s now got loads of people who sound like him because people are just gonna think if he did it then why can’t I? But, the thing is, once people get through doing that it just waters down, it’s not just him then, suddenly there’s another person who sounds like him and then another one. The same is happening with the music industry in general, like how many lil this and lil that are in America. What you notice is that they all get big because the labels just want a lot of popularity so they feed into it and everything ends up sounding the same. The music scene is just a lot less unique and a lot more about money. The UK industry definitely has a lot more money now, because there is a lot more listeners and a lot more revenue. It’s a good thing, but I think that a lot more quality and music control is needed from the big labels.”
With the current controversy of A&R’s, do you think that has anything to do with it?
“You know what, there is some good A&R’s that have obviously found talent from early and developed them, but now it’s just getting the biggest people who are going to make the most money. The labels are very money driven and since the A&R’s work for the label it works that way. You can’t blame them because they’re just doing their job which is to make money, but it just kills the art.”
If you were in the position to develop an artist, who would it be?
“There’s an artist called Ling Hussle, she’s very dope and I always speak about her. It would be people that I know that if I was to develop them the right way and market them the right way, people would take to them. It’s just that they’re under heard or underappreciated. But, no one really popular.”
If you could collaborate with anyone, who would it be?
“Wretch, I am going to collaborate with him. It’s not just something that I want, I have been saying I want to for a while, so I’m going to do that on my next CD. I don’t want to say the typical ones, but Ed Sheeran. I’ve been watching him before he was big, when he was doing things on YouTube, you could always tell that he was special. I would love to take inspiration and learn from him. Rick Ross, Tory Lanez, Drake, Pharrell, Swizz Beats. D Block I would like to work with too.”
Your new project that’s out soon, what can we expect from it?
“Good music, I’m focusing on just making good music again. I feel like there was a time that people didn’t want good music, they just wanted something that was repetitive or what other people like. Now, I’m just focusing on creating good music. Now, I’ve realised that I’m the alternative for people that do want an introspective trap and a different side to it, not the usual 100 bottles and bitches. They want some depth to the music.”
When can we expect it?
“April. Until that just keep an eye out for Saucy clothing and I’ve got another project coming just before summer, but I don’t want to say too much because people might steal the idea. I’ve got a lot of things coming, even outside of music. Most important thing is the next mixtape though.”