Say hello to Hugo Chegwin: a shining example of authentic, multi-faceted, hometown talent. His artistic journey has humble beginnings – Hugo was simply a music-loving teen bathed in UK garage and the pirate radio culture of inner city London. Now, two decades later, Chegwin has blossomed into an award-winning actor, producer, and songwriter. Best known as character DJ Beats from the cult mockumentary, People Just Do Nothing and Kurupt FM, Hugo played a part in bringing the underground energy of UK garage and grime into the mainstream, capturing a raw slice of London life with humour and authenticity.
Away from the camera, he’s built serious credentials in the musical realm, writing and producing for stars like Sam Smith, Mary J Blige and Plan B. Now, in a pivotal moment in his career, Hugo is humbly stepping into the spotlight as a solo artist, collaborating intentionally and curating a sound that is entirely his own. Recent singles, “With You”, “Necklace” and “Never Lies” have set the tone – now his debut EP, Shark Tooth Necklace is ours for the taking. Grounded in the culture and sounds that raised him, Hugo Chegwin’s next chapter feels like both a return to his roots and a fresh start.
Congratulations on your new music! Tell us about this new chapter.
“I just wanted to put my own music out really. I used to make music but I did it for other people – I made pop music but I’m not really a pop guy, so I didn’t find it as exciting. I think it’s a shame for my ideas to just die on a hard drive – I wanted to put out music that I might listen to and enjoy, using some of those skills that I’d learned. I’m not trying to change the world or anything. It’s just an outlet for music that hopefully some people might enjoy.”
Tell us more about the title of the EP – Shark Tooth Necklace?
“It’s just what I wanted when I was a kid on holiday – that’s literally it! There can be a lot of pressure on having a good project name and what it means, but sometimes I just think it’s not that deep. I’m not really a deep guy. It’s just that simple.”
I love that. And beyond having a creative outlet, is there any other intention you have with this body of work?
“I think that sometimes people might be afraid to share their music or to be judged. But you’ve just gotta take a risk. Even if just five people listen to the EP, I’m cool with that. And if 5000 people listen to it, I’m good with that too. There’s no agenda. Some might connect, some might not, but there’s no pressure. It’s fun – I think everything that I do should feel fun, the main thing is that I should be enjoying it. That’s what’s important to me.”
Sonically, what might we expect to hear when diving into the EP?
“I wanted to make something that we would maybe put on when I was like 15, smoking weed on my friend’s mattress. Something a bit coherent, sounding like UK London, but not like aggressive rap because I’m 40 now, so I’m a bit softer. [Laughs].”
And of course, you have deep roots in UK garage, jungle and drum & bass. Tell us more about what these genres mean to you.
“They’re very important to me. This is a really bold, wild statement but I feel like garage is like our UK reggae – it’s not going anywhere, it’s gonna be here forever. You hear it at every festival, it’s what I listened to as a kid, and through Kurupt FM, it’s changed my life. So there’s always little elements of garage in my music. Maybe not on-the-nose garage music, but the bass, the low end subs. That is very UK to me, it’s in our musical DNA.”
You mentioned listening to UK garage as a child. What other music did you grow up on?
“When I was a teenager, it was pirate radio, garage, jungle. But then as I got older, I got into American rap music and rap production like DJ Premiere, Pharrell, Timbaland, J Dilla, guys like that. I guess my music is all of that, with a little bit of jungle and garage. I think garage is what’s expected of me but I try to flip it on its head a little bit, do the unexpected. I don’t necessarily listen to things that mesh together nicely, I like the weirder sounds with character. They’re imperfect, they have flaws in them – that’s like me as a person!”
When did your music-making journey start?
“When I was about 15, my friend gave me Fruity Loops. It was like a way to block out the world a little bit. When you’re young and trying to figure out who you are, what you are, music helped me a lot… it was a welcome, positive distraction that I got obsessed with, and I’m still obsessed with it.”
And does music still give you that feeling?
“Definitely. It’s very therapeutic and calming. It’s a way to block out the noise a bit, even though you’re making noise. There’s a joke in there, I just can’t find it!”
With Kurupt FM, you fused comedy, acting and music together. Was that something you envisioned doing before it all came about?
“Well, when me and Allan [Allan ‘Seapa’ Mustafa] who plays MC Grindah were kids, we were on pirate radio. It was just part of growing up in a city in London really, most people that I know either MC’ed or DJ’ed at a certain point in their life. It just so happens that Seapa is really good at it. We found it really natural, we weren’t forcing it. We had to learn our craft though – we had to figure things out, and learn, and play clubs with three people in the audience, and earn our stripes.”
And look at the things you’ve achieved now!
“Yeah, when you’re in it, sometimes it’s hard to see. But when you zoom out you’re like, f***, that’s mad, the things we’ve done.”
And speaking of Kurupt FM again, is there anything in the pipeline that we can get excited for?
“Well we’re touring Australia in the new year. But we’ve got to figure out what the next step is, and if there is a next step. We have a culture behind Kulture FM, we essentially have garage music behind us. I think we’ve gotta protect Kurupt FM and make sure that if we do stuff with them again, it’s the right thing. When garage had a resurgence, we were fortunate enough to be around whilst it was happening, and we became a small part of the culture. Because of that, and because we care about the culture, we have to protect those Kurupt FM characters.”
And what has the character of DJ Beats added to your artistry as Hugo Chegwin?
“I dunno, DJ Beats is a complete idiot. Has he added anything? Not a sausage! No, I love him so much, but he would hate my music. He wouldn’t get it. He’d think it’s sh**.”
Haha, so he wouldn’t like the EP?!
Not at all. Not one bit of it!
And aside from the EP, what can we expect from you?
“I just wanna keep putting music out, maybe evolve the sound into something different, switch it up, make it so that some of the tracks could be done live with a band, but not in a boring way. I’d like to work with other artists that I find interesting or that I feel I can contribute to. But I’m completely winging all of this, just winging life in general!”
You’ve spoken about some of your music inspirations. For people who may be inspired by you, what do you want them to take away from the music?
“I just want them to feel an emotion and block out the noise for 10 minutes. When I listen to music, sometimes I’m just trying to find something that relates to how I feel – if I have that song for someone, that’s great. That’s what I want.”
Enjoy the new EP Shark Tooth Necklace below, here on GRM Daily.