Harry Shotta Interview: “With hip-hop, I can share my story”

A man of many talents, genres, and words, Harry Shotta needs no introduction to anyone with their eyes on the drum and bass circuit. His tongue-twisting lyricism and infectious energy have helped carve out a career in becoming one of the genre’s most reliable and prolific MCs, and led to countless albums, collabs, festival slots, Fire In The Booths, and even a Guinness World Record for most words in a single. Despite this, before a fateful visit to Notting Hill Carnival in 2008, drum and bass wasn’t his first love.

Growing up in Gravesend, Kent, Shotta found solace and comfort in the boom bap-infused hip-hop of the 90s during his tough childhood. Vast swathes of his youth saw Shotta writing raps in the hopes of one day ascending to the status of who he’d spent his schooldays idolising. A degree in Commerical Music later, and Shotta had found a new love in UK garage and jungle, eventually leading him to take interest in the signature double time style of drum and bass MCs. His electric debut at Notting Hill Carnival saw Shotta focusing his energies in DnB, and the rest is history. 

His new album Odyssey returns to his roots. An ambitious, 21-track chronicle of his musical journey, the project sees Shotta lower the tempo to link up with legendary label High Focus and their plethora of talented artists and producers to share his story. 

With a new album and numerous shows and festivals on the horizon, we caught up with Shotta to talk about Odyssey, the differences between DnB and hip-hop, what he’s got in store, and so much more. 

 

 

How's your year been so far?

"Yeah man, It’s been a good year so far, New Year's Eve is always a crazy time for shows, but January has been really good. 

"February was a lot of running around, doing a lot for shows and then same vibe for March. So can’t complain, everything’s been active, to be honest."

 

Nice. What was your New Year show?

"We did this huge event in Belgium where we were one of the few drum and bass acts there. It was more of a techno and dance festival, but we came on with our drum and bass thing and it connected with the audience. 

"So yeah, it was really good man. I did a Raver Tots as well before I went over to Belgium as well, under-18s thing which was wicked." 

 

So you’ve got a new album Odyssey dropping in April, what can you tell us about it?

"It's been about a year and a half in the making, but it's nice now that we're very close to letting it off. 

"I was invited by Fliptrix, who’s the head honcho at High Focus, to come and do a show with them about a year and a half ago. When I went to that show I realised how much the drum and bass connected with the High Focus audience. 

"I’ve always been a big fan of High Focus from early, from Jam Baxter, Dirty Dykes, Four Owls, and obviously Ocean Wisdom, so when I left that show I needed to keep the connection. So I rang up Fliptrix and I said I’d love to do an album project with them, return to my hip-hop roots, and see what we can develop between the two of us because they bring so much to the table in terms of artists, reach, and everything else. And he was like yeah, let’s see what we can do. 

"So we started working on tracks and as soon as we did, the excitement built and we knew we had something here, something tangible that was going to relate to both mine and High Focus’ audience." 

 

 

Image: Harry Shotta Official Fan Page / Facebook.com

 

Why was now the time to come back to hip-hop?

"I’m quite a travelling artist, I do loads of shows in the UK and overseas, and sometimes you get caught up in the travel and you’re always talking. People kept saying to me that they loved my old hip-hop stuff and wanted more of that, and I was always thought I’m gonna get to it. 

"What really sparked this off, sadly, was when I lost my mentor and sparring partner Skibadee. I was in a bit of turmoil, wondering what we’re gonna do with SaSaSaS (me, Skibadee, Shabba D, Stormin’, Phantasy, and Mackey Gee), how do I continue as an artist, it was very confusing times, so when I came out of the other side I knew that one thing I’m gonna take from this is you never know how long you’re here for. I was always putting this album off to the next year, but I knew I had to do this now. 

"I thought about labels and how I wanna come out and everything else. As a fan of High Focus and their platform, if we can actually link up and make something that’s going to really shake up the scene, it’s the perfect combination man." 

 

When it comes to your lyrical and storytelling approach, how does it compare when making hip-hop compared to drum and bass? Is their much different or more of a BPM, tempo thing?

"It’s a tempo thing, but also a feel thing. Most of the time with the drum and bass sets I do, they want hype, energy, vibes going off, reloads, crazy energy. And that’s not the best time to tell an emotional story, talk about something you’re concerned with, or what’s going on politically. 

"It’s just not the space for that, whereas in hip-hop I’ve always felt with the slower tempo you can express yourself and tell your story, which is what we did on the first single ‘It Wasn’t Easy’. That was very autobiographical, talking about my childhood and certain things I had to face. 

"The thing I love about doing both is I get to express myself with the mad flows and energy that make people go crazy in drum and bass, and with hip-hop I can share my story, where I come from, and who I am as a human being. 

"To me, it’s the best of both worlds, but it is a different approach. When I’m writing drum and bass, I’m thinking about getting these bars off, but also thinking about how it’s going to react live. With the hip-hop side, I’m thinking, how is this going to resonate with people? How are people going to relate to this? How can this story inspire people in their own lives? 

"It’s two very different avenues, but they tick two big boxes for me as an MC."

 

 

 

Yeah, it's an interesting balance, really, even with your collaborators on the new album. You've got people like Eksman, who you've worked with plenty of times, alongside High Focus regulars. What was your mindset concerning who you wanted to collaborate with?

"When we started the project I just wanted to go in with the High Focus team and see what we can create. Leaf Dog from the Owls was the first guy to supply beats that ended up on the album, and then King Kashmere supplied the next set of beats. 

"We had these really strong boom bap-inspired hip-hop tracks, which to me was what the project was all about. I spoke to the label, and they said “This is great, we’ve got half an album of material here, but you know what? Harry Shotta isn't just about this. As a brand and an artist, what people expect from you is also about double time. It's also about fast flows. It's about blurring genres.” 

"So we thought we’d diversify a bit and get other kinds of beats on the table and find other collaborations that make sense to the drum and bass audience I perform to. That’s where the likes of Forest DLG came in and made the track that Shabba D and Eksman are featuring on. He also made the second single ‘Labour Of Love’ with Scrufizzer, which has elements of rave, breakbeats, grime, and jungle in there. 

"As an artist and just as a human, I’ve grown up on that. I’ve always embraced all the different styles and vibes. I’ve probably told this story before, but I remember going to Snoop Dogg with all my hip-hop boys back in the day and they started playing jungle. I’m going mad and they’re all not feeling it, I’m thinking that this is the vibe. This is our UK thing. 

"So I’ve always embraced it, I’ve never been shut down to other styles of music and BPMs, I’ve always seen it as a challenge to work at different tempos as long as I’m feeling it. So we brought that element to the table for the album, and all of a sudden we had about 14 new records. We kept making records and linking with different producers, MCs, and features, and it became the Odyssey that people are going to hear."

 

You've mentioned how, growing up, hip-hop was an escape for you. What were your early hip-hop influences?

"I’m a huge fan of 90s hip-hop, which is why I love High Focus because it taps into that classic 90s boom bap vibe. I’ll be listening to Smif-N-Wessun, Black Moon, Wu-Tang, Nas, Black Sheep, that was the hip-hop I loved and resonated with. 

"I didn’t shut off the Dirty South stuff like Ludacris or T.I., I heard those beats and wondered what the double flow from people like Skibadee and Shabba D would sound like on it, but it was definitely more 90s hip-hop. 

"Producers like Big Pun, Pete Rock, and Buckwild drew me in initially and inspired me to write, but other styles like UK garage and grime helped make my style a little bit different. I had another name in the hip-hop scene but needed something different because I’d been influenced by these other styles of UK music, so I created the Harry Shotta pseudonym. People loved it so much I moved on with the Harry Shotta thing and kept it moving like that." 

 

Image: Harry Shotta Official Fan Page / Facebook.com

 

On the other side of the coin, what then drew you to drum and bass from that?

"With drum and bass, like I said, I was so into jungle when it first came out. To me, it had elements of hip-hop and R&B - I’m a big R&B fan, people don’t know, but I am - so you’d have a Toni Braxton record mixed in with jungle which I loved, you’d get a Red Groove and all these other styles I loved growing up in there. 

"I loved what Ragga Twins, Moose, and Navigator were doing on top of the beats at the time, but I never thought I’d MC to it, then a friend of mine played Shabba and Skibadee at Telepathy. 

"What they were doing on the mic was insane, the back-to-back, the double time. From there, I was raving, and as soon as I was 18, I was in Jungle Fever. I was going to this rave called Atomics, which is local to me in Kent. I remember someone telling me to come over to drum and bass but it was my fun music. 

"And then what happened was, me and Funsta went to Notting Hill Carnival, I think it was 2008, Skibadee couldn’t make it for whatever reason. Fun said I had to perform with him and I got such a reaction, I was just addicted from there. 

"I asked Fun to let me come radio, any show he was doing, and see if they’d let me on the mic, even for the last 20 minutes. I'd done that with him for about six months, and then I started to get noticed. 

"And then within a year, I'd won the best newcomer at the National Drum and Bass Awards, and everything just snowballed from there. Next minute, you know, we're doing sets all over Europe and playing the biggest raves in the country. And it was just like, wow, this was meant to be, man." 

 

You’ve worked in different formats and environments like rapping on the street alongside live recordings and festival slots, what are the differences and challenges in each format?

"In a festival, the goal is to rock the crowd, man. Getting that crowd’s hands in the hair, back to front, enjoying the performance, and if that means not spitting any bars, that’s cool. 

"Street rap, for instance, is more about the bars and the content, delivering something so that people who click on Instagram straight away can take notice of the flow. 

"So it’s two separate approaches in terms of festival, street stuff, and even things like Fire In The Booth are all about showing your lyrical skill, dexterity, and versatility. So it’s being versatile and well-rounded as an artist and an MC, so whenever you go into a different avenue you know what’s going to impact that audience the most and not to be one dimensional all the time. 

"If I’m playing with a DJ who plays a lot of vocals or more jungle vibes, I’m happy to host because I love the music and I’m happy to let it breathe. But when I’m with the DJ who works with bars and lyrics, we’re going to go all out, so it’s being smart with how you approach things." 

 

  

 

Are there any rising stars, both in hip-hop & drum and bass, who you’re excited about or want to collaborate with?

"In drum and bass, there are some really good new MCs coming through, which is why I formed a little clique called Triple Threat. I noticed these two guys, Wiser, and Tiny K, who’ve got that raw talent and energy, they’ve got a gift with the pen, so I brought them in to work with them and mentor them a little bit. 

"We formed Triple Threat with Iron Lung, who’s an incredible DJ and producer, he’s solely producing all the music we’re doing, so watch out for that. 

"In terms of hip-hop, there are so many people on the High Focus roster who I want to work with. But right now, in drum and bass, definitely Wiser and Tiny K. Slay as well, he’s wicked. There’s so much talent out there, you know how it is."

 

Yeah, it's overwhelming, isn't it? You’ve performed a fair share of unconventional locations, like the first drum and bass rave in the London Underground. Where would be the most unconventional place to put on a rave that you haven’t yet?

"The most unconventional place to put on a rave? Well, imagine on an aeroplane. 

"When we did it on the London Underground it was pre-lockdown, so things were easier and more chilled back then. We went to Elephant and Castle station, they masked up the whole train, it was amazing how quickly they set everything up. 

"As soon as people were getting on their next stop, we had music blazing and everything else. People were getting on and just enjoying the experience. I’ve done a bus before as well which has gone off, an open top bus going through London. 

"We’ve actually done a helicopter as well, one year me, Shabba, Skibadee, and Phantasy had to get a helicopter from a big festival in London down to Leeds Festival. We jumped in and I said we had to catch the moment, so we did a freestyle and called it the chopper freestyle. 

"We took the Shy FX beat as it was a chopper helicopter, and spat bars on that which went pretty viral. 

"I’m always looking for the next one, a plane would be the one but we might get kicked off the flight, you never know." 

 

Image: Harry Shotta Official Fan Page / Facebook.com

 

Yeah, so looking forward to the current year. You've got a show with Tiny K and Friends, Land Beyond, and 25 years of Logan D as well, what can you tell us about these?

"Land Beyond is one of my favourites, I love that festival. We hosted the Mic Masters stage last year and we’re hosting a stage this year which I’m really looking forward to. 

"It’s going to be crazy, the lineup is mad and we’ve managed to pull in so many MCs and DJs for it. Brighton gang, get ready for that, man. 

"Big up to Logan D as well, one of the best DJs and producers in the business. He’s got that event in London on the 5th of April so make sure you get tickets for that one. Yet again, he’s another guy who’s just been putting in the work for so many years. 

"Because we’re artists and we’ve got relationships and things like that, we can get everyone to come down and represent that real family vibe that connects with an audience, man." 

 

Find tickets for Tiny K and Friends, Land Beyond, and 25 Years of Logan D here.

 

Definitely. And do you have a plan on breaking your world record?

"Very interesting question, breaking the Guinness World Record, because my idea when we initially got it was to let other people try and break it. I mentioned that to Guinness at the time and they got loads of people trying to do it. 

"Unfortunately, the quality being sent to them wasn’t great, it was just people trying to talk fast rather than delivering a record that you could play outside of it. Because the thing with ‘Animal” was I wanted to make a song you could play just as a song. 

"It breaking the record was brilliant but it wasn’t all about that. It was a song you could play as a record, no matter what other connotations go with it. So Guinness said “we’re getting a lot of entries but the quality is not there. You’ve got the record, that’s yours, you can hold that.” 

"To break my own record would be interesting. But I don’t know." 

 

Then, just to close off, we have a feature that we ask guests, it's called Three Tracks. If your set was reduced to just three tracks, what are you playing and why?

"Okay, well, if my set was reduced to three tracks, I would do ‘Animal’, which is the Guinness World Record track, because I kind of dropped the ball a few years ago when I went to New Zealand doing MC sets and people were asking “are you not doing Animal?” 

"People want to hear that, so definitely bringing that. I would also say ‘It Wasn’t Easy’, the first single off the new album because it’s resonated with so many people. 

"Finally I would go with ‘Labour Of Love’ with Scrufizzer, because that’s the sound we’re moving towards in the future, the kind that blurs all the sounds of underground music in the UK. I think those three, and that would be a good representation, man." 

 

   

 

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Want to catch Harry Shotta live? Grab a ticket for these events to witness the wordplay live in action. 

 

Tiny K & Friends - HERE

25 Years of Logan D London 3.0 - All Dayer - HERE

Land Beyond Festival - HERE

Crave The Rave Presents: DNB IN THE STREET XL - HERE

IN THE JUNGLE: MC EKSMAN & HARRY SHOTTA - HERE

 

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Check out our What's On Guide to discover even more rowdy raves and sweaty gigs taking place over the coming weeks and months. For festivals, lifestyle events and more, head on over to our Things To Do page or be inspired by the event selections on our Inspire Me page.

 

 

  

 

 

Header image credit: Harry Shotta Official Fan Page / Facebook.com