Interview with Ken Mac
MC
Ken Mac is the most respected Mc in the breaks scene, his presence is always
known in a rave or club, his sense of humour and ability to rock a crowd with
out annoying them has been his strong point and he now plays a big part in the
underground Breakbeat movement, not only Mcing but producing and co running
Hardcore Beats the leading Breakbeat label for 2005 and involved in working
alongside all the big DJ’s in the scene. So for our first Mc interview ever we
could only but ask one person and that was Mc Gumboe but he had no time for the
likes of us so we had to make do with Mc Ken Mac.
What is your real name and age?
Frances
Cobelworth 19, Scott Maclane and I’m getting on.
When and how did you start out as an Mc?
Back in the days with Quest, on Pulse recordings we did a tune together
called Egypt many moons ago and he had a radio show on flex fm and he didn’t
have an Mc, I didn’t really know how to Mc but he asked me if I was up for
hosting.
What event''s have you played
and what’s been your best event?
Every event is the best man from the
smallest to the biggest done loads of different gigs from the big raves like
Raindance, Moondance, Breakbeat Connection, Innovation, Vinyl Touch and Brace
Yourself in Bournemouth which we do love and if there’s any Bournemouth people
reading this get ya fucking arses down to a Brace Yourself cause ya missing good
nights down there and the Platinum Breaks family put on a good job so get down
there or I will do ya!
Have you played
in any other countries apart from the UK?
Germany, France, Spain, off to
America at the end of the year, Poland the Isle of white and I’m looking to go
up Scotland.
What styles of Breaks do
you Mc to?
Anything and everything to be honest with you. I don’t
like pigeon holing Breaks there’s to many different styles of Breaks, there’s
too many good producers, there’s too many people making good sounds, if it’s a
good track and people will dance to it its good Breakbeat whether its bassline
or plody or clown it doesn’t mater, it all deserves to be hosted in the right
mannerism and you gotta act kinda like a comedian you know, different styles
tend to have different vocal techniques so it’s just how I work it comes with
experience and I know a lot about the music I have been involved with it for a
long time and I know a lot of the people so I know what music is out there and
you kind of learn what the crowd expects from an Mc either shut ya mouth do a
little bit or hype the crowd up and bust it up a little bit so a bit of ying and
yang.
What are your opinions on the
Breakbeat scene at the moment?
Its all right man it needs some
congeniality I think the community on a hole is a bit fractured people need to
hook up with more people it’s a really healthy scene we don’t want pre-madoners
that will fuck things up we need to work together as a community, I seem to be
acting a bit of a diplomat for everyone man I like to meet with everyone and
just enjoy myself music is about having fun and its not about fucking politics
we need to separate the politics which is hard to do it’s a business but it’s
about having fun and enjoying yourself in general the scene is fucking brilliant
and the most lively vibrant scene in the UK at the moment and I love it and
wouldn’t be doin it as much as I am unless I love it.
What artists do you prefer to Mc with?
For
the ravers side the bassline stuff, with a bit of drum n bass vibey, and it
works in the big raves in London and Manchester and Liverpool and Birmingham
right down to the South Side you see the tunes come on and people have a feel
for the B Line they hype up and go mad and we do get the occasional rewind in
Breakbeat
DJ’s who I like playing out to I don’t wanna say too much to
offend any of my buddies but are say anyone who’s a decent DJ deserves to be
well represented and fortunately for us in the Breakbeat scene there’s a lot of
DJ’s producers. It’s healthy but we need more to come thought the door but u
know everyone I played out with from the Breakfastaz, Ed209, Quest, Sonz of
Mecha, Control Z, Mutiny and everyone, there are too many names for me to list
like Ellis Dee I love them all, if they can DJ and they got a crowd to see them
then I love being there for the vibe.
What artists have you worked alongside in the
studio?
Backdraft, Entity, Sonz of Mecha, Quest, Ed209, Odissi,
Breakfastaz and Control Z.
Do you
produce you own music?
I do and I’m getting there but it’s a learning
curve at the moment, I’m not a professor I got a lot of ideas and I play the
drums and the piano and I’ve been helped by the likes of Quest and Ed209 who are
mates of mine and very have helped me in the studio and shown me the ropes and
the techniques, I’m getting there I’m in no rush to do it because at the end of
the day I have got my own little neash in the scene with Mcing and hosting and
being a vocalist and singing and bits and bobs on tracks but eventually I would
like to something. I have just recently dun a track called Hell Low and its not
the best tune I certainly don’t want it to be released but it was an experiment
and at the end of the day its like you learn from your mistakes.
What tracks have you been featured on?
Well
the one tune that made me become a bit of a known name within the scene was this
way by the Breakfastaz which I co produced and wrote the vocals for which was a
Cyberfunk release many moons ago and that’s what done it for me and System Over
Load was another one where I sounded like a robot.
Recent ones with Ed209
which is United State Of Mind on Hardcore Beats that’s done all right and I got
a lot of time for Ed and Ollywood because Hardcore Beats has seemed to have
struck a cord with the raves on a big scale and Cut n Run is another one of my
favourite labels and there’s something which I might have done on there but I
cant remember the name of the people on the track we are on about but I think
its sort of sounds like Star Wars, and bits and bobs, I am doing a tune with
Ellis Dee soon and Meat Katie as well, one person I do want to do something with
is Mutiny because I’m certainly feeling that guy.
What other Breakbeat Mc’s do you rate?
Anyone who is willing to vibe the crowd properly. I’ve seen MC’s who I’ve
never met before who are absolute tosh and didn’t know when to shut up and were
very greedy on the mic and didn’t understand the music or what the scene was
about and thought it was (no dis respect to drum n bass or garage) but they
thought it was a garage or dnb rave where you used to get cues of guys all
waiting to jump on t mic and its not about that because it just ruins the music,
the music is first and foremost and the mc is the secondary part of the rave and
that’s how you got to remember yourself, your not the fucking shinning light of
the party so a lot of Mc’s need to learn how to shut the fuck up, take a stand
back and think what am I gunna say, if ya gunna say something at least be
understood so people know what ya sayin and I’m not into negativity you know its
about a positive vibe and people go out to a party or a rave to enjoy themselves
the last thing you want to hear is someone going on about fucking shocking up
some next man in the park and getting mukage in the darkage of the parkage or
what ever they say.
But anyway the ones I do rate are Rocka G and Easy T who
I do a lot of radio with and at partys, the only guy I do work with on a regular
basis is Reload but then there’s plenty of other guys as well like Profit from
Dirty South there’s a lot of DnB guys who I would like to hear doing Breakbeat,
Lowqui I done some Breaks with in the past he’s got a very good voice, IC3 I
have been out with, Five alive is a fantastic Mc and he’s starting to feel the
Breakbeat as well.
But its not an Mc vibe in Breakbeat, I’ve found it’s very
very hard to get in and it took me along time to get people to at least except
me, after a period of time when people hear what you do and they know you let
the music breath and your there just to hype it up a little bit then its all
good.. If you’re a good Mc then you’re a good Mc and your know you are because
people will say nice things about you and obviously I have been cussed and have
had people saying Ken Mac’s this that n the other he’s a load of shit but then
you cant please everyone all of the time so what the hell man.
Why do you think you have been so successful?
I would not say I have been that successful I don’t make any money in this
scene but I am getting known a lot more now and I would say that’s because I’ve
been very fortunate to have been involved with Cyberfunk where Quest has made
that one of the most prominent labels so working alongside him has given me a
lot of opportunities to be in the places where the right people have heard me
and it’s simply networking and meeting nice people and hanging out with cool
people and to be honest most of the people that give me gigs, we have ended up
meeting up for a drink and befriending each other and have asked me down so I
don’t think its got anything to do with my Mcing talent its just the fact that I
always buy a fucking round.
Why do you
think the scene is so much bigger in Spain than it is in the UK?
Because at the time it would have been like a mirror image of what the drum
n bass scene was like when it exploded in the UK, it’s what’s happened in Spain,
its just the big rave music out there what they are bang into, they love the big
build ups, hands in the air and then the drop comes in and the do that mad
spinning round and marching step and they just go crazy. Spain is a very modern
culture too it still very fresh and they got so much energy out there same in
eastern Europe as well, they work hard they save the money to go to a rave and
they make sure they enjoy themselves, but the Spanish are the nuttiest lot ever
they party till the sun comes up and they jump around till the afternoon, they
make us look like old bastards, I have great times out in Spain and big ups to
Rasco and all the Spanish family, its just a world wide thing now.
Would you like to add anything to this
interview?
Just that this is a really good opportunity for everyone
to enjoy themselves man and to open another little chapter in dance, it’s a very
capable scene but its whether or not everyone is willing to pull together to
make the scene bigger which it deserves to be, when ya go out n get a bit mashed
up, get home safely cause we need you all back at the next rave!
And
finally your shouts?
Everyone and everybody in the scene theirs just too
many to mention.
Interviewed by Platinum breaks
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