CityLife

Interview: Devlin

Devlin

Club Academy - February 24, 2011

Devlin, the 21-year-old rapper from Dagenham, became involved in grime music (a  mix of UK garage and hip hop) when he was just 15, and quickly put together a crew with mentor Dogzilla, among others.

He released his debut album Bud, Sweat And Beers in November.

“I was just so excited, I couldn’t wait for it to drop. I just wanted to see how it all went,” he says. “I tried to make it a couple of years back but I didn’t get the sound I was after, so I put out a mixtape to keep things ticking over.

“I signed about a year ago and we’ve been doing the rounds since then, visiting different studios and recording.”

Devlin explains that he wrote   70 or 80 songs, and picked 14 for the album.

“I sit down with my management team and we listen to all the music I’ve made a hundred million times and then we choose the best tunes. I listen to my voice every single day so I get tired of myself sometimes.”

Devlin writes his rhymes on his BlackBerry and says: “I’ve got about a million notepads, so whichever one I pick up on the day before leaving the house is the one that gets used. I’ve got rhymes lying all over the place.”

And what influences this young musician?

“It’s hard to scrutinise and evaluate what I do, but I’d say I just make sure I’m always looking at what’s going on around me, looking at the world, and whatever’s on my mind comes out. It’s my outlet, writing songs, that’s how I get my point across. I can write about anything that’s on my mind.”

And politics?

“Of course, yeah. I’ll definitely get something out about current events. It’s all about what’s happening in the world.”

Influenced as a youngster by artists such as Nas, Eminem, Big Pun and Roll Deep, Devlin explains  how, at 15, he met Dogzilla, who was a big name in the grime scene.

“It was a stroke of luck meeting him, and I started from there really, and met lots more people.”

» Devlin plays Club Academy on Thursday, February 24, 2011. His single Let It Go feat. Labrinth is out on January 23.