The music industry’s not an easy place for anyone to navigate, let alone someone trying to reignite their career in a foreign landscape of social media, Twitter beefs and songs that don’t chart despite all the right ingredients.
Luckily for Shystie, who you may remember as one of the first female MC’s ever to grace this tiny island and who sprung to recognition all the way back in 2004, she’s actually doing a pretty awesome job of it. Her single Stop, the first from a full-length project since her debut 10 years ago has just been bumped up to the BBC 1Xtra A-list and is raking in the fans – new and old – ahead of its release next week.
We gave her a call to talk that Azalea Banks drama, pinpointing her new sound and more.
Hello, Shystie! How are you?
So tired! Yesterday was the longest day ever! I had about 20 interviews then I had to go to studio in Crystal Palace and I didn’t get home till 4am, I am shattered!
Yikes! How do you do it!?
It’s so exhausting and it’s like the same questions over and over again. But it’s to promote my single so…
Yes! Your new single Stop. Tell us a bit about it…**
I just wanted a new direction of music… Deaney [Boy, the producer of the song] came up with the ’90’s kind of vibe. I heard it and I was like ‘shit! This sounds sick!’ Got to studio, ordered some food, got some alcohol and wrote and vocalled it in the same day.
READ MORE: Anna Calvi: I Find It Strange That Women Are Seen As A Minority
What’s your poison?
Brandy! Or I really love Disaronno. I have it just with ice or with Coke so it tastes like Doctor Pepper.
Yum! I need to try that.
You do.
So before your Pink Mist EP last year it had been ages since you released anything! What was it about the timing that felt right?
From 2011, I’ve been in studio trying to find the sound that works for me, for radio and what my supporters like, when we came up with Stop I was like okay! We found it. There’s no female spitting over dance, ’90’s break beats stuff; a lot of the songs that are out like that have got singers on it like Jess Glynne, Sinead Harnett, Ella Eyre; they’re all singers and there’s not a female rapper that’s doing it so I though this could be a really good lane.
Any differences you’ve noticed since your return?
When I came out there was only MySpace! 10 years later there’s all these different social-network platforms that can really help. A lot of artists don’t really even need labels as such any more because they’ve got all these social networks and all these platforms. I’m not signed and I’ve managed to get A-listed on Radio 1Xtra; I wouldn’t have been able to do that 10 years ago.
Other than having good songs what do you think all great artists must have?
They have to have the whole package, the image is really important. Nowadays music is only like 10% of being an artist…
Only 10!?
OK, I’m exaggerating but before it would be like 90% music; now I feel like you have to have your image right, you have to be active on your social-media platforms, you have to have a good team, your personality has to be good in order to connect with your fans… there’s so much more things.
You’re pretty good on your social media game too! What’s your favourite emoji?
It would have to be the where he’s got his mouth open, it’s down and it looks like he’s screaming kind of thing. You can use it in so many different contexts, when someone does something bad or you can put it there for laughing… you can use it for anything.
So we kinda have to ask you about the beef that happened between you and Azalea Banks last year…
I can’t be arsed for that girl man, she’s just a weirdo. She just starts drama with everybody; that’s her brand. One minute we were cool and everything was going fine then the next minute she’s on Twitter acting like she didn’t give the green light for the video to go out and everything like that [but she did] so I didn’t understand it at all.
She does seem to like to beef with every single human in the world!
Every human! I think if she even sat down with Jesus Christ himself she’d find a way to beef with him.
Haha! Is the video back up now?
Yeah we put it back up like the next day. I’m independent; she’s signed so me and my team are not going to spend that much money on a video just for her label to take it down. She was in the video, she gave the green light when we sent the video before it went up, so now you wanna pull it down, because why?
Good for you! Thanks Shystie, byeeee!
Bye!
'Stop' is released 5th October and is available to pre order now.
Like this? Then you might also be interested in:
#TBT Lisa Maffia: 'I Didn't Even Put On A Skirt Until The 21 Seconds Video'
Jessie Ware: 'I Told My Mum To Chill The F*** Out On YouTube'
Harry Styles’s Cousin Ben Selley Could Win The X Factor. So Here's Your Need-To-Know
Follow Alya on Twitter @MoorizZLA
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.