October saw the highly-anticipated return of Potential Badboy to the Playaz imprint. After taking a break to focus on his Garage side-project, the London-based producer has made a triumphant return to the world of D&B and jungle, flaunting the signature flair he’s renowned for, and proving his creative streak is alive and striving. We caught up with the man himself to chat about the album and more…
Big up Chris! Thanks for taking the time to chat. Where have we caught you this very moment?
In the studio ready to go again.
First things first – You’ve recently unleashed your highly anticipated album on Playaz. Feels like a long time coming! How did the idea for another album come together, and is it something you’ve been wanting to do for a while?
Since my first album ‘Forward’ another album has always been on my mind but I had other priorities and it was never quite the right time until now.
HUGE props, absolutely loving it from start to finish. I’m getting a proper old-school vibe which is difficult to achieve these days.. Was that your intention with the album, to bring it back to your roots and bring back the foundations?
Well yeah, Jungle is my first love and I really wanted to bring back that feel in line with today’s music.
Mission accomplished 🙂 I understand Hype was an executive producer on the album… What’s the best example of his expertise on the album?
Hype’s advice on mix downs helped me to explore other sounds to match what I wanted to achieve, and he’s helped me overcome writer’s-block a number of times.
I love the way you’ve approached it – with a few re-edits coupled with fresh fire… what inspired you to return to tracks like Gimme The Rhythm with MC Fats and Gangster with Junior Dangerous?
Gimme The Rhythm and Gangster are tunes that I thought I could bring a real jungle vibe to, and both artists are exceptional. Both of them gave me the freedom to experiment with my own sound.
Let’s chat Revolution… What a track. How did you come to connect with Demolition Man & Show Stevens again?
The original track was ‘Sunshine’ with Yush. Because I was going back to certain tracks I felt that this was one that needed a full vocal. I gave the rhythm track to Demolition Man who wrote Revolution with Show Stephens and sent it back. When I got the track back it was exactly what I was looking for.
Straight up fire! Start Moving has to be one of my favourites. That swing vibe coupled with Fats’ smooth vocals – perfect. Fats has a big presence on the album, how was it to get back into the studio with him?
It’s always a blessing to have a track with Fats because he is such a legend in the scene. I feel that most times I work with him we always think of different angles and approaches. I feel free when I work with him because he gets me.
Must be great to have that kind of connection in the studio! I’m getting a real family vibe on the album – everyone who appears on the album you’ve known for years, right?
Yeah, a lot of them I’ve grown up with in the music scene.
Does that personal history make it a lot easier to work with these people and allow you to vibe off each other and utilise each other’s creativity?
Yeah definitely, the importance is to always bounce off each other.
And that you do! How did the Annix remix of ‘You’re Mine’ come about?
One day Hype came round to me and told me that Annix want to remix You’re Mine and I thought that would be a good idea because I like their sound and they are young with a fresh audience.
Talk me through Ride It with Donna Macfarlane.. Pure class.
Well, Donna is my sister and she’s always been around me in the music scene since she was 14 years old. She doesn’t sing often but can sing well and has featured on some of my Garage and Jungle tracks. She’s my little soldier!
You had a break from jungle/ D&B for quite some time while you worked on Garage as Chris Mack. What prompted the move back into a faster-paced BPM? Did the passion for it ever really leave you to begin with?
No – that’s why when I was in the Garage scene I always played around with the beats and bass, always trying to create a different sound to the formulaic sound people were used to.
Do you still play around with other genres?
I have started again recently.
Natty is a bit naughty innit? What’s the story behind this one?
That’s another example of a track i’ve always had different versions for, but this time it actually clicked to the sound I wanted.
Having now completed the album, what are the biggest changes you’ve seen in the scene today compared to the way D&B/ Jungle used to operate in the 90s-00s?
Vinyl to digital downloads, the frequencies of sounds and more international recognition.
What are you listening to in your spare time these days? Anyone in particular impressing you in the D&B world?
I don’t really listen to D&B when I listen to music. I get inspired by what my daughter listens to – all the young sounds like trap and hip-hop, or I listen to foundation music like soul, reggae and rare groove. I always identify things I can incorporate into my music. Music is of such a high standard these days that even unknown producers (as well as more established ones) are creating good grooves and sounds.
You’re were joined by the Playaz fam at fabric for the official album launch – Are you excited to get back into the DJing circuit? You’ve mentioned before that it’s not your favourite part of the scene.. Has that changed now you have new material to connect with?
Well the studio has always been my priority but obviously I need a balance so I can interact with the ravers as well. The album launch I feel was a success.
Great to hear! What’s coming up next? Are you in the zone creatively now and on a production flex?
We have just finished shooting a video for ‘Revolution’ and I’ve got lots of plans for 2016. I have fresh projects in the pipeline with old and new artists, and collaborations with new and established producers as well. There will be a relaunch of ‘Jekyll & Hyde’ as well, and hopefully there will be a second album with Playaz in the future.
Looking forward to it! Final shout outs?
Thanks to everyone who came and supported at the launch party. It was only a success because of the people who supported. Thank you to everyone who has bought the album – this inspires me to keep doing what I’m doing.
Big up!
Potential Badboy’s self-titled album is out now on Playaz. Get it here.
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