"We’re in our own little bubble in Nottingham and having people across the country take notice is really a big thing for any artists from outside of London."
C-Mone is one of the brightest musical talents Nottingham has seen in years and one of a handful of talents that came from late nineties Notts supergroup OutDaVille. You might even have already have her in your music collection without realising it. Her appearance on The Streets' A Grand Don't Come For Free as Mike Skinner’s girlfriend pushed her very much into the public gaze, but her new album The Butterfly Effect proves that she is very much her own woman.
You won the ‘best female’ award at the UK Hiphop Awards last year. That must have been pretty cool!
It was really cool. It’s just good to be recognised for the stuff that we’ve been doing. We’re in our own little bubble in Nottingham and having people across the country take notice is really a big thing for any artists from outside of London.
You seem determined to stay here and make it rather than move
Everybody thinks that you’ve got to move down south to make it, but I’m not feeling that at all. If everybody moves to London then everything’s going to be coming from the same place and it’s important to represent where you’re from. We’ve got out own thing going on here and I’m happy to rep Nottingham.
Tell us about your new album The Butterfly Effect
It’s out now and took about a year to get it all together and then another six months to get the artwork and masters right. It’s been a massive learning curve for me. People seem to be feeling it and I like to see them responding to different tracks. That’s what it was all for really. First and foremost it was an expression for me and I’d be doing it whether it went out on a big scale or not.
Is there a significance in the title?
Definitely. I’d heard about the concept of little things having big effects like a butterfly’s wings and hopefully this album could have a positive domino effect for the Nottingham scene. It might not even happen for me personally, but I do believe in cause and effect.
Some of the old OutDaVille crew have been involved in the album too…
Nick Stez and Lee Ramsay from The Marga Boys have helped out with the production and Big Trev has been helping out on promotion for us. Karizma was there repping at the album launch party too. If people are around here are making music then I’m always wanting to work with others. It’s in my nature.
Have you heard from Mike Skinner recently?
Not really. Doing the tune with The Streets got me out there on a big scale and got people thinking about me. I know he’s doing well though and he’s got some new projects coming out soon. I might also be doing a gig with Plan B at some point.
What’s an average day in the life of C-Mone like?
There are usually too many things to get done in a day and stuff spills over into the next day and the day after. I also do a bit of studying and working and always do a session or two at the studio every week.
If you could get anyone in on a track with you, who would you choose?
I’ve always liked Prince. I love the Roots and maybe Skinnyman. Also Skin from Skunk Anansie is amazing. Getting them together would be a great band. There are loads of legends too, but I don’t want to mention anyone who has passed away because I’m sure they’re all having a much better time than us down here.
Who do you rate in the Nottingham scene?
Wariko, Shifty Spirit, Cappo, Rapper Ru, Matic, Smiley, Doogie Howser, Karizma, the Marga Boys and many more.
What are your favourite places in Nottingham?
I’ve been going to Stone bar since it was Bar Vida and I love the place. The Social is great when they do their hiphop gigs. The A Drop In The Ocean night there last year was an amazing night.
What was the last thing that made you laugh?
Dave Chapelle on Comedy Central. He replayed Prince playing a basketball game with Eddie Murphy from the eighties. It had me rolling for days.
What was the last thing that made you cry?
Onions.
What are your plans for the next year?
At the moment I just want to promote the album as much as I can and hook up with people like LeftLion and try to get it as far across the board as possible. I’m planning some gigs for the summer too, to get it out there. Then I’ll probably get back in the studio and do some more tunes.
Tell us about Dark Whisper…
I just want to help get a load of good music from Notts that I hear out to other people, so I’m setting up a label. I’ll put stuff out on there myself as well, but it’s a platform and a place for people to DIY and get tunes out to DJ’s and radio stations. It’s something I can see myself being happy doing for a while.
Anything else you want to say to LeftLion readers?
Respect to everyone who is doing stuff for the love and enjoying it and being positive about things.
C-Mone’s album The Butterfly Effect is out now on Son Records and available from HMV or Selectadisc.
www.c-mone.co.uk
www.sonrecords.com
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