HOT WUK - THE WEEKLY BASHMENT CARNIVAL present SEROCEE (DJ SET)
Thu 11th February
Valentine soundclash: lovers vs Slackness featuring a DJ set from Serocee with residents The Heatwave & Sticky.
8PM-1AM
Free
Serocee
Born in Small Heath, Birmingham UK, Serocee showed signs of his musical talent at an early age. As a baby he was sent back home to Kingston, for a Jamaican education and this was where he had his first real exposure to Reggae music. A lasting love affair was born. Though a self-proclaimed hip hop master now, Serocee's native roots still resonate through his work. A strict Christian household meant no reggae, but his family embraced the church choir scene and music was always an integral part of life for the young Serocee. He penned his first melody at age eight. On his return to Birmingham, Serocee found the transition tricky, and often fought with his new counterparts. It isn't in his nature to enamor violence though, and soon his foes were suffering from a more verbal punishment. "We'd spend hours cussing/blazing at lunchtimes, during class, break times then after school, I was a champion at it and that's how I learnt to build witty lyrics". At 14 Serocee created a rap group called "Crossfire" and they achieved local success working with the likes of Pato Banton. He won all the rap battles at the Porsche and Q clubs, and further perfected his technique from watching his favourites in the sidelines. Artists such as Cutty Ranks, Macka B, Shabba Ranks, Ninjaman, Tiger, Mad Cobra and Papa San saw most of his pocket money. Since moving to London in 1999, he has been extremely busy. He is currently polishing his debut solo project and preparing for his imminent tour of the States, France, Germany, Australia & Jamaica. "I have been getting a lot of good airplay for my tracks on the radio and I'm gonna use this opportunity to get my music in front of people in the hope they can feel what I feel. I know I have more to say than the usual tales of sex, drugs and money - I'm tryinna inspire people through my music". "I am currently working with Darkjoint, Cavey, Karl Hinds and Urban Monk, Premier Williams and 76 as producers. The album will be called "Second Generation Windrush Pickney", so look out for it cause it's gonna be big!"
The Heatwave
Before founding Heatwave with Sam Lawlor and Henry back in 2003, Gabriel had played at and promoted nights in London, Bristol and Valencia. The early days of Heatwave saw it move around various venues in East London while Gabriel was resident DJ at 333's dancehall fortnightly CherryPie.
Gabriel started DJing in 1998, at first mainly hip hop and 70s dub, before being converted wholesale to reggae and dancehall in Spain in 2001. Upon arriving in Valencia for a 12 month stay and discovering that Spain's third largest city had no dedicated hip hop shop but did boast a recently-opened reggae store, Gabriel began buying 7" singles and became hooked. Under the name Xiquet, Gabriel founded More Fire Sound with Italian MC Montikilla, playing regularly at the legendary Juanita Club. Together with Henry Heatwave aka Mr Pannot, Danny Kingston, Julien Rihani and Twister, the sound played throughout Valencia and Barcelona and at the U-Zona reggae festival on the same bill as Buju Banton and Luciano.
Gabriel presented various radio shows from 2000-2003 on Bristol's Burst FM and Valencia's Radio UPV (formerly Radio Fí). As Programming Director and Head of Music at Burst FM alongside Station Manager Sam Roberts, Gabriel commissioned shows from DJs like Rob Ellis aka Pinch, Paul Rose & El Sid (Hot Flush) and Tapedecklee aka Paul STN and promoted the station's successful nights featuring the likes of Mr Scruff, Jah Warrior, Deckwrecka and Fingathing.
Since starting to write music reviews and features at university, Gabriel has written for publications like Undercover and SOS, worked as Dance Music Editor for Epigram in Bristol and currently contributes to Woofah. Gabriel began making blends and refixes in 2002 and has been producing original music - often alongside his brother, Myddelman - since 2006.
Sticky
Richard 'Sticky' Forbes built his reputation as one of the countries leading club music producers in the height of the UK Garage scene. His distinctive sound not only made his music unavoidable in the clubs during this era, but also launched the careers of a number of the UK’s leading talents including the Mercury Award Winning Ms. Dynamite.
Sticky has had an endless numbers of club and chart hits featuring artists including Kele Le Roc, Stush, Tubby T & Twista, he has also remixed the likes of Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Aaliyah, Sugababes,Hot chip & Erykah Badu consistently finding himself scaling the heights of the club charts.
The energetic rhythms and catchy synthesized hooks make his style instantly recognisable. Consistently pioneering new sounds, most recently with the increasingly popular ‘Dirtypop’ movement. A style he says will “Forge a blend between the credible street sounds and the pop music industry”. The vibrant musical arrangements and classic pop vocals have provided an exciting new platform and already ‘Dirtypop’ is gracing the radio and club scenes in various different guises.
His music has recently featured in E4 hit series ‘Skins’ and BBC’s ‘Eastenders’.
Sticky is currently working with a number of new writers and artists on various development projects.
