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Professor Green: from battle MC to battling the charts

Written by Vanessa Laker
Thursday, 22 April 2010 00:00

He’s currently riding high in the UK charts at number 3 with debut single “I Need You Tonight” and counts Lily Allen as one of his friends, but things haven’t always been plain sailing for East London rapper Professor Green. His journey has been anything but an easy ride.

Stephen Paul Manderson made a name for himself a few years ago on the underground battle rap scene. The Jump Off – an 8 Mile style event – is where Green earned his crown as a champion battle MC. I myself used to go there regularly five/six years ago and everyone who’s been knew who Professor Green was. He pretty much owned the rap battle segment of the event, which took place in Central London every Monday. After breaking records, including being the first (and only) rapper to win The Jump Off seven weeks in a row... twice, he began battling MC’s in competitions across the world.

While performing at the B-Boy Championships, Manderson was introduced to Mike Skinner of The Streets - an encounter that would completely change the rapper's direction and ultimately lead to him signing with Skinner’s ‘The Beats’ record label in April 2006.

"It’s weird because at the time when I signed to Mike’s label, I hadn’t really thought about being an actual recording artist," Professor Green explains. "I was still in the ‘battle rap’ frame of mind, so when it came to recording actual songs, in a way it was something that maybe I wasn’t quite ready for at that particular time."

Whether he was ready for it or not, Green was about to be exposed to a whole new audience as he was now Mike Skinner’s ‘protégé’ – a status that would introduce him to a mass audience and significantly increase his media exposure.

As we all know the record industry can be pretty cut-throat; something Green would soon find out. "We had a target of sales to reach and we didn’t make the target," Green says candidly, speaking on his now terminated partnership with Mike Skinner. However, rather than dwell on the situation, Green sees the unfortunate turn of events as a positive thing. "It’s a real shame the deal (with The Beats) didn’t work out, but like I said I really wasn’t ready to be a recording artist at the time." He continues, "Sometimes when you release material before you’re ready, it can end up damaging your career in the long run. So in a way it was like a blessing in disguise."

Unfortunately for Green this was just the first of many bad events that the rapper would have to endure. In 2007 he suddenly lost his father, and in 2009 he himself narrowly escaped death.

While on a night out in Shoreditch, East London, he was stabbed in the neck with a broken bottle by a fellow clubber. An incident that heavily affected him; "that whole situation left me in a weird frame of mind and a very bad place," he explains. "I didn’t want to go to clubs anymore because I was paranoid and angry. If anyone looked at me in the wrong way, I’d have my guards up and I’d be ready to confront them," he adds.

As bad as the incident was, Green realised he was in fact lucky to be alive and rather than carry on being angry at the situation, he had to embrace a new frame of mind. "The bottom line is I’m extremely lucky to even be alive and that I’m grateful for," says a very calm and at ease Green. "I’ve put that whole incident behind me now. I’m all about positivity these day’s. I won’t let negative people affect me," he adds.

It’s fair to say Professor Green has had a rollercoaster of a ride so far. But during all his ups and downs he never felt discouraged and always continued making music. "For me, music is something I do because I love it. I’m a lyricist first. I like playing with words, being in the studio, creating music and performing live."

Even without a record deal Green continued making music and perfecting his craft and at this stage, there was no doubt the 26-year-old wordsmith was more than ready to be a recording artist. As the famous saying goes, "every cloud has a silver lining" and a Facebook conversation with Lily Allen was the catalyst that changed the musician's luck. It led to the two remaking the 90's classic "Dub Be Good To Me" – a song that will feature on Green’s debut album – and the rapper also joined Allen on her European and Australian tour. "Touring with Lily was an amazing experience," he gushes. "I’ve never performed to such big crowds before, so it was an over whelming feeling."

In late 2009, Professor Green officially signed to Virgin records. But unlike his previous deal, sales have been far from disappointing. Debut single "I Need You To Tonight" is riding high in the top five and his follow up single, which features Lily Allen, is set to be even bigger.

"I have no expectations when it comes to chart positions,”"says a very humble Green. "I’m just grateful and extremely happy that people are reacting well to my music."

It’s obvious to see that Professor Green is a very talented artist. You don’t win that many battles by luck. Lyrically - he’s in a league above most of his peers, so it’s good to see he’s finally getting the mainstream recognition he’s worked so hard to achieve. After interviewing him, he genuinely seems like a nice humble guy and for me for me, that’s what really sets him apart from most of his peers.

Green’s debut album Alive Till I'm Dead - which will see him reunite with old friend Mike Skinner - will be released this summer.

Click here http://bit.ly/aXjlHo to download his debut single "I Need You Tonight".

Vanessa Laker is a London based writer and PR specialist. Writing for a number of publications, including MTV, Earmilk, Clash, Soulculture and Arise.

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