I am a massive massive fan of TrueMendous. The Birmingham hip hop artist has been going from strength to strength. Known for her dense lyrical style with flexible flow patterns, she's easily one of the most dynamic MCs in the country. Her sophomore single 'Worst Child' received airplay on BBC Radio 1 following on from her previous single 'Cause A Scene' all leading up to her debut album 'Misdiagnosis of Chyvonne Johnson' which is OUT NOW. (Stream it here)
So on a cloudy Thursday morning I had a quick Google meets interview with TrueMendous to talk more on her album, her style of music and her tremendous selection of buckets hats. We both laughed and joked that we were having problems using Google meets to start off the interview.
I asked her how many bucket hats does she own and her response was surprising.
"I really only have 5 but fan's believe I got a whole collection which is extremely funny"
Also going into a little detail on how it unintentionally become apart of her brand.
"I never intended to keep wearing the hats, it just worked with an outfit but it become an unofficial addiction to me". "If kangol are looking for a sponsor they can shout me"
What a brilliant ideal #Trumendouskangol. From talking with True, she's got a real warm personality mixed with a wise demeanour. You can hear that in her art and specifically her lyrical style. Which she practiced while Busking
"I honed my skills when I was a street performer, performing in front of people every day it helped me to improve my craft" "At first i didn't notice my flow patterns taking shape. Focusing on what I'm saying to get the crowds attention helped build the style I have today, experimenting with different flows and rhyme patterns"
Going into her project titled 'Misdiagnosis of Chyvonne Johnson' TrueMendous confirms it pays homage to Lauryn Hill and her debut 'The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill' A project that will deal with different subject matters concerning herself, her relationships and family
"Yes It is, 'The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill' is one of my favourite album's and with my project ('Misdiagnosis of Chyvonne Johnson') the title serves as a double meaning for my love and hate for music as well as being more diverse in my sound compared to my previous projects"
A versatile artist the album will have elements of Jazz, Rock, Soul under her brand of hip hop which is highlighted in her first two singles. With 'Cause A Scene' having element's of rock and TrueMendous bringing a more intense performance, I asked why did she go in that direction.
"The song is part about me getting my flowers as a mc, being compared by bloggers to other MCs who came out before me. but also highlighting all the injustice we are currently going through. From BLM, Green Peace, and Third Word countries"
She describes how the album will be discussing issues personally to her that involve social issues, family and especially her relationship with her mother. TrueMendous who currently lives in London loves her hometown music scene "Brum" but feels it needs more infrastructure for the future.
"Brum has always been strong, our best quality is that we have very distinct voices". "Everyone doesn't sound a like which is great. But the glass ceiling isn't that high, and not all music from the city gets pushed or highlighted"
Which I truly understand, the city is really known for its grime scene but traditional hip hop isn't seen on that same level which is unfortunate but I see TrueMendous as a trailblazer for doing the music she enjoys. Everyone has a suggestion for a artist who deserves a Daily Duppy and I have also mentioned TrueMendous as one of the top picks. Telling her this she laughs and said her favourite Daily Duppy's were right now are J Hus and Ghetts but did say she needs to rewatch them all to update her list. I asked how she would approach a 'Daily Duppy' if she had the opportunity.
"Write it from scratch, I know I can do a excellent job and don't want to give something pre-written or pre-recorded. When the time comes it'll be great"
Her album is OUT NOW looks to be her strongest to date and sets the stage perfectly for her to be seen as one of the leading voices in UK Hip Hop right now, you can stream it here. In the meantime check out the video for "Mood Ring"
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