THE TONGUE INTERVIEW

Sydney emcee The Tongue (aka Xannon Shirley) is known equally well for his singular work ethic and creative wordplay, a combination which has not only earned the rapper the right to his pen-name, but has also yielded three excellent albums, a handful of free mixtapes, and explosive singles “Crazy”, “The Show” and newest banger “Drums”.

His third full length album, “Surrender to Victory” released on Elefant Traks, is in stores now. Entirely produced by Cam Bluff and featuring guest verses from some of Australia’s greatest hip hop talent (Suffa, Illy, Joyride and more) it’s a cohesive and relentless party record, one that’s bound to provide the young rapper with plenty of attention and accolades locally and abroad.

Who was the first rapper that inspired you to write?
Chuck D from Public Enemy. His presence on the mic, his integrity, his creativity, his passion…still not too many MCs that can match him.

Was music a big part of growing up for you?
I never played an instrument, never learnt how to read music, no one in my family is musical…so in that sense no. I used to listen to the radio when I was young and discover bands that way. I used to love metal, then I discovered Sarah Vaughn the jazz singer and was obsessed with her. Then after that it was hip hop….then reggae and then soul music. As James Brown once said “theres only two types of music…good music and bad music”…people assume I only listen to hip hop because I rap but thats a long way from the truth.

The new album is called “Surrender to Victory”. How do you feel you have you grown as an artist since your last official release in 2010, Alternative Energy?
I studied songwriting for the first time before beginning this new album. There were a few bits of advice I picked up that really helped. Things like – put the chorus before the first verse, not after it like most people do in rap songs. Little tips like that I think have made a big difference in terms of making the songs tighter.

I also write a lot of the choruses for the singers on the album and I feel that I’m more confident in my ability to write a good hook or come up with a nice melody. I can’t sing that well but I can come up with a hook and sing it to a vocalist and get them to repeat it back to me until its sounds how I imagined it. I love that process.

You’ve mentioned in interviews that the song Rhymin’ is supposed to sound like a cypher at a party. What other rappers, past or present, would be the participants in your dream party-cypher?
Redman, Gift Of Gab, Nas, Skinnyman…from Australia Delta, Dialetrix…Ozi Batla and I have had a lot of great party cyphers over the years

If you could show The Tongue sceptics one song from Surrender to Victory, which would it be and why?
Probably the opening track “Bittersweet”….I think that songs demonstrates my strengths as a writer…I don’t think any other rapper in Australia could have written that song. Not because its ‘superior’ in any way, just because they don’t think how I do.

What was the best part of the recording process?
Nailing a verse in the one take.

How was it working with Cam Bluff?
That’s my brother right there. That guy is so talented and so humble and he really let me know that he respected my skills as a songwriter. When you have that mutual respect and a mutual love of music great things happen. A lot of the album reviews so far have commented on our chemistry, this was the first time I’d ever worked solely with one producer for an entire album. The funny thing is we really only spent about a week together because he’s in Brisbane and I live in Sydney…I honestly reckon we could bang out the next album in a month if we tried….we just work so efficiently together

The album features some pretty major names from Australian hip hop, everyone from Illy to Thundamentals to Joyride. Are there any dream collaborations you have yet to make happen?
Top of that list would be Kendrick Lamar…he just blows me away time after time…what a talent. I never thought I’d get a song with Suffa because he doesn’t do guest verses too often but that happened on this album so, you know, dreams do come true.

Whilst the mixtape game is a major contributing factor to the popularity of American rappers, it’s not as common practice here. What benefit have you found to putting out tapes like the highly entertaining Sextape in 2011?
Mixtapes keep the fans happy and they keep me sharp as a rapper. When I’m not working on an album I should still be writing or else I might loose my edge. The Sextape was great fun because it let me show off another side of myself that fans may not know about….and my fans deserve free music (and get it at thetongue.com.au )

What’s your opinion on the current state of Australian hip hop? Are there any local underground emcees we should be more familiar with?
The scene is as healthy and as diverse as its ever been. Underground rappers/groups I’d advise people to check include Remi from Melbourne, Dialect from Adelaide, Elemont from NSW and Cam Bluff’s other project Vegas Aces…they are amazing.

Now that the album is released, what is the plan for the rest of 2013?
Tours, shows, festivals all that good stuff. Then hopefully a remix EP and a few more singles. There will also be a couple more video clips from “Surrender To Victory” too. I also have to finish off my Masters Of Teaching degree but that’ll be done by September. Once thats out of the way I’m going to try tee-up some overseas shows.

What are your Top 5 albums of all time?
In no particular order:
Notorious B.I.G – Life After Death
Blackalicious – Blazing Arrow
Kendrick Lamar – Good Kid, M.A.A.D City
Sarah Vaughn – Masterpieces Of Sarah Vaughn
UNKLE – Psyence Fiction

What’s the next big goal for your music?
The goal has always been to make a classic album. Once I do that I can die a happy man. I think “Surrender To Victory” is my best attempt at that so far.

What is your definition of Grindin’?

Interview by Alexander Tulett