Lady Sov's Stateside success

interestingly there were loads of Def Jam adverts around carnival yesterday asking for new talent, maybe they've woken up to UK MCs?

last time I saw her was at this giant hollywood mega-club, the kind populated by these types, where she was supposed to make an appearance after a show at the Henry Fonda. at 1 AM she comes on stage and did what sounded like a more aggressive than usual short set - sounded so good after hours of the usual bull-shit music they play at these dumb clubs (I think atleast a few of the regulars wet their pants).

zhao said:

last time I saw her was at this giant hollywood mega-club, the kind populated by these types, ).

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What types? The Vice magazine hipsters, or stripey shirt ginos? The caption writer or the subject?

Let's just wait until her first week figures come in before she gets crucified for being the Emperor's New Clothes

swears said:

What types? The Vice magazine hipsters, or stripey shirt ginos? The caption writer or the subject?

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stripey shirt ginos

Logan Sama said:

Let's just wait until her first week figures come in before she gets crucified for being the Emperor's New Clothes

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do you mean that she is unoriginal compared to other grime artists or that she won't be worth Def Jam's time as far as charts in US are concerned?

If something British is going to break the states, then it has to be something we can do that they can't. Like the British invasion/new pop. Taking MCs over to the states is a bit coals to Newcastle isn't it?

WOEBOT said:

Anyone else read about her being picked up by Def Jam and (not quite) mentored by Jay-J and Usher?

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In the states, Sovereign's deal with Def Jam was talked about in the print mags last December and January, when she was featured in many, and on the cover of at least one (Venus) mag, maybe more (can't remember for sure).

She talked about meeting with Jay Z etc etc. Her name recognition among music fans is quite high here. I used to spin some garage last spring at a weekly, and any female vocal garage tune would always get the question, "Is this Lady Sovereign?" from the indie trainspotters (it wasn't, and that's my point). I'd like to see her break in the US too, why not.

swears said:

If something British is going to break the states, then it has to be something we can do that they can't. Like the British invasion/new pop. Taking MCs over to the states is a bit coals to Newcastle isn't it?

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What we ought to have been exporting is grime MCs...simply because someone is spitting on a mic doesn't mean it is something the US can do.

Logos said:

What we ought to have been exporting is grime MCs...simply because someone is spitting on a mic doesn't mean it is something the US can do.

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Yeah, there is a world of difference between hip hop and grime, but I don't think the Americans see it that way...

Mistake

If Jay was gonna sign ANYONE from the UK Grime scene to break into the US market it should have been Kano...I'd say it to his face while stealthily sliding copies of "Home Sweet Home" and "Beats & Bars" into his left and right suit pockets, respectively. One.

here in the states, lady sov's track "love me or hate me" is the background music in a tv advert for a mp3 player/mobile by verizon. now if that's not stateside success, i don't know what is.

I just hope that Lady Soveriegn will not be americanized by the same corporate machine that encourages controversy and irresponsibility in order to increase cd sales. Also, I hope that she doesn't convert from grime to hip hop, because I like her sound the way it is!

I wish Lady Soveriegn success, but I'm a little bit scared for her.

pokinatcha said:

here in the states, lady sov's track "love me or hate me" is the background music in a tv advert for a mp3 player/mobile by verizon. now if that's not stateside success, i don't know what is.

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Well, it is success in the marketing world. That happened with drumnbass too, where it broke in the background of commercials well before artists came over from the UK.

But yeah, she was even mentioned by name in the ad I saw. Good on her, I say!

good luck to her although i wonder if it this imminent US success will really materialise.. that guardian article on her made me wince at times - the greatest rap talent to ever come from the UK? er, no.

swears said:

If something British is going to break the states, then it has to be something we can do that they can't. Like the British invasion/new pop. Taking MCs over to the states is a bit coals to Newcastle isn't it?

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There's never been a US MC who sounds anything like Lady Sov. If a UK act is going to succeed in the states, it needs to be with music that the US hasn't heard before, but can relate to because it has common reference points.

But more than that, it needs a performer with an engaging personality and the professionalism & self belief to ride the industry shit storm without losing thier focus. I dont know if sov has that but the story about her perfoming in front of Jay Z in the def jam boardroom, if true, is an encouraging early sign.

It also requires the right timing - a mood of 'where next' among the artist's potential fanbase - and i think US rap might have that at the moment. The trends of the last 5 years was crunk/southern style and nu-R&B, and there's a broad feeling that both have come to the end of the line. No brit artist would have a hope of breaking the US while those scenes were crankin' but thier demise has left a vacuum that sov might be able to exploit.

I havent heard much of her stuff besides ch-ching but i like the way she comes across & I'll certainly be rooting for her.

Logan Sama said:

Let's just wait until her first week figures come in before she gets crucified for being the Emperor's New Clothes

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Thats justifiable realism in the UK music industry certainly, but not in the US where it's normal for singles to take several months to break nationally. She will need to press flesh & generally work her arse off though, if she wants to do it.

Gabba Flamenco Crossover said:

There's never been a US MC who sounds anything like Lady Sov. If a UK act is going to succeed in the states, it needs to be with music that the US hasn't heard before, but can relate to because it has common reference points.

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so true! I really can only think of ONE white female rapper that ever had any popularity - Princess Superstar, of Bad Babysitter fame...

I ended up seeing her twice in Chicago a couple weeks back - once at Lollapalooza, where she was 20 minutes late for a one hour set (for perspective, there was about an hour of dead time at each stage for setup between acts) -- it was ten minutes before her DJ even walked on. The second was later that night at an after-hours show where she threw down the mic and walked off after having two sound problems.

Verdict? Despite being tempermental and barely showing up the second time, she was a great live performer and had a good response from the crowd. I really don't know why her success stateside (or any grime mc's success) is stated in terms of the relation outside of the hip hop umbrella. There's a wide swath of things that get classified as hip hop, with regionalism and cross-polination creating different levels of popularity and influence. I think, as far as US success is concerned, that over-classifying grime as outside of that sphere is a poor marketing choice. Do I think that grime has some differences from mainstream US hip hop? Sure. Are these differences any greater than, say, that between opposing fringes of the current scene? Not really.

Huh?

pokinatcha said:

here in the states, lady sov's track "love me or hate me" is the background music in a tv advert for a mp3 player/mobile by verizon. now if that's not stateside success, i don't know what is.

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Uh, success is when people actually KNOW who you are. Yes, her song was in an ad for Verizon's Chocolate phone. Yes, she's been in several magazines...has she appeared on television in the States once besides On Demand interviews? No. Has she been on MTV in person yet? No. Will she ever show up at BET? I don't know...will the AVERAGE fan be able to understand what she's saying when she rhymes? Will rap/hip hop fans accept her? I'm thinking that the average rap fan will not like her while she has a CHANCE at appealing to pop audiences...However, I think Kano had a chance at BOTH due to his versatility. If you gave me four or five Grime acts of my choosing...I'm convinced I could break them stateside...Lady Sovereign wouldn't make my list at all. I think certain UK Hip Hop artists could break just as well. One.