Hardly needing an introduction, but for the uninitiated, Alex Dutty is a London-based rapper who chooses to shy away from the stereotypical guns, drugs, money content. The rapper delivers brutally candid and relatable accounts of his deprived childhood. The artist touts himself as a mouthpiece for people that grew up in broken homes who battle financial issues, self-doubt, and hardships on a daily basis- issues which are rife on his forthcoming debut album ‘Knock Down Ginger’.
Alex Dutty recently released his single titled “Emoji” which was self-produced and self-written by Alex Dutty himself. Alex brings a unique style to the song with a flare of afro-beat and reggae to compliment his London-styled delivery, he has created the most transcending dance-hall hit! The featuring vocals from Jamaican originated artist Black Rose and Trinidad born artist Triniboi Joocie carry the Caribbean vibes until the end.
Catchy vocals with a multicultural influenced sound. This diverse hit is an introspection of Alex writing style flawlessly executed and cleverly-written. Although a rapper, Alex Dutty could project a polished voice that showcased his ability to sing. The most beautiful concept of “Emoji” in my opinion was how it showcased the capability of Alex becoming a cross-genre icon! He transitioned into the entire vibe of dance-hall in such an indulging and radical way. The rhythmic single captures your attention and keeps you hooked throughout the duration of the entire movement of the music! Grab your nearest stereo and place this on high volume and you won’t regret it!
Listen to "Emoji" here and catch up with Alex below!
Is this your first time doing dance-hall? What were some challenges you faced?
This is actually the first time I have went with this kinda vibe but you would probably think I did more of this from my name. I don’t really think we had many challenges making the song it was pretty organic it just kinda all fell into place without too much thought I don’t think I was setting out to do any kind of genre when we were making it, was just trying to make dope music. However we did face a lot of problems after the song was completed, mix down issues, visuals getting deleted and a bunch of other suspicious random things so their was a huge delay in release, we recorded this a year before Ramz came out with the song Barking, then a wave of those kinda vibes came out, now years later my song finally comes out and the only criticism os people feel like they’ve heard it before or I’ve tried to copy a vibe, but fact is that vibe wasn’t even popular when we recorded, it but that’s the game I guess, timing is everything, something I’m definitely working on moving forward. A lot of it is having good people in your team who can deliver, I just didn’t have that when I recorded Emoji, I mean I have that now but it just took a while to get there initially, causing delays from recording to release.
Tell us a little bit about the meaning of “Emoji” and what inspired you to write this?
I think me and OB were inspired by that Drake album More Life and so we wanted to blend this with our vibe, I came with the drums forest then just started laying synths over and free-styling melody’s until I found something that fitted I had just been through a messy breakup so there was a lot I could draw inspiration from at the time.
Did everyone who collaborated on this record all have the same artistic vision?
I mean to be honest the structure of the song was pretty much done by the time any of the artists had jumped on it but they certainly kept the vibe alive and consistent, originally after me and OB The Author had recorder the original I thought MC Bushkin and Trinieboi Joocie would be a good fit for a remix to help get some traction behind the song, but due to unforeseen circumstances I could only get Trinieboi, leaving an extra verse for someone else, I was producing some stuff with Black Rose at the time and thought to give her a go on the song. She most certainly came with the hunger and I think that paid off as she really killed her verse, don’t get me wrong everyone was dope as fuck but she did something that gave the song a new life and I was really impressed. She was in the original Video too but again due to me flying out to do a reshoot it just wasn’t logistical.
Who are some old school artists you would collaborate with if you had the chance too?
I always thought Ludacris was dope I dunno if a song with me and him would sound right though lol, DMX maybe but I dunno if he’s really DMX anymore so that might not sound too great either I dunno Slick Rick yeah Slick Rick that dude was cold and he from London too.
Any exciting upcoming performances we should know about?
Hopefully you should see me on some lineups this festival season so keep your eyes out for Alex Dutty this year.
What's next for you through 2019?
More recording more working with people, more shows, I got a couple of big tunes with some big features but can’t even leak any info on that right now but follow me Spotify and you’ll be the first to hear anything I drop.
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