Break to the beat recently had the honer of catching up with and interviewing one of Hip Hop in the UKs godfathers Overlord X. Overlord X along with the X Possee put their home borough of Hackney, London and the entire UK on the Hip Hop map back in the late 80 and early 90s giving us 3 outstanding LPs that were not only an inspiration but for many an introduction to British rap music. Overlord X’s contributions to the UK music scene over the years have been nothing short of outstanding and has provided us with both thought provoking intellectual lessons in life as well as timeless Hip Hop classics. Any readers not familiar with Overlord X & The X Possee’s work should check the Overlord X Discography & Review article posted a few months ago on break to the beat.   

Taking things right back to the beginning. Before you started rapping and producing records please tell the readers how you discovered the Hip Hop culture?

I really started to get into Hip Hop music from Africa Bambaataa and the soul Sonic force, back then Hip Hop was in the style of Electro and they were the ones that grabbed my attention to start even thinking of making music. At that time I was a young break dancer and DJ producer just being a big fan and follower of the movement. I was looking for a rapper to spit over my beats but there were very few MC’s around so I picked up the mic and started creating rough demos at home. Continue reading →

The Late 1980’s was a very interesting time for Hip Hop music both in the US and in the UK. I remember as a kid getting in to the Hip Hop culture by watching the film Break dance and hearing music by artists The Fat Boys, Beastie Boys and Run-DMC. During this period I would have been about 8 or 9 years old. It wasn’t however until around 1988 when I first heard the music that artists like Ice T, Big Daddy Kane, Public Enemy and De La Soul were making when I really started becoming intrigued by the Hip Hop culture. Along with the US rap superstars there were a handful of UK Hip Hop artists that at the time had the same impact on me as a fan of the music. One of these UK Hip Hop pioneers was Overlord X.

What I respect most about Overlord X is his consistency in making quality Hip Hop tracks, plus on every 12″ single he released there was at least one different track that did not appear on any of his albums. In 2012 this may not seem like a big issue but back in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s, music (especially Hip Hop) was not as accessible as it is now. Even in 1990 Hip Hop records were filed under Dance music, Jazz music or even the World music section of a record shop.

My point is that on every Overlord X 12″ single there was a unique track making the singles as much of a worthwhile purchase as the albums. Overlord X along with his DJ Sir-Preme-Tee were one of the few early Hip Hop crews from the UK to make Hip Hop their own in terms of not rapping in an American accent.

Overlord X‘s vocal style and music are somewhat unique to him and DJ Sir-Preme-Tee’s super funky scratches and cuts complimented Overlord X’s musical vibe perfectly. Overlord X also had a crew of rappers, DJs & Performers doing vocal and DJ features throughout his projects called the X Possee, all residents of the East London borough of Hackney. Overlord X, & The X Possee are UK Hip Hop pioneers and along with a handful of other artists kicked off the first wave of British Hip Hop especially in terms of releasing vinyl records. These records went on to inspire others to get in to the Hip Hop culture in the UK, Europe and beyond. This article was put together with the aim of honouring the contributions to UK Hip Hop culture by Overlord X, Sir-Preme-Tee, & The X Possee.

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