Mike Skinner is an MC, philosopher and professional balcony jumper. He’s a thinker who makes his thoughts public through his U.K. hip-hop outfit, The Streets. And he’s not ready to go – not yet, at least.
The Streets’ new record, “The Hardest Way to Make an Easy Living,” is proof of Skinner’s vitality. A tabloid celebrity in London, Skinner is at a bizarre apex in his career. He’s long been lauded for his championing of the Everyman class, his frank and sometimes cutting observations about the life of the downtrodden and unlucky.
But now Skinner, who brings his roadshow to the Fox Theatre on Wednesday, is sounding a bit too important, a bit too troubled with important things like getting recognized on the street or photographed while doing lines of cocaine.
“I’m really glad that I wrote this album, but I don’t expect people to understand it,” Skinner said via telephone recently from his suburban home in north London. “Whenever I meet anybody else who is in my position, touring and playing and recording, they really love this album. To them, this is what all my other albums were to everybody else – it speaks to them.
“There’s less to feel sorry for and possibly even understand,” he said. “But it’s more exciting, I think, and people are still interested. The last album was such an underdog story, which the British absolutely love. But the moment you start talking about success, it gets a lot more mixed in the U.K., definitely. But people still respect me for the honesty.”
The new CD is a long leap from “Original Pirate Material,” The Streets’ captivating 2002 debut. While the production hovers over the same territory – rudimentary funky synths and drum-
machine beats – the lyrics are self-indulgent with only a smattering of the naked revelation that was his earlier trademark.
“See the thing that’s got it all (expletive) up now is camera phones,” Skinner announces, kicking off the single “When You Wasn’t Famous.” “How the hell am I supposed to be able to do a line in front of complete strangers when I know they all have cameras?”
The music remains solid, the beats hot. But you have a hard time sympathizing with Skinner’s plight. Not that he cares.
“In a way, being photographed when you’re doing something you shouldn’t be is worrying,” he said. “I spend most of my life out and about, and just try imagining what it’s like when everyone has cameras – everyone. And if you can understand how often I get photographed everyday, even if I’m just walking through town, people are just getting their phones out. … It’s a bit of a joke, really.
“Since the last album, it’s a different kind of lifestyle. It was obnoxious before, to be honest, when I wasn’t famous. On the whole it’s an absolute pleasure, and I can get a lot more done because people answer the phone.”
It helps, too, that England’s hip-hop scene is booming. Skinner was one of the first Brit MCs to make international waves since Slick Rick. But four years after The Streets’ debut, artists such as M.I.A. and Lady Sovereign (the latter opens for The Streets in Boulder) are thriving with international audiences.
The Streets have long been known as a quality live group, what with Skinner getting trashed and speaking and spitting in his near-indecipherable accent. And Skinner hasn’t stopped there. Lately he’s made blog headlines for balcony jumping, a performance art he’s pioneering. On his last European tour, Skinner took the leap once in the U.K. and another time in Belgium. (See the alarming pictures on his blog, the-streets.co.uk)
“They’re actually a lot easier than they look – I’m really not that mental,” Skinner said.
Skinner has also made headlines on tour for his behavior outside venues. In Germany, he stole a giant stuffed tiger worth 200 euros from a filling station and posted a picture of him riding it to his blog. And it gets much wilder than that.
“Yeah, you’ve got a lot of time to kill, you know,” he admitted. “And you’re away with a group of lads, and suddenly there’s no kind of reality, really. Whatever you do, you leave behind when you leave, so it’s not that crazy in a way.”
Pop music critic Ricardo Baca can be reached at 303-820-1394 or rbaca@denverpost.com.
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The Streets
U.K. HIP-HOP|Fox Theatre, Boulder;
8:30 p.m. Wednesday with Lady Sovereign|
$22.50|foxtheatre.com
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LISTEN TO MUSIC FROM THE STREETS. denverpost.com/music
