About Me
As music critics muse over the importance of trendy buzzwords such as grime and
Urban, it’s nice to know that there remain some dynamic emcees in the game, firmly engrossed in the traditions of good old hip-hop, 24 year old Pyrelli AKA Tha Instigator is one of those people.
Coming like a cross between a UK Ghostface and Pharoahe Monch on heat, it’s uncertain whether the game is yet ready for the man. But the man is most certainly ready for the game…
Pyrelli was born into the music industry as a member of North London collective One, in 2000 and was marked out early on by his fellow group members as the most gifted of the bunch – the kid with the multi-layered flow who could consistently conjure an unforgettable verse out of thin air.
When in 2002 the group qualified for the final of MOBO unsung, in it seemed that big things could be just around the corner. However, following their failure to win, complacency soon set in, and after three years as a group, a parting of ways was inevitable.
Pyrelli remained alive though – and when eventual MOBO winner and rising underground star Sway Dasafo got in touch with his former group member in 2004, the pair embarked on a manic schedule of recording, which for Pyrelli, manifested itself in two-albums worth of material, including a mixtape, Tha 5002 chubby Promo CD (Sunny Dayz).
In between the studio time came a tour with Dizzee Rascal and live performances in venues up and down the land including slots at the 2005 Urban Music Festival and MTV Baselounge. Shows in Prague, Sweden, Spain, Canada and New York completed a jam packed year on stage.
The incendiary Up your Speed, Pyrelli’s blazing team-up with Sway, would become a landmark collaboration; a call out record to manors across the UK, driven by all the energy the best Lil Jon crunk anthem could possibly muster. The single received love on stations including Galaxy, kiss 100, Choice and 1 Xtra before getting its chart release in October 2005.
Since then Pyrelli’s been steadily cranking up his output. He released his album, Tha Organ G, collaboration with producer Dat G Gav, in Spring 2005, before featuring on albums by Tim Westwood (Heat & X), mixtapes by Dj Semtex (Crunk & Grime), and the Run The Roads 2 compilation cd. On top of that came appearances on U.K. remixes of Mario’s Let me love you, Ludacris’ 1 spot, and Young Jeezy’s Go Crazy as well as collaborations with Kardinal Offishall (The Teacher) and New Zealander Scribe, (Not Many rmx).
Listening to Pyrelli’s records reveals an artist who deeply values his roots. Yet despite being a self-confessed hip-hop nut, he is still very much a follower of the pre-rap school:
“I’m a big fan of the funk – like the Cameo era,†he explains “That to me is where it’s at! And coming further down from that is the reggae. Both my parents are Rastafarian so growing up that was the only thing playing in the house. The roots and Culture or Revival so that’s a part of me as well.â€
Whether under the guise of Tha Organ G or Tha Instigator, it seems to be Pyrelli’s destiny to continue representing for both the heads and the commercial listeners.
The album entitled “Vitamin A: A Twist Of Fateâ€, is due for release in late 2007, via a joint venture between Judgement Ent (Pyrelli and Dat G Gav’s independent label) and All City Music.
When asked about the title of the album Pyrelli says, “…..this album Twist of Fate is an album of two halves, that’s why I called it A Twist Of Fate. It deals with the street sides of things, but also the more commercial side of me too. I like gangsta-music, that’s a part of what I do, but I also like stuff that I can dance to as well.†With the 2006 smash hit Pre Vitamin Nerves cd behind him, it would seem that the Lazyboy isn’t so tyre’d after all.
