M.I.C & NAMMY WAMS: YOU CAN ACHIEVE ANYTHING

The Master of Inane Conversation (M.I.C) is back from a brief hiatus, this time backed by the eclectic production palette of Nammy Wams and features from Jawnino and grime legend JME for the groundbreaking new YOU CAN ACHIEVE ANYTHING EP

"You can achieve anything" is a sentiment somewhat absent from the public consciousness at the moment. Widening wealth inequality, right-wing populism and a U.K. rife with bigotry has seen our society descend into a moral cesspit. Where no brainers like "should we feed children" or "should be combat racism" become genuine hot topics. M.I.C is well versed at holding a mirror up to society with past releases such as the hilariously (and accurately) titled You're Going To Hell If You Read The Sun released in 2016. Followed by the soul cleansing music medicine that was 2018's Heaven Is Black. A lament to the Black British condition offering a sense of hope and redemption that could quell even the current fascist hell scape we find ourselves in. You Can Achieve Anything as a musical project, manages to justify the proposition of it's title with it's excellence. Who says you can't furiously spray bars about atheism, critique late capitalism and then invite listeners to join you on Nintendo Switch? Opening track No Numbers thoroughly proves that you can achieve anything. Who says you can't interpolate your love of nu-metal on a grime track then get your hero JME and long-time partner in crime Jawnino to do it with you? Track 3 K*RN proves you can achieve anything. Track 5, The Only Perfect Place On Earth, further embarks on achieving the impossible by genuinely convincing me that North London might be world's most serene location. M.I.C's recounting of childhood memories riding bikes and picking berries with his grandma almost offsets the venom of the consistent death wishes to the opps that punctuate the rest of the project. I could easily pen an essay on the brilliance of each track individually, but they are so layered I'd prefer you listen to them for yourself and decide what you take from them. I think it'll be different for every listener. Thankfully I was lucky enough to get some thoughts from the man himself on his magnum opus.

You manage to just stop yourself short from a trademark indictment of the grime scene on this project, and instead forge a lane all your own. So being the provocateur I am I'll try and get you to do it here. How do you feel about the scene at the moment?

That’s a big compliment, man. Thank you. I don’t really know what’s going on in the scene right now. All I’ve been doing during the 9 months or so (aside from working on music) is just watching cartoons/anime, working out and listening to music outside of grime for the most part. I think that’s how I wanna keep things going for the foreseeable. I find that I’m sharpest artistically when I’m not constantly wading in the figurative mire that is “grime scene discourse”. I obviously love the music, but I’ve spoken about it to death now. I guess something I would really appreciate is if grime musicians started releasing really great albums. Maybe that’s why I kinda have nothing to say about the scene right now.

How did working with JME come about and what was it like working with one of your idols?

I’d planned on getting him involved on another project but things didn’t happen at the right time but our schedules just happened to perfectly converge during the recording for this mixtape. Working with him was wicked; the guy has a vitality I have not seen in many people in life, let alone music.

Your disdain for Christianity is a consistent theme throughout the project. Are you anti-religion in general and if so why did you want to portray this in music?

I am absolutely anti religion in a general sense, with the main object of my vehemence being Christendom. I wanted to express my affinity for atheism in this music mainly because its just so rare; I hear so many rappers constantly talk about Christ and shit in their music. Conversely, very few rappers ever even talk atheism or even agnosticism. Christians are very vocal about their beliefs everyday, so I just thought “why shouldn’t I be vocal?”. May I remind anyone that thinks that I’m being too offensive to Christianity that the church advanced the cruelty of slavery to grander heights than humankind had seen prior! Don’t be mad at me, be mad at that. 

The project's title feels optimistic and hopeful, somewhat contrasting the state of the U.K. Where do you draw hope and optimism from?

I honestly don’t know what I even draw hope from... maybe from anime/manga characters. Guts, the main character of “Berserk”, definitely inspires me to stay motivated. The series is very tragic and horrific things happen to the protagonist but he always stays focused and pushes forward. Aside from that, my hope for a future where Christianity disappears from the world keeps me optimistic, I guess.

You recently penned an article about Black artist's contribution to Shoegaze. Your own music is quite genre transcending at times. Do you make a concerted effort to break boundaries sonically or does it happen naturally?

Again, thank you! Yes, I always make a concerted effort to break boundaries, in terms of genre. All my musical heroes did that theme delve in some respect and I feel privileged to be able to do that in my own art.

Article by Martyn Ewoma

Photography by Vicky Grout

Follow M.I.C on Instagram, Twitter and Spotify

Follow Nammy Wams on Instagram, Twitter  and Spotify

Listen to You Can Achieve Anything below

KEEP UP WITH US ONLINE

TWITTER - INSTAGRAM