Taking his queue from the Purple Wow sound of Joker and co., young dubstep upstart Mensah is showing a hell of a lot of promise with the intricate, emotional, charismatic sound of his debut EP Untitled Future Funk for local champions HENCH. Again it's a very cinematic sound that he's pushing, and with such talent displayed at such an early stage, we're confident that he'll go on to produce a hell of a lot more incredible music.
How and when were you first infected by dance music?
It was by jungle when I was in primary school. I used to go to under-18 nights and rave out when I was 10. But it was by garage at the age of about 13 that really got me serious about UK electronic dance music. My mum loved it so was always getting played in the house when I started to DJ so bought the tunes I knew.
When did you start making music / producing, and how long was it before you started making tracks that you were really happy with?
I started when I was 18 but never had enough time or good enough computer. I have not been working for over a year now so I have the time to make a lot of music. I was happy with tracks a few years ago but if I'm honest I knew they weren't ready so I waited ‘til I could play them to anyone without saying it's not finished yet!
What have been your personal favourite tracks / productions so far?
Untitled Future Funk, Pulse 80's and Digital Dreamer are by far my personal favorites so far.
Where does your name come from?
It's my real name so I guess it's from my mum.
Who would you most like to work with?
The Prodigy, Salaam Remi, Gwen Seafani, Kelis, Snoop & Ll Wayne...the list goes on…
What have you got in store for the coming months?
Well my Debut EP called Untitled Future Funk EP has just come out on HENCH. A remix of Baby D Let Me Be Your Fantasy and a few others that will be out soon. Then another release on HENCH which will feature some new tracks. And a few big things for the Autumn so keep an eye out
What can we expect from one of your DJ sets or live sets?
I play what I want to hear. I always play about 50% or more of my own stuff but I like to mix fast so I play a lot of music. Music from artists I like but from any genre...house, dubstep, drum and bass, grime, garage or whatever fits the mood.
If you weren’t a DJ/producer/artists, what would you be?
A lot richer.
Which other producers and DJs and artists do you really rate?
Really into producers like Redlight, Claude Von Stroke, Hud Mo, Von D, Joker and Instra:mental, Skream & Benga. DJ-wise, anyone who mixes up the styles.
www.myspace.com/mensahdnb