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A Matter Of Pride - Pique / PQ |
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Written by Crate Digger
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Wednesday, 25 April 2001 |
Fans of hip hop often find themselves having to decipher the Ebonics,
ghetto grammar and street slang that’s contained in rappers’ lyrics.
However, it’s more
unusual to have to reach for a dictionary in order to understand the
meaning behind an
emcee’s moniker.
‘Pique’ is a word of many meanings, from ‘having pride in oneself’ to
‘arousing curiosity’. It is also the tag chosen by a promising South London
rapper. 20-year-old Pique (a.k.a. PQ & Lost Image), is already living up to his name,
by making an immediate impact on the scene with his love of aliases and the 5-star review
his recent debut EP ‘Shadows in the Darkness’ received in Hip Hop Connection
magazine. He also possesses an unwavering confidence in his own abilities.
As an affiliate of the Stone Circle rap-crew, Pique joined the Social Misfits
Entertainment roster when its head, Sir Prestige, uncovered PQ’s talent at a
Borderline rap showcase. “My bredrin Manifest was doing a stage show with Stone
Circle,” Pique recalls as we sit for a quick bite to eat in one Clapham’s many
fast food restaurants. “Just before they went on stage, they were doing a freestyle
session in an alleyway. Cos I was in the middle of them, the mic came to me. I didn’t
pass it, I just kicked a verse and they liked it. Then, when Manifest and Stone Circle
went onto the Social Misfits label I went with them, but as a solo artist.”
PQ has been rapping since the early 1990’s when he used to spit freestyle raps about
whatever he saw while riding on the bus or walking to school. For him, it was the clearest
way that he found to express his views. He states “I only chat the truth. So if
something in society is in a certain way, that’s gonna come out in my rhymes.
I’ve got things in my brain that I’m dealing with then they’re gonna come
out. If it’s real, then I’ll deal with it. If it ain’t real, I don’t
really touch it.”
Pique’s unique rapping style is full of intricate rhyming-patterns; and so having
spent some of his teens in the US studying and battling local emcees, does he feel that
that experience has influenced his style?
“From the fact of seeing more of the world – different things from different
angles, I would say yeah, “ he answers, “cos it gave me a wider horizon to look
at. But in another sense, no, ‘cos I came back after three years in America and still
kept my accent and there are bare people that go out there and they don’t really keep
their accent.” He adds, “Then there are people who haven’t even been out
there and ain’t kept their English accent. When I was battling cats out there, I was
battling in my accent, with my rhymes. I didn’t try and pretend nothing. I just went
as I was and people appreciated it.”
His time spent on the other side of the Atlantic has obviously given PQ belief and pride
in his rhyming ability; and having immersed himself in the hip hop scene over there
without losing his British identity, Pique fails to understand why other UK emcees go out
of their way to cultivate a fake American accent. “There are wack emcees over there
and wack emcees here. So if somebody thinks they’re gonna break the market by coming
with a fake accent, they’ve gotta realise – if they’re wack, they’re
wack and their fake accent is just gonna make things even worse. People are gonna listen
to them and think ‘there’s someone over there in America that really has that
accent that is wack and I’m not gonna listen to them. So, why would I listen to
you?!!!’”.
So PQ rhyme-philosophy is simple: “I hate to say it, but, I keep it real!” he
declares. “I’m just on it – saying it as I see it. I’m not lying,
I’m not putting on a false accent; and on top of that, my flow is there. I
didn’t steal no-one’s style or trying to rap like someone else. My rhymes are on
point - it’s something you need to listen to. I’ve got some of the best lyrics
you’ll ever come across and it’s all original.”
Earlier this year, Pique released on promo his seven-track debut effort for Social Misfits
Entertainment: ‘Shadows in the Darkness’. “The plan for my EP was just to
get my name out there. It was so that when I drop the LP or a 12”, people won’t
be like ’Who’s he? I’ve never heard of him!’,” PQ explains.
“I was just itching to drop science. I had them rhymes at the ready and just said to
Sir Prestige ‘gimme some beats’. I took the best beats from the ones that I
heard, rapped over them, put the EP out and said ‘boy, people must take notice of
something from this!’”
Despite a complimentary review of his EP in Hip Hop Connection, PQ is still very critical
of his debut release. “In the beginning, I thought the EP was kinda average,” he
admits. “But after a while, I could appreciate every tune. If you get the EP and
listen to it, you can see that if someone owned the record they’d eventually like
every tune for what it is. They’re not the best beats to go to them rhymes but they
go to them in the way they need to – they still get the message across.”
Though some of the feedback on his EP has been mixed, PQ is un-phased by the variety of
opinions that have been expressed. “The general response has been that a lot of
people are feeling it and a lot of people that aren’t feeling it, aren’t feeling
it because of the production. But then, others love the production. So I guess it shows
that we’ve all got different opinions.”
Pique is grateful to Prestige for giving him the opportunity to display his lyrical
skills, but PQ is also keen to spread his wings and work with other producers. However,
like many other new acts, Pique has been frustrated by the lack of opportunities there are
in the homegrown rap scene to develop his reputation. “Radios don’t really wanna
play my EP,” he states. “I can understand that ‘cos every tune is not for
everyone. But I would still say that if not every tune, most tunes on the EP are at least
playable - especially when you hear what does get played.” He adds “ Some DJs
don’t wanna play it cos they’ve got their own agenda; a lot of magazine people
don’t wanna hear it; and certain people don’t wanna work with you cos
you’re new – which I really don’t understand. I think I could have got a
lot more exposure.”
So while he waits for certain people to come to their senses, PQ is concentrating on
promoting himself through other means. “I got a little something from Hip Hop
Connection and I’ve got something coming up with a next underground magazine. So
things are working out now. But really, if it wasn’t for the Internet, the EP
wouldn’t really have come across as it has. That’s where I had to start so that
people could see that the record was out. Now, more people can hear it – I’ve
got it on the Peoplesound web site.”
Now that Pique has started to get a piece of the spotlight, he is already planning his
next move. “The EP was just there for you to absorb it. I just gave you the
appetiser, but now I’ve got some hotter shit in the works waiting to come out,”
he says. “I wanna save my LP for when people will appreciate it. I want people to go
out and get it because they know it’s hot. So I’m thinking of dropping a
12” next.”
With a very promising future ahead of him, PQ is determined to leave his mark on British
hip hip and earn the esteem of his peers. “Every true emcee just wants to see
themselves recognised a one of the best emcees around, whether it’s in America, the
UK, France, Japan, whatever,” he concludes. “That’s where I wanna see
myself soon - getting the respect I deserve.”
C.D.
‘Shadows in the Darkness’ EP is currently available on Social Misfits
Entertainment.
PQ is also featured on the forthcoming ‘Sir Prestige presents… Social
Misfits’ LP and at the end of May he will be performing at a show organised by the
Big Smoke magazine.
Email:
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http://socialmisfits.tripod.com
http://www.peoplesound.com/artist/pq
http://www.bigsmokelive.com
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