A.M. Trouble Man Strikes Gold
The first release from fledgling London-based label Uprise Music has been announced and Andi McErnest has emerged as their inaugural artist. It marks yet another pinnacle in the astonishing rise for the artist, having risen from a British/Nigerian upbringing split across two continents to becoming the London-based entrepreneur and writer and performer he is today.
Known best under his moniker ‘A.M’ (or A.M. Trouble Man), he spent his formative years in Nigeria, only to lose his father at a young age, understandably a major influence on his life. Finding solace in writing poetry, A.M’s natural aptitude for rhythm and rhyme had caught the attention of local music producers who were eager to expand his talent into their field. By 2003, still a year before finishing high school, A.M. already had an array of demos catching the ears of interested labels, though it was at this time he relocated to London, where his groundwork really began to pay off.
Signing to Titans Entertainment, he released the underground rap track “Chasing Paper” under the name Authentiq (Andi is a master of the name change!) whilst at the same time becoming a serious player in the world of business, both in England and Nigeria, putting music on the back-burner but never losing sight of his goals. Moving on from Titans Entertainments, he re-emerged in 2015 under his own management company in Lagos, releasing his debut single “IMAKA” (You Are Beautiful) prod. by P2J, prompting a serious frenzy on the social media networks and blogs.
Follow-up tracks saw him work with celebrated producers Leriq (Aristokrat Records) and E Kelly (Mr Eazi) and whilst underground hits in Nigeria continued to build his reputation, it has been his full-time return to London last year which has seen him team up with Uprise Music, the ideal platform for him to hit mass audiences.
Babe Ur Cool
http://www.theupriseworld.com/artist/andi-mcernest/
His lead track is Babe Ur Cool, an absolute stormer of a track which both showcases A.M’s syrupy, laconic style as well as the volcanic Uprise house-style, fusing hip-hop with Brazilian (Baile) Funk and Kuduro, as well as elements of the UK’s own grime scene. The end result is a fully-formed electro-funk-rap sound which is bursting at the seams with crackling rhythms and stabbing bass lines, which recall artists as varied as Faithless, Afrobeat God, Fela Kuti, and Kendrick Lamar. A stunning first release on the label and a statement of intent form Andi which is not to be ignored.
http://www.theupriseworld.com/