Chef Papa Sean
(edited 7/4/2014)
With a passion for his craft that is unmatched and a delivery that is unequalled it is fair to say that Sean Blaze is no ordinary rapper.
Having been born in Leicester and raised in Antigua, Sean Blaze’s journey has been anything but ordinary. Sean has been involved in music from a tender age. He would regularly perform at talent shows and write songs. Despite the Caribbean sounds of reggae and calypso playing a prominent role in Sean’s formative years, his true musical love for hip-hop was discovered during his early teenage years. His love affair with the genre began when his brother, with whom Sean enjoys a close relationship, introduced him to the magical work of The Fugees. Having been enchanted by the work of Wyclef Jean, Lauryn Hill and Pras Michel, Sean decided to expand his knowledge of the genre by watching BET and MTV religiously on Antiguan television.
“Being raised in the Caribbean I listened to a lot of different kinds of music, mainly reggae and calypso. I got into hip-hop in my early teens. I probably wrote my first rap when I was 14. I knew I had a talent but never took it seriously.“
Sean’s talent for rapping only began to flourish upon his family’s return to the UK in early 2000; when he met, Jai Deezy. The pair immediately struck up a good rapport, and Jai introduced Sean to the thriving Garage and Grime scene by taking him to raves. It was at those high energy, fun-filled nights that Sean was able to familiarise himself with the UK music scene at the time and develop his skills as a lyricist.
After some words of encouragement from Jai, Sean started MCing alongside Jai, and together they formed the Inferno Crew. The group gained notoriety around their local area and in a short space of time word had spread about their talent. Soon after they were performing at events throughout the country.
“I kind of gravitated to the music. I was doing everything; rap, grime, whatever beat you put on I would have some bars for it. I was really just working around my craft at this time. Even though I messed with other genres, rap was still my preference.“
Sean then headed to university to study Business and Marketing, but music was never far from his mind. In a favourable twist of fate Sean ended up rooming with Alex, the brother of BBC Radio 1Xtra DJ Twin B. Through this he was able to form acquaintances with a number of people in the industry, including Kingsley Slater, who owned South London based independent record label, World Records that specialised in producing mixtapes. Sean’s exceptional talent meant that he was featured on one of the label’s mixtapes and the label were so impressed with his debut that he was asked to feature on a number of different compilation CDs for DJs around London including DJ Paleface (Crazy Cousins) and Twin B (Split Mic) .
“I think my delivery differentiates me. I construct my lyrics so it feels like a beat is playing, even if you hear it acapella.”Sean also has a strong interest in video production. He combined his love for music with his hobby to film interviews with artists, who have since gone on to be successful like BET Award-nominated Grime artist Ghetts, and a number of rap freestyles on a DVD titled, ‘Blaze TV.’ Sean believes that the skills he acquired whilst studying Business and Marketing are responsible for him having an eye for talent.
Before moving back to Luton in 2007, Sean’s growing reputation as a respected songwriter resulted in him being approached to write songs for a couple of prominent independent labels.
He then linked up with Grime legend, Lowdeep and long-term collaborator, Jai Deezy. The trio connected musically and decided to form a group called, Audio Pusha Men. For the next four years the group recorded a diverse catalogue of music and collaborated with artists from around the country including Stayfresh and Lady Leshurr . They were creating music of such high quality that they received interest from independent and major labels, which resulted in them signing a publishing deal in 2011. After fulfilling their contractual obligations, the trio decided to focus on individual projects.
“We still work together as a group but we’ve all had solo stuff that we’ve wanted to do. We’re still a team though.”
Having spent over a decade honing his skills, learning the industry and mastering his craft, Sean Blaze is ready to unleash his solo debut mixtape, “Chef Papa Sean”, in April 2013. As the past decade has proven, Sean Blaze does not do half measures and he has put everything into creating a collection of tracks from the perspective of the ‘average cool person.’
“It has been cooking for a while. Like a chef uses different flavours, I’m very diverse with what I put into my music. I wanted to give an insight into the kind of music I make and show them the range that I have as far as my ability to give you a different vibe with each song. Every line and lyric is crafted, I don’t put it together for the sake of it. I made this for everybody’s playlist ”
Like its creator, ‘Chef Papa Sean’ is not ordinary
ChefPapaSean video link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMBbHQn7u3o
Mixtape link
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