Thursday nights first interview was Twin II speaking with Prod Rage and Shakk on numerous subjects such as his background, how he has been coping over the lockdown period and being one of very few in the Skipton area that is producing Rap/Hip-Hop music.
Shakk: How did you get into it, what made you start rapping, what started that creative process?
“I come from a farm, I’m a farmers son and what kind of got me into it is Eminem. I never really listened to music and my sister used to just get the MP3 player and put random songs on, she put on the ‘Recovery’ album, I just listened to that and found it really cool so I started developing it over time practicing rap and onto hip-hop listening to Eminem, Hopsin, Logic, Kendrick (Lamar), J.Cole as well. All those guys, the lyrical rappers. I just find it interesting making stories with words.”
Shakk: Are you making your own beats as well?
“Yeah I’m making my own beats and I’m gonna start making my own videos soon. I’ve got camera equipment and stuff like that so I just get my mates to help me film it and stuff. I just find it easier doing that – I’ve been to two studios and I’ve just found it uncomfortable and a time pressure for someone else so I like doing it my own time.”
Shakk: How have you been coping through the lockdown, how has it impacted you?
“Being really kind of creative, there’s weeks or days where I was taking breaks or I felt a bit down because it didn’t help with mental health and stuff like that being locked inside all the time but I literally just went on walks and stuff and kept busy. The next phase with the music I’m trying to plan out next years songs, I’ve got quite a few recorded and I’m trying to release three EP’s next year so I’ve been working on them.”
Shakk: Have you released a full project yet or is this going to be your first when you get onto it?
“I did the ‘Mr.Winterburn’ EP and the ‘Twin Who’ EP but that was off other people beats. With the next one I’m gonna make it like a big project but split it up into three EP’s so it’s like a trilogy. A big storyline and I’m gonna get it so all the videos connect up to each other so it tells the story through the three EP’s. At the end of the day I just feel like hip-hop is story telling, you can go to some good places and dark places, say what you mean and addressing things that go on around you. I’ve written a song recently called ‘The Incident’ just talking about that, I just love how you can speak through songs.”
Shakk: What’s the scene like where your from, is there any other rappers are you collaborating with anyone?
“There’s no other rappers really, there’s a few musicians, bands. So I think I’m kinda peddling the rap scene over in Skipton at the moment, yeah for a farm boy it’s a pretty weird lifestyle.”
Shakk: Have you performed live yet or are you planning to do so with your new music?
“I’ve performed live, I’ve been down Preston, Manchester I did a bit down there, Leeds, it’s all been open minded. Next year when we get the live shows back I’ve got one, I’ve got a beat pad and what I’m doing is playing the beat on the spot and rapping so I’m trying to get that focused for next year. I’ve done some pretty weird ones.”
Shakk: What is the transition on stage and the reasoning to your name?
“I see Twin II as another character, a better story teller than me in a way. It’s like the impulse reaction I feel, when I get on stage its literally just like an impulse I switch into it. The name also originated from my hospital folder because I am twin. I went to a hospital to get a check up and the nurse was signing me in on the desk and she was looking for my name and she goes ‘ah is it Robert twin two Winterburn’ and I was like ‘yes but no but yes and I’m taking that’ so that’s how the name Twin II came about.”
Prod Rage: So where can people find your music then?
“You can find it on Spotify, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook you can find me on those places too.”
Listen to the audio for the story on the weirdest gig he has performed at as well as a few more topics in an overall great interview!
CUSH:UK 