MC Flipside

PBR Recordings, Hatrax

2008.09.16 ::: Words by Andrew Reid

Canada’s most globally-recognized MC may have flipped his identity, but fans continue to flip for him by the thousands; as MIC Perri’s worldwide reputation starting in the hip hop arena is well on its way to matching his legendary status as one of the most respected and sought-after MCs in dance club history.

Reinventing himself in his true passion, Perri is hard at work with the most visionary producers, musicians and rappers who share his desire to define the future of hip hop, building a sound designated as Electro-Hop; a fusion of electro, urban and pop-music.

His current album “Mind Control” is a testament to that vision of “next”. It features club bangers like "Got Me Freakin' Out", produced by the acclaimed producer Disco D (50 Cent, Trick Daddy, Nina Sky); "Have A Nice Day" produced by the eccentric and futuristic Ghettoblaster team; and a gamut of other hits in the making that push the club hip hop and pop music envelope lyrically, musically and emotionally. He is now working on a forthcoming album due out in the fall of 2008.

Perri has been invited to headline alongside a who’s who of hip hop / pop royalty, including: Black Eyed Peas, Run DMC, Wu Tang Clan, De La Soul, KRS 1, Sir Mix A Lot, Dee Lite, D12, and Mos Def. As MC Flipside he has toured the world several times, igniting the scene in countries such as Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Puerto Rico, Japan, Hong Kong, Germany, Italy, England and most recently Croatia

He is also building PBR Recordings, which he started in 2007 with partner Carlo Cina. PBR has been from the start a very successful project, quickly becoming one of Canada’s most recognized house-music labels.

Flipside’s amazing career spans over a decade, back to the golden age of the hip hop and club scenes of the mid-90s. In 1996, he gained the distinction of being the only vocalist/ MC to ever host a show on commercial radio in Canada, the paradigm-shifting “Trippin’ on Energy” on Toronto’s Energy 108. The success of the show led to a 3-CD deal with Warner subsidiary Stickman/Popular, with “Trippin’ on Energy Vol. 1” selling over 5,000 copies. It also led to Flipside’s first cross-Canada tour. By the following year, “Trippin’ on Energy” had become the number one Saturday night FM radio program in Canada amongst the 16- to 21 demographic; and “Trippin’ on Energy Vol. 2” sold over 6,000 units nationally. 1998 also saw Flipside begin a legendary run as host of CLUB 108, rocking crowds of over 2,000 ecstatic clubbers every Thursday night.

In 1999, Flipside began releasing original productions and remixes with partner Paranoid Jack; on labels such as Stickman, Jinxx, Aquarius and IHR. These vinyl singles gained support from heavyweights such as: DJ Dan, Frankie Bones, Antoine Clamaran, Josh Wink, Bad Boy Bill, Dave Armstrong, Donald Glaude and Roger Sanchez, who featured Flipside and Jack’s mix of “We’ll be Together on his “Mix Mag U.K. compilation.

By this time, he was touring all over North America with jungle DJ Freaky Flow, selling out venues from coast to coast. Being featured on Freaky Flow’s classic “Obscene Underground”, which sold over 20,000 units worldwide, catapulted Flipside into the global limelight. “Trippin’ on Energy Vol. 3” completed the trilogy, and became the only compilation by a Toronto MC ever to be named Best Compilation by the Montreal Mirror.

In 2000, MC Flipside spearheaded the first ever “iDance” compilation, full of politically charged messages that helped ignite the masses and eventually overturn the rave ban in the electronic music community. The Globe and Mail’s Rinaldo Walcott called Flipside’s “Strikeback” “one of the most politically influential songs in Canadian history.”

As the new millennium progressed, Flipside flat-out exploded. In 2001 he: signed with SPG/Universal to release “Sounds Of The Underground 2001”; was featured on Paranoid Jack’s “Last Of The Funky Cyborgs”, which spawned the international smash “Slave Driver” and was supported by Steve Angello, Steve Lawler, Peace Division and Deep Dish; and teamed up with Freaky Flow to produce “World Domination” on the seminal dance label Moonshine. Flipside’s now legendary “Skimpy’s Skit” went on to be downloaded over 50,000 times, and sold over 25,000 units around the world. 2002’s “Keep it Live”, another collaboration with Freaky Flow released on Moonshine, became yet another 20,000+ worldwide seller.

In 2003, he teamed with internationally acclaimed house DJ Dave Armstrong to create the disco stomper “Release The Tension”. This record becomes an underground smash, licenses all across Europe and remixed by the likes of French legend Antoine Clamaran. Another 2003 milestone was “The Scarlem Sessions” with DJ Jelo, which remains a seminal classic. A feature on Sketch and Code’s “Stop Bitchin” was a sign that Flipside’s appeal was now solidly established in the drum n’ bass scene as well.

By 2004, Flipside was working with global titans. America’s top DJ Bad Boy Bill featured Flipside’s “Release The Tension” acapella on his “Behind The Decks” compilation; and his IHR label released “Hydroponic Music”, produced by two-time Juno award winner Hatrias, on the “Illicit Activities” EP. Another Juno-nominated producer, M1, called on Flipside for the Hip House/Acid fuelled monster “Freak The Frequency”; which received heavy support from Josh Wink, Bad Boy Bill, DJ Dan, and Donald Glaude. “Freak the Frequency” was remixed by Antoine Clamaran and released in multiple countries, as well as being licensed to Sony BMG Australia.

2005 saw Flipside receive his first Juno nomination, as the M1-produced “Robopop was nominated for Best Dance Album. Also marking 2005 was his ubiquitous presence on MTV around the world; “Got You Movin” with DJ DLG was featured on the “MTV Ibiza” compilation mixed by DJ Jean (The Launch), and “Vegas” with DJ Fuse on MTV’s “Road Rules”.

Highlights of 2006 were “Elecric Boogaloo”, an electro break dance tribute with international house phenom Yves LaRock (Zookie, Rise Up); and the underground smash “Rock Da Floor” with Germany’s Dub Deluxe that was licensed to some of the biggest dance labels in the world including Blanco Y Negro, Free 2 Air, Molto, Cyber, and Sound Division.

2007 witnessed a dozen Flipside hits and the dawn of MIC Perri. The first big play for MIC Perri was from BBC Radio DJ Judge Jules for the M1 remix of “Have a Nice Day” earning support from DJ’s Armand Van Helden, Steve Porter, and Joachim Garraud. The track was also licensed to Malente’s “WHOW” mix compilation.

2008 is shaping up as his most successful yet. Already in stores one may find MC Flipside & MIC Perri via recognized compilations such as: Canada’s Finest House (Hi Bias / Warner) and Pure Dance 2008 (Universal). Canada’s Finest House also spawned the current club banger and Beatport’s #1 selling Electro single “Just The Tip". Other hits: Hatiras & MC Flipside –

“Get Blahsted”, M1 & MC Flipside “I’ll House You”, Hatiras & MC Flipside’s “Tribute” and Tune Brothers feat. MC Flipside’s “Dirty, Nasty”.

Worldwide heavies supporting the new music include: Eric Morillo, Tocadisco, Steve Angello, Josh Wink, Dj Aero, Dj Dan, Donald Glaude, Kid Massive, and Bad Boy Bill. Flipside is currently touring North America and on his way to Europe in support of “Proper Beats and Rhymes Vol. 1”, bringing his unique styles of “Hip-House” to the masses.

Nocturnal: How do you invision your dance floor and sound? Where do you draw your inspiration from?
Flipside: I envision my dance floor as a spiritual place….where people that are passionate about their music come to connect and release what’s within them on the dance floor! I draw my inspiration from the crowd’s energy and emotion of course…if the crowd is up for it then your inner energy elevates and it continues being reciprocated back and forth. The vibe and energy can truly become unforgettable at this point.

Nocturnal: Have you ever had to take a massive risk musically?
Flipside: I have taken many musical risks… I walked away from drum and bass to fulfill my dream by returning to my 2 TRUE loves House and Hip Hop. The results speak for themself. From day one House and Hip Hop have owned my heart.

Nocturnal: Your collaborations with Hatiras have been making a lot of noise of late. How do you guys work together in the studio crafting new music? Is it easier/harder working as a duo then individually?
Flipside: Thank you. Hatiras and I are truly devastating when we get together in the studio. We throw all caution to the wind and only set out to make bombs to the maximum degree. We will start by crafting a beat. We’ll both hum melodies, think of the direction... tech/electro/ghetto/fidget. Once we lay down a base I’ll start singing and freestyling to craft the hook and verse / pre-chorus/ bridge…this in turn also helps Hatiras with arrangement, the break/ build etc. Working in pairs can be tricky, I wouldn’t say it’s hard, it’s only hard if the people involved aren’t skilled with all due respect. George and I understand the process to the fullest hence why we click.

Nocturnal: What's your process in creating new music? What's your most indispensable piece of studio kit?
Flipside: My process on my own productions pretty much follows what I mentioned in the previous question. I craft the beat…sing the music parts into the MAC…build upon that foundation from there on in. My mic would be my most indispensable piece of studio gear... everything emerges from it.

Nocturnal: What forthcoming releases can we expect from you?
Flipside: I have the Rubdown Part 2 (remixed by Hatiras, Jamie Fanatic, Chris Vench), Hi Friend – with Deadmau5 which is being caned by Pete Tong, Body Snatcha by Matteo Di Marr. I am also working on my new MIC Perri album (my urban alter ego). Plus my mix album is out now on Moist Music NY (PBR VOL.1) grab it at HMV.

Nocturnal: You also run your own imprint called PBR... what can we expect to see forthcoming from the label side of things?
Flipside: PBR- proper beats and rhymes / proper beats and rhythms… We have some great music coming out in the next few months. Music from Jamie Fanatic, Joey Seminara and Danny Nagels, Chris Vench, Dirt Caps, Defunct, Twocker, Retrovox and many more. PBR will lean towards the phat fidget side of house as well as sexy thick tech house (which I adore).

Nocturnal: Canadian talent has been making huge waves internationally as of late. In your opinion what other home-grown producers out there are really pushing boundaries or making a big impact on our scene for 2008 and beyond?
Flipside: Canadians have always been making dents in electronic music, PERIOD! In my mind at the moment there are many from Hatiras, Deadmau5, FPS, Adam K, JELO, Mstrkrft, Jason Hodges, Sydney Blu…the list goes on and on.

Nocturnal: As the digital revolution continues to dominate, how do you see it impacting our industry going forward?
Flipside: The digital revolution has been good to me so I’ll try and answer this without my bias. The net has helped made it easier for artists to take control of their careers and reclaim ownership over their creations and passion. The downside is the CD will soon be obsolete and file sharing continues to run rampant making it difficult to earn money from digital sales (unless you have hits). The digital world has also made it more difficult to find GOOD music because there is so much BS that you need to filter out before finding that gem. You know things are changing when the majors start collecting monies off of artists merchandise sales due to poor CD sales, up until recently that was unheard of... I am sure you can fill in the blanks. The strong will survive once the dust settles. Consider this time in digi-sales as major growing pains…lol!

Nocturnal: Are you hip on the whole laptop DJ thing... or do you prefer those who do it physically?
Flipside: I prefer to play with a physical set up... DECKS, MIC, MIXER... Period.

Nocturnal: Where can people catch you in the next little while?
Flipside: I am touring to promote my new CD, as well as my singles… Upcoming dates in California, Croatia, Holland, more US cities and a Canadian Tour.

Nocturnal: Lastly here are some quick shots:
Nocturnal: Tell us something you’ve never told an interviewer before?
Flipside: I am a foodie and I’d love to be a guest on Hell’s Kitchen!.
Nocturnal: House or techno?
Flipside: House or Techno…IT DEPENDS…I lean towards house ;).
Nocturnal: Sunset or sunrise?
Flipside: Sunrise… new day.
Nocturnal: Favourite travel destination for performing?
Flipside: I love any major European centre/city to gig in… so much to do and see and experience.
Nocturnal: Most indispensable item you travel with?
Flipside: My passport.
Nocturnal: Favourite thing to do when returning from a long tour?
Flipside: I like to take 2 to three days off after a tour and get a massage, go to the lake, and SLEEP!
Nocturnal: Favourite travel destination for vacation?
Flipside: I love to vacation everywhere… honestly, but I tend to lean towards Europe.
Nocturnal: After a late night at the club, what do you do to unwind?
Flipside: I head home or to the hotel and watch a movie and drink a hot tea.
Nocturnal: Who's your most treasured relationship with?
Flipside: My most treasured relationship is with my family and the universe (I am very spiritual).
Nocturnal: Most emotional song for you of all time?
Flipside: I have too many songs to list when it comes to those which affect me emotionally… any proper R&B (John Legend, Robin Thicke, Maxwell) and Muse’ music tends to open me up!
Nocturnal: Single greatest moment from your career?
Flipside: Everyday I wake up and music, my passion, is my career…I live that great moment every day!

::: Related Links

::: www.mcflipside.com

::: www.myspace.com/mcflipside

::: www.pbrrecordings.com

::: PBR Recordings @ Beatport.com

::: BUY Hi Friend @ Beatport.com