1. Sorry for calling so early, what are you up to at the moment?
Right now I’m preparing for my trek up Mount Snowdon for charity with some mates on Wednesday. I’m a bit scared – we’re doing the hardest route, which is six hours and it’s normally done in the summer. But we’re not idiots and I’m in reasonable shape. We’ve raised just over a thousand pounds in a week so I’m pretty pleased.
2. Which charity is it for?
The Institute of Cancer Research, everyone else is not shaving for a month, but I already do that.
3. It sounds like a good break from all the hard work you’ve been doing lately.
Yeah I’ve also been working on preparing for my upcoming Spoken Word Tour with Kate Tempest and Polarbear.
4. Where did you get the idea to do it?
After Latitude, I realised the majority of my fan base haven’t actually seen me do spoken word and that’s where I come from.
5. Are you looking forward to it?
I’m also really excited because these guys are really at the top of their game and it’s very rare that you’ll ever see them perform spoken word in the same set. They are some of the best spoken word artists around and they just blow my mind.
6. How did you meet Kate and Polarbear?
Me and Polarbear are sort of the haggard old veterans of the spoken word scene now whereas Kate got involved a bit after us. She really is an incredible performer and great to work with.
7. It’s interesting to see spoken word poets like Kate put their work to music. Did you start writing your poetry for music or just for performance as slam?
Music was my passion long before I got into spoken word. When I started writing I found I generally wrote in a rhythmic nature that lends itself well to music. Really, it was a natural transition for me to make from poetry to rap.
8. Do you prefer performing spoken word or music gigs?
They both have their pros and cons. The spoken word stuff is always more intimate. Having said that, I love performing music as well and it tends to be more popular. Really I just feel lucky that I get to do both.
9. Do you enjoy performing at the summer festivals?
I love running my spoken word event at Bestival. Mainly because I get to choose and book all the artists myself so I know I only have the best.
10. How did that go?
It’s a bit off the beaten track so I’m always surprised by the number of people who turn up. Every year I say to myself, “oh it’ll be quiet because there’s so many good bands on”and every year more people turn up. I think that’s a real testament to the level of the performers.
11. Given that your poetry is written to be heard. Do you see any point in publishing your poetry?
A few years back I was repeatedly asked to publish a book. I thought publishing a book of my poetry would be a bit arrogant. I’ve never studied poetry or English Literature or anything. But when I finally agreed to publish my book – ‘Poetry in (e)motion’ – I decided to do it as graphic novel instead.
12. Why did you choose that medium?
I wanted to do something different that would act as a starting point and would engage people like myself to start reading poetry. And it even turned out to be a success, getting into Amazon’s top five graphic novels of the year, which was really overwhelming.
13. So you’re not a fan of the written word?
It’s just a personal preference. When I read poetry I tend to impose my own delivery style onto someone else’s words, which I don’t think is really fair. I think really I would always rather watch the authors themselves perform it.
14. Are there any poems that you think benefit more from being performed?
I checked out one of Niall Spooner Harvey’s books and it was cool, clearly well written, but it didn’t grab me as much as I’d hoped. Then I saw him perform his stuff live and it just blew me away.
15. How’s your record label, ‘Speech Development Records’ going?
It’s really great though it’s a bit daunting, as it’s just me really and a few people who help out. I don’t have an assistant or anything and it’s the first thing I’ve ever done properly on my own.
16. What have you released so far?
We released my first solo album ‘Distraction Pieces’ on it last year and the response was amazing.
17. Is there anyone else signed to the label? Anyone we should keep an eye on?
Our newest project is working with the artist Jacamo Brown. He’s a dude. He works in a library and he’s one of those artists who would never have gotten out there if we hadn’t twisted his arm. Finally we talked him into it and it’s a beautiful record.
18. Last year you cut off your iconic beard for a music video and sold it on eBay. How much did it go for and what did you spend the money on?
I think it went for just over £200. The money went straight into the label. It’s all about the label at the moment. Really it’s ridiculous to try and start a record label at this time in the industry.
19. What do you mean?
Illegal downloading just kills labels, they’re falling on the wayside daily. People try and excuse illegal downloading by saying that we make the money back through live gigs and merch but it really isn’t the case. The label won’t see any of that money. The small labels are the ones who care about the music and are finding the new artists. If illegal downloading continues, it’ll be the future bands that really suffer.
20. Finally, can you tell us the best piece of advice you were ever given?
When I was younger I went travelling around America on my own and tried to live out there. I failed miserably but before I left my brother said to me “when you’re hungry, eat something, when you’re tired, sleep.” I think that’s something to live by.
Scroobius Pip will be performing with Kate Tempest and Polarbear on his Spoken Word Tour at the Duchess on December 3.