Success is sugar-sweet for Flo Rida
Success is sugar-sweet for Flo Rida
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Monday, 11, May 2009 09:02
From sifting through rubbish, taking cross-country bus trips and working in construction, to selling millions, earning Grammy and People's Choice award nominations and topping the charts around the world, life has changed quickly for Flo Rida (or Tramar Dillard, as his mother knows him).
But while he's likely to grab yet another number one with his new single Sugar - which features the unmistakeable hook of Eiffel 65's Blue - it was a long way to the top for Flo Rida. An initial break as the hype man for Miami rappers 2 Live Crew failed to bear fruit and forced the aspiring rhymester to take "some of the bummiest jobs" until relentless self-promotion paid off and he became one of the most popular artists in the world.
Lewis Bazley gets Low with the Grammy nominee with the biggest selling digital download ever.
The new single Sugar, samples Eiffel 65's Blue - how do you know when a sample is going to work with a track?
Definitely - if I feel the soul of a record makes the production, there's definitely a way of knowing if it's gonna be at least a record that you could bump in the club. We just shot the video, you can see that soon.
For now - take a look at a live rendition of the track, featuring Wynter, below:
The album's called R.O.O.T.S. (Routes Of Overcoming The Struggle) and talks about your journey to the top - did you MC from a young age?
Most definitely. My mom also taught me to put God first, dream big, have faith - no pain, no gain. So I had terrible jobs where I was digging through trash on a conveyor belt just to find silverware, but I was always thinking of little ideas to put towards my music career. For the most part, I performed around town with my crew, put out a lot of mixtapes, got a lot of notoriety and I took the initiative to branch off and do my own thing.
Was it a difficult time?
Sure, I went to California one time on a Greyhound [bus] trip [from Florida], it took three days. I got there, went to the mall and threw my bag on the shelf in the bus. I came back after an hour or so and couldn't see my bag, so went into a gas station to ask the clerk what happened and he said 'They called a bomb threat!'
When you toured with 2 Live Crew at 21, did you think that'd be a stepping stone to success?
Sure, it definitely motivated me to get my own spot.
But you spent a few years in LA, promoting yourself - did you ever think of giving up?
Not at all. I just wanted to work with people and get a bigger and bigger name, so everything was just a stepping stone.
And now you've got, with Low, the biggest selling digital single of all time, with 4.5 million downloads - when did you release the song had become a global smash?
When I just started travelling around the world. Being able to go to the UK, or Japan, or wherever, that'd definitely let me know how big the song was.
Do you still see the song getting a reaction in clubs?
Oh yes, ladies run to the dancefloor when this record comes on, it's always great to watch!
Where do you place yourself among today's rappers? Are you a straight rapper or a pop artist?
I'm definitely a rapper but at the same time, I just love music. You look at a group like Outkast, they always improvised and brought new styles into their music, so I have try and have my own melodic style.
Right Round sampled Dead or Alive, which was a massive song in the 80s - was it a song you knew well already?
Most definitely, just growing up in the household, I heard all kinds of music and that was one of the tracks. But at the same time, doing this record, my A & R brought it to my attention and we just made history.
Kesha featured on Right Round and you've already collaborated with several artists - who else are you really keen to work with?
Outkast, Beyonce, I'd definitely love to work with them.
And you did a record with Lady GaGa as well?
Yeah, it's called Starstruck, it's on her album.
Another artist you worked with was Chris Brown - the pair of you recorded a track called Sweat for R.O.O.T.S. - was that cut from the album because of his court case?
No, what happened was, we were trying to work out the differences for the tracklisting and I had other records that I wanted to go on the album too, but we had a deadline so that's basically why it didn't make the album. Maybe we'll do something else in the future.
Finally, you've talked about your aspirations to emulate people like 50 Cent and Ice Cube, who are rappers and also businessmen. Both of them have also moved into acting, so is that something you've thought about?
Yeah, most definitely. I've got a clothing line, look forward to that coming out by the end of this year, and I'm thinking about movies, and getting my country boy thing on the big screen.
What about playing Mr T in the new A-Team movie?
I don't know about Mr T, nah!
Lewis Bazley
Sugar featuring Wynter is released on May 18th and R.O.O.T.S is out now.