Costello Gets Irish Rap In Gear

There is nothing ambiguous when it comes to the end product Dublin based rapper Costello hopes to achieve with his magnanimous efforts in both his personal career and his new WorkinClass apprentice project.

Growing up under a youth blighted amongst the harsh urban areas of Dublin, Costello turned his frustration into creation when he began rapping at the age of 15. He first began imitating an American accent in his lyrics (no doubt inspired by influences such as Nas and Tupac) however as the message of originality began to dawn on the WorkinClass label he quickly averted back to fundamentals, spitting in the poetic harmony of his Dublin voice.

Now firmly established on our underwhelming Irish rap scene with his phenomenal album Illosophical, he has begun to focus his attention on the fine tuning of young up and coming rappers.

Speaking with the head of WorkinClassRecords, Dean Scurry, he admitted that most Irish rappers who show a glimmer of talent often head to London to seek the opportunities sadly denied of them here.

It became apparent as to why when Dean told me"it seems you can do there in one year what it could take 10 years here to achieve."

The reality, whilst grim, makes the work of those such as Costello all the more important. Dean did mention one particular advantage unique to Irish rap is that we possess "the privilege to explore new ground and develop our own unique sound and approach."

So far Costello has brought this philosophy to a number of collaborations with younger artist, most notably G.I, whose charismatic album Underworld I mentioned in last weeks post. 

One track anyone sincere in our countries rap prosperity should look out for, is Costello's Young Apprentice ft. G.I.

The track boasts great credentials for both teacher and mentor (if it is appropriate to refer to Costello and G.I as that) and would prick the ear of many a producer interested in what I consider a niche market in music.

There seems to be an element of 'the calm before the storm' when people mention Irish hip hop and if Costello and others like him continue their work in the field, it's only a matter of time before it erupts pleasantly in our nation's face!

Check out the track "Young Apprentice" here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=URRx1dfmyz4