Pursuit Press & Ones Clothing Present: David Dallas

Embodying everything we stand for here at The Pursuit, David Dallas is an artist who studied his craft, does what he loves and does it well. Stepping out into the spotlight, his first album Something Awesome took over iTunes and jumped straight to the number one spot. Not slowing down, the man who used to be known as Con Psy has recently toured the States, Austalia and of course New Zealand, so we asked him for a quick minute to see how he’s dealing with people finally recognising his talent.
You’ve gotten recognition from one of the biggest rappers and producers alive, Kanye West. How does it feel to have your work recognised by him?
Wicked. I’ve been a big fan of him since the Blueprint. When I first started to write my own raps a lot of the first beats I wrote to were Kanye instrumentals – Scarface – “Guess who’s back”, Kweli – “Good to you” etc. I’m still a big fan of what he’s doing as an artist and I feel like he’s probably the most consistent dude out there, especially as far as hip hop goes. So yeah, it’s great.
The Smoking Section is one of the most credible online sites for breaking new artists, and they picked up on you quite quickly. Kanye then followed. How has support from such legitimate hip hop heads helped propel your success overseas?
Support from them and the other blogs is pretty much everything. Without them no-one outside of N.Z and a handful of people in Oz would’ve heard anything I’ve done, we’re so isolated down here. The great thing about those sites is that the music is getting to the sort of people who are receptive to the music I make. It’s way more effective than if i was to get on some big label tryna push to mainstream radio stations who’s listeners don’t even like hip hop.
Who influenced you growing up? Is there any artist in particular who influenced your style?
My favourite artists and biggest influences were/are: Snoop, Mobb Deep, Outkast, Jay and Eminem.
You used to be known as Con Psy, what was the reason for reverting to your birth name?
I’d just never introduce myself by that name, it felt ridiculous. Whoever I met I’d always be like “hey I’m
David” – so I figured if thats what I’m comfortable with, I might as well run with it.
You worked your way up, understudying and supporting other NZ artists and producers such as Scribe and P.Money. How does it feel to now be stepping out of their shadow?
It’s cool. I learnt a lot from them and had a lot of experiences I wouldn’t have had otherwise. That time has kinda given me a clear sense of where I want to go with my stuff and things that I’d like to avoid.
You’re bringing a lot of attention to NZ music, what is it that sets you apart from other local artists? Indeed, what sets you apart from other rappers worldwide?
I feel like my sound is definitely different to what’s goin on here locally. It’s soulful and organic and not really keepin with the current climate of synthy stuff that’s on the radio. But at the same time I feel like it’s a lot more melodic and poppy in the song structures and arrangement than the more underground stuff is here.
Internationally I’d say the same thing, there’s a handful of acts who are doin similar stuff but what seperates me from them is my voice and my stories/experiences.
The success of Something Awesome is going to be a hard act to follow, how do you plan to move forward with your next album?
Creatively I want to stick with the same approach I had when I made that album. Just going with what feels good and not worrying about being cool, how it’s gonna be perceived by critics, what box they’re gonna put it in etc etc. Just making some good songs that are reflective of the stuff I like.

You can keep up with the talented David Dallas here or here, and check out his upcoming shows here.
Image courtesy of David Dallas

[Via http://pursuitpressonline.com]

An Interview with Dave Reidy

Live Nude Books: On their surfaces, the stories in Captive Audience focus on the lives of performers.  Did you originally set out to write a collection on this subject?

Dave Reidy: I wrote “In Memoriam,” my imagination of a day in the life of a fictional Abe Vigoda, before any of the other stories included in the collection. Then I wrote a couple of other stories that had nothing to do with performers. But the next two stories I wrote—“Captive Audience” and “The Regular”—excited me very much and gave me the idea that my stories might be larger than the sum of their parts if they were collected around this theme of performance. I was more intentional about writing performer stories after that, but I defined “performer” broadly to include a kid who plays guitar for the girl next door and a guy who makes rock posters for an audience of three.

LNB: Do you consider/think about audience when writing a short story?

DR: I do. I find it helpful to keep in mind that the words I’m writing are for readers, and to remember that I owe those readers some challenge and satisfaction in return for the time they are spending with my work. I guess I try to give the people what they want, but I can only give it on my terms. I have to write the stories that I am most moved and best equipped to write, and I have to write them as I see fit. Visiting the imagined, half-understood expectations of an audience on a story in progress is very likely to kill it. In the end, I think a person who buys a book is buying stories, but also an author’s aesthetic. The reader is gambling that the writer will create characters and tell stories in ways that please unexpectedly, ways that the reader might not have been able to order up even if he or she had been given the opportunity to do so. It seems the best that I can do is try to create interesting, honest characters, tell inventive, accessible stories, and hope those characters and stories please and surprise an audience.

LNB: What was your strategy for ordering the stories in this collection?

DR: My editor had some strong feelings on the subject. We both wanted “The Regular” and “Thingless” to be the first two stories in the collection. We thought they set the tone for what follows. My editor insisted that “In Memoriam,” as the collection’s shortest story, should sit right in the middle, and I agreed. And I insisted that “Dancing Man” be the collection’s final story. I suspected that some of the stories in the collection would strike some readers as bleak, and I wanted the collection to end on a note of redemption—whether the redemption at the end of “Dancing Man” is real or imagined is another question.

LNB: What are you working on next?

DR: I’m working on a novel. I’m about three-fourths of the way through a first draft, which means I’ve got a long way to go before I’ve got something finished. But I’m working steadily on it, chipping away each day for an hour or so before heading into work.

LNB: What have you recently read that you’re recommending to friends and other readers?

DR: I’m only halfway through Jonathan Lethem’s Chronic City and I’m already recommending it to people. It’s fantastic. The Manhattan of Lethem’s imagination, inhabited by his exquisitely drawn characters, is even more exciting and more revealing than the Manhattan we know—even as I write this, I can’t wait to crack the book and get back there.

[Via http://livenudebooks.wordpress.com]