The World is Falling for Loyle Carner, But His Brother Still Won’t Go to the Movies with Him

When Benjamin Gerard Coyle-Larner was a kid, he'd often mispronounce his own hyphenated surname because of his dyslexia. Coyle-Larner became Loyle-Carner. And there you have one of the sweetest origin stories in rap.

Croydon's Loyle Carner is something else: honest, affectionate, funny. An actor, an artist, a cook. By all accounts, somebody who really enjoys living, and it really shows. When we meet at the National Gallery in Melbourne, we wander around for fifteen minutes before taking up residence on the floor of a room with a stained glass ceiling, where we talk about Harry Potter, The Fast and The Furious, and anchovies on toast. All the important stuff.

Welcome to Australia.
Thank you for having me.

We're in the NGV. What's your favourite thing you've seen?
The photo of the old lady on the chair in the floral t-shirt, by William Eggleston. I think it was his aunt on his dad's side, that he never sees. I really like that. And I liked that chair that looked like a killer whale.

Was the Bill Henson stuff a bit goth for you?
Yeah, yeah. I don't know, it wasn't my cup of tea. I really liked the landscape stuff. What is it that you liked about it so much?

I like how no one else can seem to take a photo of human skin like that… How it looks like it's been spray-painted silver almost.
I'll give you that. That's okay.

Thank you so much. Did you ever make art or study art?
I was quite into fine art at secondary school, when I was like sixteen. I did a lot of still life stuff, but photography I was never very good at. I can appreciate it, but I can't do it. My photos are really really shit. Don't capture anything interesting.

It's a lot harder than it looks.
Tell me about it. I've got a few friends who are really, really good, especially with a disposable. They're brilliant at capturing things, and capturing them how it looks for them. Showing what you see.

Yeah, you forget that you have to stop enjoying the moment. I'd rather be in it than take a photo of it, I always forget to take photos.
Yeah, exactly. I can't do that. I'd rather get on with it and talk about it the next day, rather than take a photo.

So then I guess your best art would be songwriting.
Possibly, yeah. Either that or food. I think food might be the best art I can make.

What's your signature dish? What do you cook to impress people?
I don't know, it changes every day. I'm cooking a lot of greek food at the moment. I made this Korean meal called bibimbap. It kind of looks like prison food but it's wicked, and it's very good for you. The kimchi's good for your blood.

This I've heard.
You should try it definitely. It's just cabbage innit, but it can be fermented over years and years.

Thousand year eggs: do you like them?
No.

Deviled eggs?
What are they?

I don't know. I thought they were an English thing.
I've heard of them, but I've never had them.

What's the best breakfast then?
Anchovies on toast. That's what I had for breakfast today. It's easy. You make a chilli and garlic butter—which is just putting butter in a pan with chilli and garlic—then put some anchovies on toast and put the melted butter over it. Crunch it and eat it. Feel better.

Damn… Do you cook a lot on tour?
I try to but I don't really get the chance because we're usually in hotels.

You're staying in a great spot for food. There's a really good Korean grocer near you, then a really good Spanish and Southern American food store as well.
Yeah I've got to go there. We're going to Groovin' the Moo tomorrow so I'll go before that.

Groovin' the Mooo!
Yeah! Mooooo! It's fuckin' sick.

What was the first festival you ever went to?
I went to a festival called Camp Bestival. I was like 16, it was the only festival I ever went to as a punter. I went with my friends, got really, really drunk, don't remember much. I've never really gone to festivals. Not that I don't like camping, I just don't like crowds.

There are way too many people. The idea of Coachella to me is like, the seventh circle of hell. It's far too many people.
Yeah it's not cool, man. I played Glastonbury the year before last and I took my mum, and that was cool. We camped for the whole thing and got to see Kanye West with my mum. But it's a lot of people.

Shut it down. Although, if it didn't exist… where else would we get to see Kate Moss in gumboots each year?
Exactly. Serves a purpose.

Do you remember what the first record you ever bought was?
Yeah, I bought Be by Common. I bought that and I bought a bootleg version of a D12 compilation. And Ludacris' Red Light District. I bought them all at the same time.

Luda.
Luda.

Have you seen the new Fast the Furious yet?
No, I haven't! I was meant to, I was gonna take my little brother but I bought tickets and he said he didn't want to go. If was for his birthday, and he was like "I'd rather just go somewhere with my girlfriend."

Kind of fair, you were trying to cockblock him.
Yeah, I was. He wasn't having it.

I'm glad you fuck with The Fast and The Furious though. Greatest franchise of all time.
I wouldn't say that.

No, it is.
Haha. The first couple were really good. I think I started watching them because of Ludacris.

I think that's part of what made them so good, that they gave rappers real movie roles. Like lead roles, not supporting roles or cameos.
Yeah, a lot of the rappers I like have done some acting. Common's an actor now. Andre 3000, Mos Def.

Mos Def is a ridiculously good actor.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. He's good at most things.

A genius really. Probably one of those people who's been alive for 700 years and is just like, here to help people out.
I actually believe that.

Fast and The Furious, they're going to make 10. Would you be in Fast and The Furious 10 ?
Yeah I'd do it. Yeah definitely.

Vin Diesel or The Rock?
The Rock, obviously.

Jason Statham or Vin Diesel?
Jason Statham.

What was the last movie you saw and wept at?
Harry Potter. I watched it I think all of them on the plane on the way over here and I cried when Dobby died.

All of them? That's a long flight.
Well it is a fuckin' long flight, innit?

Haha, yeah, it really is.
RIP Dobby. I just went to see the play with my mum and my brother but I only got to see half of it because I got a really bad allergic reaction. There's like two plays, so we watched the matinee and then went for food at this place and just got really sick. Went home.

Damn, that is not fair. Where does your family live?
With me, in my house, in South Croydon.

How big's your kitchen?
It's really big actually, we knocked a wall through the kitchen and dining room to make it open plan. You still have to face away though, you can cook into the room which I don't like.

The Naked Chef style.
Yeah exactly, exactly, because otherwise you don't know who's gonna creep up on you. Haha, I love that that's the reason.
Man you never know! You have to be careful.