FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Music

Annie Mac on Why British TV Desperately Needs Better Music Shows

The Word, Popworld and CD:UK are now just vaguely lol memories, historicised as low resolution clips on Daily Motion.

The presence of alternative or underground music on British television has been so absent over the last ten years, that soon it will no longer be classified as something that’s missing, instead it will just be declared as dead.

Stuff like The Word, Popworld and even CD:UK are now just vaguely lol memories, historicised as low resolution clips found only off the beaten tracks of Daily Motion, leaving merry olde England’s decaying hype man Jools Holland to hamfistedly fill Britain’s entire quota of performed music on the box. Alan Carr and Graham Norton help where they can, but unless you’ve hit two platinum albums, or have some hilarious yes-I’m-famous-but-I’m-also-a-real-person stories about how your cat did a whoopsie in the footwell of your Mercedes G Wagon, then you’ve not got a chance.

Advertisement

For all of those reasons, it’s always good to get behind any sort of British programme that tries to repair the severed ties between decent music and television. Enter Annie Mac, and her return to Launched at Red Bull Studios on Channel 4 (which you can now watch on 4OD), a show which is rekindling some fond memories of actually getting to see tomorrow’s pop kids cutting their teeth on national TV; displaying their naive but entertaining tendencies to laugh nervously, wear colourful clothes, be adorably optimistic, avoid drug references and reveal far too much in interviews.

It’s the fourth season of this late night music show - which can be credited for bringing acts like Jessie Ware, Charli XCX, Royal Blood, Joel Compass and loads more to a wider audience in the last few years - and this time round it focuses on a solid selection of 2015’s cleverest bets: Shura, George The Poet, Little Simz, Jack Garratt, Dornik, Wolf Alice and Seinabo Sey.

Little Simz at Red Bull Studios

I caught up with host and head recommendation engine Annie Mac to chat about who has the best chat, who blew her mind and why music desperately needs television.

Noisey: Yo Annie. What you doing?
Annie: Not too much. Life is good. It’s been a nice calm start to the year. You get a chance to assess your life and your existence. It seems everything is going okay.

Everything is okay isn’t it? You’re back involved with Launched at Red Bull Studios this year. Have you got some pretty fond memories of music television?
There is so little good music television in the UK these days, but you know what, there was a show that came out last year on Channel 4 that was the best piece of music TV I have seen in years. It was called Four to the Floor?

Advertisement

That show was incredible.
I was so inspired and impressed by it. I liked everything about it, especially in terms of how abstract and weird it was. It didn’t need a presenter or someone guiding it. It was trippy and it just worked. It felt like you were reading a magazine, the way it looked.

Yeah, the way they realised the life of Joey Badass through a video game was sick.
It was so clever. It felt like doing music TV in a new way. Because what else is there at the moment? There needs to be more. It’s a huge aching gap for British music.

It’s funny isn’t it, you see so many exciting British acts getting themselves slots on US chat shows, but over here they can’t get a look in.
They are much more progressive over there. Over here it’s like “Kasabiaaaan”. Jools ticks a box, but we need something else that is a bit more anarchic, fun and unpredictable. Especially in terms of the music that’s on it. You always hear about pilots being made, but nothing seems to get commissioned.

Well, they always get a shite slot when they do don’t they?
It’s one of the things that really disappoints me. Channel 4’s music slot is on a Wednesday night between 12am and 2am. Surely there could be more done there, and something could get a higher profile slot? I worked on a series about DJs, like superstar DJs, last year. The truth is, DJ culture is pop culture right now. It’s the biggest thing there is out there. DJs like Tiesto, Calvin Harris, Disclosure, whether you like them or not, they are the biggest things in music now. Yet even for that we couldn’t get a slot before 12am. Someone needs to take a risk on this stuff.

Advertisement

Yeah, I see even your latest Red Bull Launched show, now in it’s fourth season, is still on at midnight on a Thursday.
It is yeah, but you know what? It’s really nice doing this show, because you’re chatting to artists on the very cusp of their career. Last year we did Sam Smith, Royal Blood and other bands who have gone on to do ridiculous things in their career. For a lot of them its their first ever TV interview and performance, so it’s your job to put them at ease and get the best out of them. It’s always exciting, because they aren’t jaded, bitter or tired. They have tonnes of ambition, and pent up anticipation for what is ahead.

Which act blew your face off when you were just expecting to be mildly impressed?
It’s got to be Jack Garratt (above). I had played his music on the radio before, but I had never seen what he did, in terms of how it manifested itself in a live way. Part of the show that went out last week was him showing me through his live set up, and it’s just totally insane. He’s a one man band, surrounded by synths and drum machines, with a guitar around his neck, switching from instrument to instrument seamlessly. Over that, he loops like 4 different tracks of beats and piano. When you’re watching it you’re just thinking what the fuck is going on here?

That sounds mad. Aside from hard talent, which act had the best chat?
Shura! She just can’t help but be herself. It’s a very nice trait to have, whether she likes it or not. She’s fun, bright and quite quick witted. Our conversation was quite random but in a great way. We ended up talking about outer space and meat. Her mannerism is very flustered and self-deprecating, but she’s a very talented lady and I think she’ll go far.

Advertisement

Did any of them have that kinda untouchable artist vibe where they seem less like a human and more like a small alien thing?
Yes, George The Poet. I found him intimidating to interview, in a good way. He’s very very intelligent, and you want to get the best out of someone like that. He has a lot to say beyond music. He wanted to talk about the society he lives in, Britain today, and we really wanted to get that across. He writes books, poetry, plays, you know. He’s like an all round intellectual. A very serious guy, but with a playful glint in his eye.

Did anything funny happen with all these excitable and precocious little talents running around like playday at the Mercury Prize creche?
Not really, although I absolutely trounced Little Simz at table tennis.

She looks like she would be good at table tennis.
She was, but I was better.

Alright, the crux of your show is about giving recommendations. So, give us a few; who’s your favourite UK artist to drop something in 2015 so far?
Can I say Jack Garratt again?

Christ, you are so pro-Jack Garratt right now.
I’m obsessed with him. He’s got this one tune called “The Love You’re Given” that’s coming out asap. I’ll give you another one too though… You heard Mella Dee? He’s put out this beat tape on Digital Soundboy, Shy FX’s label. It’s like 8 or 9 tracks, all with a really distinct sound, reminiscent of old hardcore and UK jungle. One specific track called "Heaven" which is amazing!

Advertisement

Sweet. And what about recommending us somewhere decent to go out in London at the moment?
Oh jaysus. Erm, oh… Koko for Annie Mac Presents!?

COME ON.
Ok, fine. You should try The Globe on Talbot Road, in West London, which is just off Portobello. It’s a really old venue that has been around forever. It’s got a little club night bar downstairs, and upstairs it has a fried chicken restaurant that also does cocktails. You can eat nice Caribbean food upstairs, get pissed on cocktails, then go downstairs for a dance. It’s a proper vibey place you wouldn’t necessarily know as a visitor.

There you go. Cheers Annie!

You can follow Joe on Twitter.

Red Bull Launched is on tonight (Feb 4th) at midnight.