Mr M3NSA of Mango Street

I received a cheeky little email from M3NSA's manager asking whether we’d like to review his new album ‘No.1 Mango Street’ and do an interview...I gladly obliged and I can safely say...like-Manager-like-artist.

In the deep depths of Hackney en route to M3NSA’s band rehearsal, I had my right hand girl/colleague with me, we were freezing, a little lost and just about ready to leg-it until M3NSA popped his head around from a dimly lit corner, flashed that disarming dimpled smile of his and ushered us into a “rehearsal space”...which can only be likened to a crack house. But we didn’t care because it was warm in there; all of us huddled into a tight little backroom just jamming away felt incredibly authentic...raw creativity.

The band were supposed to be rehearsing the selected tracks for M3NSA’s LIVE show at the Hoxton Bar & Grill, but instead he started freestyling about the ethnic origins of everyone in the room; my girl was quick to point out that she wasn’t ‘Jamo’...but what really rhymes with Montserrat! Lol

How to describe M3NSA? Well, he’s a cheeky bugger (in the loveable sense) I’m always a bit put off when interviewing AfroPop artist just because I have a major dislike of those bizarre American (by way of West Africa) accents many of them have adopted, but au contraire I didn’t hear a hint of a twang. M3NSA’s a bling-less, softly spoken much needed breath of fresh air. In fact this proud Ghanaian speaks, reads & writes x4 Ghanaian languages...he also speaks French) and when the mood takes him he randomly breaks into hardcore pigeon (but peppers the conversation with just enough standard English to let me know he’s far from illiterate)..gotta love this dude.

THE INTERVIEW...

As we started chit chatting away M3NSA brought the music and the funny. I can’t actually print everything he said as his humour is...a little on the edge, but here’s what I will share...

So why did you call the album No.1 Mango Street? I grew up at that exact address in Ghana and my Mum still lives there.

You’re quite big in Ghana, won’t your Mum get lots of loitering groupies?

Oh my mum encourages that type of thing she’ll be like yes, please, come (laughs)

(Laughs) You’re also one half of the FOKIN Boys?

Hey you said it (laughs)

What's with the name?

Nobody will forget it. When people hear it they think we’re either gonna be really s***, really good or want to find out whether we can back up the name.

Back it up?

Yeah F.O.K.I.N actually stands for FEAR OF KNOWING NOTHING. Our culture doesn’t allow us to use such language so yeah.

The BBC named you one of the ‘Top 50 Ghanaians To Watch’.

I don’t know what that means...watch doing what? (Laughs) nah it’s quite endearing. We all like accolades so I’m just grateful.

"Hip hop music is a big influence, my older brothers are big BIG hip-hop heads. I grew up playing classical piano and I also played in church, I did all the grades and stuff but found it boring and that’s when I started listening to hip hop and mixing the different sounds. My mum was making me go to church and I just wanted a hip hop honey (laughs)... my mum was hardcore"

I’ve got my favourite songs from No.1 Mango Street, but I specifically wanted to ask you about Kelewele Pimpin’ (M3NSA gleams with excitement and breaks into song)

...for the sake of our readers can you just give a brief overview of the track?

Oh okay. (laughs) Kelewele is a plantain that’s cut into small pieces, mixed with spices and then fried. It tastes really good, but the song’s talking about a relationship and I’m just being responsible and using metaphors & intelligence instead of being explicit. All women love a gentlemen...until it’s time for him not to be a gentleman. I’m sure we can all relate to the song so I’ll leave it at that.

Tell me about the band

Me and my band are known as ‘The Light Off’s we have Owen on drums...

Where are you from Owen? I’m from Wales
(We all put on really bad Welsh accents and start cracking up...Owen’s not laughing)

Mensa: Oh!!! Do you know Charlotte Church I have the biggest crush on her

IvyMunro: She’s got 2 kids ya know So she’s not a virgin? (laughter ensues)

So moving on we have Jéan, from France on the Bass...oh yeah I speak French too, you think it’s a joke here (laughs). Last but not least we have Esben from Denmark on keys and we all come together as ‘The Light Off’s’...Do you know what Light Off’s means?
No.
It means Power Cut...you should know all about that (laughs)

That’s cold. You realise I’ll be writing-up this piece?

Don’t worry you’re from the same country as my baby, so I can say anything I want.
Okay. Keep talking...you’ll find out. Goodbye (laughs)

So what...no sexual questions then?

No. Are you single?

I have a wife on the scene.
Okay I’ll let our female readers know that.

You know what, I’m an African man from Africa; where the ratio of women to men is 140:1 which means if every man decided to marry just one women, then 139 women will be left stranded...so what can I do?

Err stay off the market and leave them stranded..

...

I’m off the market

So you’re a one woman man?

Yes I’m a “one woman man”
We don’t like the air quotes.

...trust me...YOU DO!

(more laughter ensues)

You’re also a first time father?
Yes yes I am

(M3NSA sobers up and pretty much turns to jelly at the thought of his new born)
...A boy or a girl?
A girl
(A chorus of Ahh’s fill the room)

"Fatherhood is like...you just assume this responsibility you have to live up to. I look at her and I’m like wow! I have to make myself a better person and it’s not an option you just have to do it. Having her is not just an inspiration, it’s an incentive"

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