Professor Green: Alive Till I’m Dead

Tom Bowles reviews Professor Green’s new album, Alive Till I’m Dead for MistaJam.com.

Not so long ago, UK rappers would release an album to much critical acclaim but little commercial success. How things change. Such is the monopoly of British urban music of today’s music charts (albeit a modified version that lends itself to radio), that naturally all artists are now faced with the same dilemma when helming their latest project.

Do they stick to their roots, by making the music their core fans want to hear (and be largely shunned by mainstream media), or do they chase chart success, targeting download sales in the hope of gaining exposure and achieving financial security.

Finding a happy medium between the two is never easy, but with the release of his long awaited debut album, Alive Till I’m Dead, Professor Green succeeds where many of his compatriots have previously failed, delivering a well crafted album that should not only appease original followers, but garner some new ones too.

The Hackney MC cleverly achieves a crossover appeal through his choice of beats, whether it is borrowing hits from the 80s for ‘I Need You Tonight’ and the Lily Allen assisted ‘Just Be Good To Green’ to help make an assault on the pop charts, or using dubstep inspired production (‘Jungle’) when discussing the harsh realities faced while being raised in the capital city.

But where the album stands alone from other recent major label UK rap releases, unsurprisingly for the former battle rapper, is in its words. Not only does he showcase his dark sense of humour throughout, (‘Diss me not, I’m frisky what / Still itching to stick me c**k in Pixie Lott’), but unusually for a rapper, he is also refreshingly honest too, and is comfortable examining his recreational drug use or the pain caused by being abandoned by his parents.

In the album’s melancholy final track, ‘Goodnight’, he questions: ‘I wonder what I’m living for, is it only to hurt? / First my great nan, now I’ve got to put my dad in the dirt.’

The dark subject matter continues with ‘Closing The Door’, an eerie tale about a failed relationship. Over a menacing guitar riff, the 26-year-old MC ponders: ’Only time will tell if I’m doing the right thing / See honesty’s all about the timing / It’s frightening, but I’m trying / To make it easier for you by closing the door behind me.’

Historically, being a talented rapper doesn’t necessarily make for being a successful songwriter, so Pro deserves praise for creating a well-rounded body of work. He focuses on the raps, leaving the aforementioned Allen, current go-to man Labrinth (‘Oh My God’), Emeli Sande (‘Kids That Love To Dance’), Maverick Sabre (‘Jungle’) and Example (‘Monster’), among others, to handle the hooks.

In a genre where it is notoriously difficult for an artist to achieve success without being accused of selling their soul in the process, Professor Green proves with Alive Till I’m Dead that it is possible to create an album that contains both style and substance in equal measure.

Posted by Sam Moir at 12:06 pm on July 26th, 2010

Categories: Review.
Tags: Alive Till I'm Dead, Professor Green. No Comments »