Back in the Habit

HIP HOP Cavan’s Sea High releases latest track

Homegrown music has never been in such rude health, and it’s fair to say the majestic rise of a cultured hip-hop movement has played a crucial part in that, pushing the boundaries of creativity, and breaking down social, racial and even political barriers too.

The country has, unbeknownst to many, had a small yet committed hip-hop scene going as far back as even the ‘80s. The cultural movement which surfaced in New York the decade before spawned the likes of Marxman, a four-piece inspired by hip-hop, Motown and traditional Irish music, and Scary Éire, considered by many as pioneers after becoming the first Irish rap act to sign to a major label (Island Records).

A proliferation of parody rap in the noughties did for the genre’s hopes of gaining traction or credibility on home soil. But that tide has turned, certainly in recent times, largely due to the emergence of a newer, more serious sound from the likes of Rejjie Snow, Mango X MathMan, the Drill scene’s J.B2 (aka Mr. Affiliate), Kojaque (has Cavan links), and lately doyenne du jour, Denise Chaila.

Multi-instrumentalist, rapper, producer and spoken-word artist Craig Hoey AKA ‘Sea High’ is part of that new breed, helping to reshape the musical landscape.

“It’s an exciting time for Irish music,” admits Craig, a member of the former Dundalk, now predominantly Dublin-based OffKey Collective. Within the group Craig sits alongside his brother Cillian AKA Key Low, and fellow Cavan musician Odd Numbers, a beat-maker and music producer already featured in The Anglo-Celt.

“Probably like every young rapper, when we were starting to develop our craft, people weren’t talking about Irish hip-hop as this force to be contended with. It took maybe one of us to make it over the wall first to give everyone else the confidence, to show it could be done.”

Changed my life

‘Sea High’, a play on ‘C. Hoey’ rather than (in your best Cavan accent) some lad roaring it at a ref from the sideline, last month released his latest single ‘Bad Habits’ (June 26). More importantly perhaps, this is Craig’s first release since the enforced hiatus brought about by Covid restrictions.

When the buoyant 27-year-old spoke to the Celt, he steps outside from an impromptu gig being staged by singer-songwriter Ryan O’Shaughnessy in Skerries.

Craig grew up in Bailieborough, having moved from Swords with his family age 10, attending St Anne’s and then the local Community School. Back then hip-hop wasn’t necessarily on Craig’s musical radar.

“I was always interested in all kinds of music growing up,” explains Craig, whose grandmother Margaret Lynch seethed over the fact there was a piano in family’s Cavan home yet no one to play it.

It took a young Craig only a week to teach himself the fundamentals, after earning the down time to test the dexterity of his digits when suspended from school for a week for fighting.

“It changed my life, and started me on the path of playing music, which has eventually led me to hip-hop,” reflects Craig.

He went on to figure out the rudimentaries of guitar in a bid to be a singer-songwriter. That opened him up to the “biggest criticism” of being “just another guy with a guitar”. Those words stung, and forced a level of introspection which, in hindsight, allowed Craig to explore both his artistic voice and flex his lyrical muscles as ‘Sea High’.

“It snowballed. I started making beats, and it became this different animal entirely,” says Craig, who received his most resounding endorsement from his dad, a self-confessed trad man at heart.

“He said after listening to us that this was basically the new rebel music, and in way he’s right. Hip-hop, whenever and wherever it has happened, has always been a voice of a generation.”

Authenticity

Craig is almost as chuffed when the Celt suggests, after initial listenings, that he seems cut from much the cloth as the likes of Damien Dempsey or Jinx Lennon - artists noted for unapologetically sailing close to the wind when broaching challenging subjects, often personal, through their music.

In 2018, Craig released debut EP ‘Vagary’, five songs exploring themes such as mental health, love and of course, life itself. The title track is a gripping piece of spoken word poetry, that neatly sets the tone for the remaining numbers.

“What defines a rapper is how they put their craft across. If someone asks what I do, I say I’m a musician first. I like to sing, I like to experiment, I play with different sounds. I think in Ireland, and maybe it’s the influence of so many different cultures, we have something very vibrant happening, a real originality. We’re a nation of story tellers. It’s not ‘Paddy Rap’ any more.”

Craig, who is just as happy contributing to the work of other rising stars, such as Dublin’s Wallfella, as he is his own, adds: “What’s most important to me is authenticity, and honesty. What I’m feeling is what I put into my music.”

To put it another way, Craig is not musing about shifting kilos of drugs on street corners, riding in expensive cars, or posing with fake guns for additional effect.

“I feel there’s a lot of music out there that gets totally lost in the flashiness of the image they’re trying to portray. I’m more likely to rap about being an anxious loner and not having a lot of money.”

The comfort for Craig of being part of a collective like OffKey therefore is knowing he has access to an immediate eco-system of like-minded creative souls, all capable and willing to bring their talents to the table.

“I’ve a skill-set, but I know my limits. In terms of visuals I get people to help, mixing and mastering as well, like with OddNumbers. My little brother has a different skill-set again, as do Citizen Black and F.O.B or Emmett [O’Brien]. As much as we’re a label, we’re a group of friends helping each other out with our art.”

This camaraderie is a pervasive trait across Irish hip-hop right now.

“The scene has become this incredible melting pot of different people from different places, different ideas, different upbringings. It’s why I think it’s going through such a sustained period at the moment.”

Craig sees a return to live gigging as the single most important factor in ensuring Irish hip-hop can sustain this wave of popularity: “That’s such a big part of what we do. For me anyway, it’s always been the live element that’s been most important. If you see me standing on a stage with my top off shouting at a bunch of people, that’s me at my most primal.”