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Tim Westwood chats to I Like Music

Tim Westwood is the most recognised urban DJ of the decade, a pioneer of the UK hip hop and urban scene with two show's on BBC Radio One broadcasting to over 1.5 million listeners. He has the biggest selling urban compilation in history and hosted the most successful MTV UK production of all time, Pimp My Ride. He's won the Best UK Radio DJ at the MOBO awards three times and Best Radio DJ in Hip Hop Connection Mag since 1992 - every year!

Evidently, Tim Westwood is the man.
I Like Music caught up with the Big Dawg himself to talk about who's hot in hip hop right now, his career and the whole do-it-yourself revolution.

"I Like Music, but especially rap music because… it's the most powerful music in the world. It's certainly influenced my life, it's defined my life and who I am. It's all about sending out a powerful message. Rap music has a whole culture and lifestyle with it. It talks directly to you and I think it's just incredibly powerful music and an important voice to the community." TIM WESTWOOD

ILM: Tim, you are the most influential figure in hip hop in Europe and a pioneer of the UK hip hop scene - what's the state of play at the moment with UK hip hop. We had the likes of Mark B and Blade a few years ago, there's DJ Format, Dizzee Rascal has blown up, Lethal Bizzle… what's your take on the UK flava at the moment - who's hot in your book?

TIM: The artists you talked about there are really across the whole section of what's happening with the UK rap community of artists, but I think where the real energy is, is in the likes of Lethal Bizzle, Kano, definitely Wiley and the young'uns that they're bringing through as well. And where they differ from Blade and people like that, is that those guys are more traditional rap, rhyming over samples, whereas artists like Kano, Lethal Bizzle and Roll Deep, they've come from the grime scene which is the garage scene, since So Solid with people rhyming over garage, I think that's the cutting edge, that's where the energy is.

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Related links:

1. Lethal Bizzle Tour
2. 50 Cent - Curtis
3. Kanye West secures number one with Stronger
4. Kano - This Is The Girl