Without a doubt N-Dubz are one of the biggest acts on the UK urban scene. With platinum albums, TV shows and a bucketload of awards under their belts, N-Dubz are guaranteed to always entertain. We caught up with one part of the trio, Fazer ahead of the dvd release of this year’s sell-out ‘Love.Live.Life’ tour at London’s O2 arena.
Pride: Hi Fazer, how are you?
Fazer: Fine thanks, man.
P: I’m going to talk to you a bit about the Love. Live. Life. tour, and the DVD which is coming out. This is a different tour than the ones you’ve done in the past. You’ve had platinum albums but this is your first ever arena tour. How did it feel to sell out the O2 arena?
F: One word, monumental. It was a landmark in our career. Amazing.
P: Did you ever think you’d be in that position? Going from smaller venues to selling out one of the biggest live venues in Europe?
F: It’s an achievement in itself. It’s something that you look back on and go “You know what? Wow.” We were really shocked.
P: Wicked. How was this tour different to any other tour you’ve done before?
F: Well, we had two options with this tour. We could’ve had just had a DJ, a little backdrop and a couple of lights or we could’ve just put our backs against the wall and put our money where our mouth is- in terms of the production, and made a massive show. That’s what we did. I mean, we didn’t really make that much money off this tour, but to be honest it’s more of a preview for the next tour. People have seen us live now and they know that we’ll come back even bigger and better next time. We’ve stepped it up to such a level that people are like, “We have to see N-Dubz on tour next time!”
P: What’s life like on tour with N-Dubz? I’m sure it’s crazy! What’s it like?
F: Aww….haha! If I could put it into three words, I’d say fun, loving and drama!
P: That takes me to my next question. What are you guys like on tour? Who’s the messy one? Who’s the bossy one? Who’s the moody one?
F: Erm…well I think I’m a bit of the messy one! Not in terms of my possessions- they’re all in one place, but that one place is a mess! Dappy’s a bit moany, especially about mess. He’ll be like “Why you lot livin’ like some tramps? Urgh!” Tulisa’s just like “Whatever, I don’t want to hear it!” She’s proper onto us, like a mum.
P: Any tour bus rules?
F: Yes. The downstairs lounge is for lounging only. Never sleep there! Otherwise you make yourself eligible to become a liability. You put yourself at risk to tour pranks. Sometimes you might fall asleep and when you wake up, your eyebrow hair has been removed with Veet! You never know what can happen. It’s crazy in the N-Dubz camp.
P: Professor Green supported you guys this time around. How was that?
F: It was great, he was cool. It was good for us, and it was good for him. It was a different look. Last tour, we didn’t have so many predominantly rap artists open for us, so it was nice to actually have someone like that on stage. We’ve toured with Tinie Tempah in the past so where the scene is now, it’s nice to have other talent like us around and doing well.
P: So you must have heard the rumours going around about you guys splitting up. What’s really going on with N-Dubz?
F: Okay, right. Basically, I’m going to tell you the story. In the last five years, I don’t think there’s been a period of more than three weeks when we haven’t had something on in the public domain, whether it be a TV programme, a single, an album out, a video, awards ceremony, or whatever. We’re always on TV, always in your face. So we thought, “Alright listen, let’s give the public and the media a break from us. Let’s let them breathe a bit and miss us a bit which is bound to happen without N-Dubz. We want people to miss us but at the same time, we’re not actually going nowhere because N-Dubz is a trio, so there are three of us. Tulisa, she’s doing X-Factor, me and Dappy are writing an album together. Dappy’s first single is coming out in September, it’s called ‘No Regrets’ and I’ve got my solo album coming together as well. We’re going to create some anticipation. Once the anticipation’s high, we’ll come back and do a big N-Dubz album.
P: Let’s talk about the big news. Tulisa is now an X Factor judge. What was the reaction in the N-Dubz camp? Dappy has been quite vocal about the show in the past but how did you guys actually feel when she told you the news?
F: We never knocked the show. We understand why the show is there. If we never got signed and we never made the publicity that we made for ourselves, we probably would’ve ended up on the show so I can’t knock the show for those reasons. We just can’t understand how a show can be so big that you stand in line, and then you come out of that line and the next day you’re famous, and you’ve got a number one record!
P: So Tulisa’s doing X Factor, Dappy’s doing his solo album, and you’re doing yours. can you tell us a bit about that?
F: I’m not confirming anything, but there’s some big stuff in the pipeline!
P: Who would be on your dream list of artists to work with?
F: Jay-Z, Lil Wayne would be the ultimate. Erm…Katy Perry, I’d work with. I would do some stuff with Rihanna. I’d do some stuff with Chris Brown, Tinie Tempah with Wretch 32. I’d do stuff with Tinchy and of course, with Dappy and Tulisa.
P: So when we can expect another N-Dubz album?
F: Well, we’ve got the new single coming out and we’re probably going to release a ‘Best Of,’ which is gonna be great. Actually, it’s something that I wanna hear- all the songs from our collection that people have forgotten about. From ‘I Swear’ all the way up to, like… ‘Morning Star.’ All the best of N-Dubz. We’ll put that part of us to sleep, then come back with a massive album and reinvent ourselves.
P: Any exclusives you can share with us…
F: Hmm…ok, this is a Pride exclusive! I’ve got a clothing line coming out. I’m not gonna give no names out. It’s a high-end line and I’m starting samples now, so hopefully by September or November you’ll be seeing that.
N-Dubz ‘Love.Live.Life’ Tour live from the O2 arena is out on dvd from the 22nd of August.
