INTRODUCING: TEBI REX
2021 has already proved a busy year for the Irish alternative hip hop duo Tebi Rex, with appearances at Eurosonic and SXSW, the curation of a special event for Dublin's Music Town festival alongside the announcement that they will be playing The Great Escape online in May-revisiting the scene of their UK debut in 2019. They’ve just realised their long-planned collaboration with Derry’s ROE “Hanging With Trees” which sees the duo once again continue to push boundaries within their sound as they include pop influences alongside their rap roots.
We sit down with the guys, to discuss their latest release, how they originally came together to make music and what they have coming up in the summer!
Interview by SOPHIE EMMETT
SE - You just released the single ‘Hanging With Trees’ with Roe. Can you tell us what the song is about?
TR - Essentially, and bear with me, we are talking to a tree. We are telling the tree our woes, and hoping for advice. It may sound a teeny bit meta right now, but trust the process - all will make sense eventually.
SE - How did you guys meet and come together to make music?
TR - Funnily, we met at a college talent show where we were opponents. Rivals. Fire & water. Yin and Yang. Gin and juice. Just 2 creative peas in a drunken Maynooth University pod. Ready to take the world by storm. We both wanted to make the same type of music so we decided to just go for it and see what happens!
SE - How did the idea come around for ‘Hanging With Trees’ and how did you come to work with Roe?
TR - I'm actually not sure how we became close. We've been big fans of Roe for a while, and after a show in Derry we went out for a few scoops together! Roe owns the key to the city of Derry, so she showed us all the hidden gems the normies don't get to see. We've been trying to get a collab together for a bit, and we knew she'd smash this song; so we hit her up, and low and behold, she absolutely killed it!
SE - What artists do you think inspires your sound?
TR - Kate Nash, NERD, Childish Gambino, Chance the Rapper with a healthy dose of Rizzle Kicks.
SE - What’s the hip hop scene like in Ireland at the moment? Are there any artists from the scene you are listing to at the moment we should know about?
TR - There are actually so many. If you're looking for poetic lyricism, look to Fynch or Malaki. For grime bangers, go to Mango x Mathman. A92 for drill, Celaviedmai for energy, or Denise Chaila for some very well-structured vibes. Our own close friends and collaborators R3D and Monjola are also dropping no-miss-hits on a regular basis. Honestly, I could go on and on! Someone who is criminally underrated at the moment is Cork's own OutsiderYP - he just dropped an incredible tape so would 100% recommend checking that out.
SE - Covid permitting, are there any festivals we can catch you at this summer?
TR - We're doing The Great Escape online, but tbh there are no plans for a live summer event just yet. At least none that we can speak of! Once we're both vaccinated, however, we'll be playing absolutely everywhere whether people want us or not.
SE - What are your upcoming plans and are you working on any projects you can share with us?
TR - So our last two singles Oh It Hurts and Hanging With Trees depict chapters 6 & 2 of our forthcoming album. I can't say too much other than the following.. It's a new direction for our music, and one we are super excited to execute. I think people are used to us pushing our sound to new places, so this album will be no different. Expect a tough yet beautiful story, laced with hits. HITS HITS HITS.
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TEAM CREDITS
Interview - SOPHIE EMMETT @sophie.emmett
Photographer - MICHAEL D'ANGELO @shotsbymda