Back to School: Dizzee Rascal

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THOUGH HE'S HAD an improbable whirlwind rise through the London hip-hop underground, Dizzee Rascal is already shedding that U.K. grime-rap label: New collaborations with everyone from Calvin Harris to Fatboy Slim could put Rascal, nee Dylan Mills, through club speakers and into the mainstream.

"Genres are just what other people make them; they're boxes people keep music in by what they say about it," Mills said.

It's a rapid evolution for the artist, who was only 18 years old in 2003, when he came out of nowhere to win the Mercury Prize, awarded yearly to the best album in the United Kingdom and Ireland, for his debut, "Boy in da Corner." Now, with his third album, last year's "Maths and English" a runner-up, Rascal isn't shy about giving the people what they want.

"That's the whole thing about being an artist and an entertainer at the same time: As much as I'm getting my fill making my music and filling my creative desire or whatever, I'm f***ing trying to fulfill what everyone else wants as well — seeing what people like and take to," Mills said. "The more I branch out and try out new stuff, the more I find out what that is."

While sticking to his garage-rap roots, "Maths and English" moves away from his previous efforts into a hip-hop style cleaned of grime.

While Mills drew high praise for the personal and often complex nature of his first two albums (the other was 2004's "Showtime"), the new one is all about winning over more fans, returning to an "old-school style of spittin'" influenced by Eazy-E and other gangsta rappers.

"With this album, I'm doing the same, but a lot simpler, so more people could understand what I was saying," said Mills.

"Simple" wouldn't accurately describe his recent undertakings, working with rappers from southern-styled UGK to underground icon El-P — opening the Dizzee Rascal show in D.C. on May 8.

While collaborations like that should help bring Rascal's sound to a wider audience in the United States, it's an uphill battle: Mills' thick South London accent and cultural slang may initially alienate American rap fans.

But for the performer Dizzee Rascal, live shows define hip-hop regardless of where they happen.

"I understand just the main elements of hip-hop anyway, so it doesn't matter where I'm from," he said. "Rap is about doing a show, it can be wherever, where people are responding the right way, whether it's to 50 Cent or me or whoever."

Below is the full transcript of our conversation:

» EXPRESS: I can hear a lot of commotion. What's going on?
» RASCAL: I'm about to go into the studio with Fatboy Slim. Have you heard of Fatboy Slim?

» EXPRESS: Yes, yes I have.
» RASCAL: I'm about to do something with him, so that's all good.

» EXPRESS: How long has that been in the works?
» RASCAL: About a month ago, I was at a photo shoot and you know how those things go, exchanging names and that. So I'm about to go down to the studio for that now.

» EXPRESS: You're most known for your lyrics. What's happened in your life since your first album that affected what you were rapping about in "Maths and English"?
» RASCAL: I was trying to simplify for this album. On my first album, I was really just trying to say what was on my mind and in my heart. I still do that on this album, but on my second album I was trying to show off a bit — how versatile I could be. With this album, I'm doing the same, but a lot simpler, so more people could understand what I was saying. I wanted to go back to the old-school way of spittin', just like Easy-E, straight to the point.

» EXPRESS: Did you feel people were ready for a return to that style of rap?
» RASCAL: It's been really good. People have been like, "I can finally understand what you're saying." A lot of it has grown out of doing festivals for so many years, seeing the songs that work the best for the masses, and they're the ones with the easiest hooks and easiest lyrics.

» EXPRESS: Does that mean you're not as concerned with rapping about your life anymore?
» RASCAL: I've just tried to keep a cool head and keep with reality. Some stuff in my life has been quite interesting, more than just money and this and that and blah blah — but I didn't want to bombard my music with it. I just wanted to keep it what it is.

» EXPRESS: The way you became known in England is a big difference from the way most rappers make it big here in the United States.
» RASCAL: Pirate radio was the main source, where local emcees get their music played, get their stuff heard, and get themselves out there — where performers could get real big with singles on that. If you're lucky, you get an underground hit that gets your album bought and known nationwide, and maybe on worldwide stage.

» EXPRESS: Is it hard to sell the U.K. style of rap here in the United States?
» RASCAL: I understand just the main elements of hip-hop anyway, so it doesn't matter where I'm from. I have a conscious, but I also just want to f**k, have a good time, get drunk, smoke weed, whatever. I don't worry about it, it's all about having fun. Rap is about doing a show, it can be wherever, where people are responding the right way, whether it's to 50 Cent or me or whoever.

» EXPRESS: What's the best experience you've had so far collaborating with American rappers?
» RASCAL: I worked with UGK both on "Maths and English" and their album that just came out ["UGK (Underground Kingz)"], and that was amazing.

» EXPRESS: Have you taken anything away from your collaborations that you've tried to use in your own songs?
» RASCAL: It's still the same. I make a lot of the music; I've branched out with other people for their shows, but I don't need to step outside too much to get my music.

» EXPRESS: Have you been trying any new things out recently?
» RASCAL: I've done a track with Calvin Harris called "Dance With Me," and just shot the video yesterday, and it should be out there by June or July. That's got a real kind of disco-y, R&B, electronic feel. It sounds a bit pretentious, but it's actually a real nice track — probably the hokiest song I've done, but it's a real banger.

» EXPRESS: That, and now doing something with Fatboy Slim — are you open to doing more pop songs?
» RASCAL: Totally — someone like Fatboy Slim, that's a real honor to be a part of that. When you get to work with people like that, you do it. It doesn't mean you've made it, but it means you're in the zone and you're doing well. People like that won't ask anybody to work with them. I've always been into other genre. Genres are just what other people make them; they're boxes people keep music in by what they say about it. Music is music.

» EXPRESS: Do you try to cater your sound to what you think people might like most?
» RASCAL: That's the whole thing about being an artist and an entertainer at the same time. As much as I'm getting my fill making my music and filling my creative desire or whatever, I'm f---ing trying to fulfill what everyone else wants as well — seeing what people like and take to. The more I branch out and try out new stuff, the more I find out what that is, and that's how I do it.

» EXPRESS: When touring the U.S., do you try to play tracks you think Americans will like?
» RASCAL: It's real simple and basic, like Run DMC — me, my backup men and my DJ, we're doing tracks from all three of my albums, through "Showtime" and "Maths and English," so people can see what I do and why people are really into me. People can see it for themselves. I came up doing live things before any of this s--t; that's how I've built a name for myself in the underground since I was 13 or 14.

» 9:30 Club, 815 V St. NW; with El-P, DJ Mr. Dibbs, The Mighty Quin and DJ Aaron LaCrate; Thu., 7:30 p.m., $20. (U St.-Cardozo)

Photos by Tim & Barry