Spit Syndicate - The Future’s Right

Spit Syndicate are killin shit. With the release of their debut mixtape ‘The Future’s Bright’ only three months ago, the Sydney duo are recieving massive props from some of Australian hip hop’s biggest names, and are already being added to big-time show bills. In June and July you can see Nick Lupi and Just Enuf in support mode performing alongside People Under The Stairs, Fabolous, Trem & Strut of Lyrical Commission, Atmosphere and Brother Ali.

Spit Syndicate are killin shit. With the release of their debut mixtape ‘The Future’s Bright’ only three months ago, the Sydney duo are recieving massive props from some of Australian hip hop’s biggest names, and are already being added to big-time show bills. In June and July you can see Nick Lupi and Just Enuf in support mode performing alongside People Under The Stairs, Fabolous, Trem & Strut of Lyrical Commission, Atmosphere and Brother Ali.

With Spit Syndicate fever spreading through the streets, Ground Up reached out and did a quick Q&A to Set The Record Straight.

The mixtape is out, people are loving it and you’re getting added to some big shows. The coolest part is, no one saw this shit coming!! Give us a brief timeline here; how long have you been rapping together, when did the mixtape come out and what’s next?

Just Enuf: We’ve been working on our music together for about 2 years now and before that we hadn’t really been taking it too seriously.
Nick Lupi: The mixtape came out in March 06, basically to give people a rough indication of our sound – the response has been mad positive, we’ve managed to push it to the right people too. Up next is the debut release!

How many shows had you done prior to the mixtape dropping?

JE: I’d say between 5-10 shows just locally, and once we were given the opportunity to take part in larger gigs we were able to get our product out to a larger audience.
NL: The mixtape has opened a lot of doors because we’ve worked hard in getting it circulated throughout Sydney – in addition to this, we spent a lot of time working on our live show.

How did two young upstarts end up getting a vet like Torcha on their debut?

JE: Jak n torch have been doing it for Sydney for a long time now and we’re big fans of their music and he was interested in what we were doing and we made it happen.

Which local rappers influenced you coming up?

NL: For me, the first local shit I heard was by the now-defunct Third Estate, which was Komrade Kos (who’s no longer rapping) and Jack Prest (who is still doing his thing). On a battling tip, I looked up to dudes like Hyjak a whole heap.
JE: I’d say Trem, the Hoods, Bliss n Eso and Delta.

Which is hotter, TI- King or Lil Wayne- The Carter II?

NL: Now that’s a tough call, the production on King is much hotter than the Carter 2, but Weezy’s swagger is untouchable.
JE: Weezy f takes the crown. Undoubtably, please say the baby!

What’s up with the Subway logo on the mixtape? Are you guys sponsored by Subway? Is that why your shit sounds so fresh?

NL: We get asked this a lot – and yeah, Subway played an integral role in the writing and recording processes of the Mixtape. So while they’re not sponsoring us in a financial sense, we had to show some love as they were probably the driving force behind the mixtape’s completion.
JE: The south west sauce does wonders for the vocal chords.

What are your Subway preferences?

JE: Chicken fillet without pickles and jalapeños, with 3 litres of southwest and mayo. That’s what I’m talking bout.
NL: Chicken pizziolas are where it’s at – them shits aren’t even on the menu anymore, so if you get some rookie Sandwich Artist who doesn’t know what that is, ask for the boss.

In this day and age, what exactly constitutes a bakery rort?

JE: After a big night out with your goons on the walk home when the sun is rising and the bakery is just opening, prime time for a bacon and cheese melt on the house.
NL: or seven.

You’re supporting both Fabolous and Atmosphere in coming months. How do you cater your show to the different artists/crowds?

NL: I’d like to think our sound is pretty diverse, and that can flip shit to suit the different audiences and their tastes. I mean, we both listen to the most crazily wide range of music, and that has a definite impact on our style and versatility. It’s cliché, but it’s true.
JE: Most of the time you can tell if a certain crowd will enjoy your music or not, depending on the artist you are supporting for and adjust your sets accordingly. Although you always need to put your stamp on it so the crowd knows what your music is about.

There are a lot of graff references in your music. It’s dope because on a global scale graff seems to have been widely forgotten about by MC’s. Do you both have a background in graff?

JE: I started painting a while ago but lost interest after a while and nick was mostly focused on his rapping. So yeah, there is a definite influence from graff because that’s how I got into this.

I’ve heard you’re starting to look at working on a full-length. Which producers are you looking at working with?

NL: We’re looking to work with a bunch of different producers – I don’t want to really give any of it away until it’s all finalised, but it’s likely there will be a range of local and international, and established and unknown producers contributing to the LP.

Speaking from a Melbourne standpoint, it seems like there hasn’t been much action for Australian Hip Hop in Sydney for some time. Who else is holdin it down up there?

JE: Got heaps of dudes coming up alongside us, but the dudes in my books that are holding it down are Bliss n Eso, Hyjak and Torcha, 13th son and fame.
NL: Well you can’t look past Bliss n Eso – those fellas are doing it huge. The Herd have had their shit locked for a long time, and are definitely holding it down. There is a host of artists who are on the cusp of really tearing shit apart on a national level – dudes like Bingethinkers, The Tongue, Overproof, Scotty Burns, 13th son. Many more escape me at this stage – but yeah, the days of Sydney staying quiet are about to change for sure!

Check out SPIT SYNDICATE on The Ground Up Volume One Mixtape or at myspace.com/spitsyndicate