Cooly G

Merrisa Campbell, known by her recording alias Cooly G, is a British singer, rapper, producer and DJ, living in London. She has released two albums of bass music on Hyperdub: Playin' Me (2012) and Wait 'Til Night (2014).[1][2]

Music

Her full-length albums "explore more complex, difficult and polarising emotional frequencies than can possibly [be] visited on her club-ready EP output."[3]

Singles and EPs from 2008 onwards have encompassed UK funky,[4][5][6] jungle,[7] garage, grime, deep house and dub.[8]

Alexis Petridis in The Guardian described her debut album Playin' Me (2012) thus: "You hear fragments of lover's rock, dubstep, Soul II Soul, drum'n'bass, UK funky and Massive Attack's stoned melancholy: the end result sounds unearthly, alternately scattered and luscious, and ultimately like no one else. Her vocals – unreconstructed south-London accent, beautifully understated style, lyrics that trace the arc of a relationship going wrong – bring it back down to earth."[9] A review in the NME concurs that "'Playin' Me' develops the UK funky sound she's been pushing for years, with its devastating sub-bass, raindrop drums and warm vocals. Within those vocals is a pop edge, and some of her lyrics could be cut straight from the Top 40 [ . . .] But the best thing about 'Playin' Me' is that for all its futuristic swirl, it's a record about living in London in 2012."[10] Petridis praised the inclusion of a cover of "Trouble" by Coldplay, where as the NME was critical of it.[9][10]

Paul MacInnes in The Guardian described second album Wait 'Til Night (2014) as "bass-driven hip hop; and a lyrical theme, lust."[7]

In 2010, Cooly G set up a record label, Dub Organizer, a name she had previously used for a series of CD-R releases.[11] She played Boiler Room DJ sets in London in 2014 and 2018.[12][13] She has "taught sound engineering and held music production and DJ workshops for disaffected teens."[14][10]

Personal life

Campbell was born in Brixton, South London.[15]

She has two children.[16][17] They lost all their belongings in a fire on 31 December 2018. Campbell had been using a temporary storage lock up in Croydon, which was destroyed in a fire, having abandoned their home after a flood and whilst waiting to move.[18][19][20]

Discography

Albums

Singles and EPs

  • Dub Organizer Vol 1 (BM Funky, 2008) – CD-R, EP
    • Dub Organiser Vol 1 (Dub Organizer, 2010) – digital
  • Dub Organizer Vol 2 (2008) – CD-R, EP
  • "Narst" / "Love Dub" (Hyperdub, 2009)[21][26]
  • Dub Organizer Vol 3 – EP
    • CD-R (BM Funky, 2009)
    • Digital (Dub Organizer, 2010)
  • "Hyperdub 5.5" (Hyperdub, 2009) – split with Mala; includes "Weekend Fly" by Cooly G
  • "Up in My Head" / "Phat Si" (Hyperdub, 2010)[27]
  • "Dis Boy" (DVA, 2010) – split with Scratcha DVA*; includes "DIS Boy" by Cooly G
  • Dub Organizer Vol 4 (Dub Organizer, 2010) – digital, EP
  • Dub Organizer Vol 5 (Dub Organizer, 2010) – digital, EP
  • Dub Organizer Vol 6 (Dub Organizer, 2010) – digital, EP
  • "Landscapes" / "It's Serious" (Hyperdub, 2011)[28][29]
  • Hold Me (Hyperdub, 2014) – EP[30][31][32]
  • Armz House (Hyperdub, 2015) – EP[33]

References

  1. ^ Power, Chris. "BBC - Music - Review of Cooly G - Playin' Me". www.bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  2. ^ "Cooly G: Wait 'Til Night". The Quietus. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  3. ^ "Cooly G - Wait 'til Night". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  4. ^ "UK funky: a short-lived sound whose influence lives on". The Guardian. 29 August 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  5. ^ "Label of love: Hyperdub". The Guardian. 12 May 2010. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  6. ^ "UK funky isn't back — it never left". DJMag.com. 19 January 2021. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  7. ^ a b "Cooly G: Wait 'Til Night review – stripped down seduction". The Guardian. 16 October 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  8. ^ Gentles, Tim (29 January 2014). "Cooly G Hold Me EP". XLR8R. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  9. ^ a b "Cooly G: Playin' Me – review". The Guardian. 12 July 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  10. ^ a b c "Cooly G - 'Playin' Me'". NME. 15 July 2012. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  11. ^ "Cooly G preps Dub Organizer label compilation". Fact (UK magazine). 9 April 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  12. ^ "Cooly G". Boiler Room. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  13. ^ "Cooly G". Boiler Room. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  14. ^ "The new generation of women taking over the music studios". The Independent. 7 November 2014. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  15. ^ "Cooly G: A Woman of Many Talents". www.theskinny.co.uk. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  16. ^ "Cooly G". The Village Voice. 6 July 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  17. ^ "Cooly G Fire Fund started by Kode9 - The Wire". The Wire Magazine - Adventures In Modern Music. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  18. ^ "Crowdfunding campaign started for Hyperdub artist Cooly G following devastating fire". DJMag.com. 12 February 2019. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  19. ^ "Cooly G Loses Possessions in Fire, Launches GoFundMe". Pitchfork. 12 February 2019. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  20. ^ "Fundraiser Launched For Cooly G". Clash Magazine. 11 February 2019. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  21. ^ a b "Cooly G: Playin' Me". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  22. ^ "Cooly G, 'Playin Me' (Hyperdub)". Spin. 5 August 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  23. ^ Ratliff, Ben (13 July 2012). "Laid-Back Colombian Folk and Angsty Swedes". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  24. ^ Carroll, Jim. "Cooly G: Wait 'Til Night". The Irish Times. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  25. ^ "Cooly G - Wait 'Til Night". Clash Magazine. 14 October 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  26. ^ "Review: Rewind: Cooly G - Narst / Love Dub". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  27. ^ "This week's new singles". The Guardian. 6 August 2010. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  28. ^ "Cooly G - Landscapes". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  29. ^ "Cooly G "Landscapes" b/w "It's Serious"". XLR8R. 10 November 2011. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  30. ^ "Albums of the month". Dazed. 20 January 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  31. ^ "Cooly G - 'Hold Me EP'". NME. 24 January 2014. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  32. ^ "Cooly G - Hold Me · Single Review ⟋ RA". Resident Advisor. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  33. ^ "Cooly G: Armz House EP". Pitchfork. Retrieved 2 September 2021.