What’s your name?
My name is Prido. (@northsideprido)
Where does it come from and what does it mean?
It’s not actually complicated how I got that name. My name is Prince, and I grew up in Zambia, Africa. So in Zambia when I was younger, my friends and I used to add the letters ‘DO’ to the end of names so my name was always Prido. So there isn’t really a complicated backstory behind the name.
You mentioned you grew up in Zambia, when did you move over to the UK?
I moved in 2001, I live in Manchester now but I am from Preston. I’ve lived in Manchester for around 10 years.
What made you start doing music?
I’m Christian so I grew up going to church every week and that’s where I learnt to sing and I got involved in the talent show at church one time. In the talent show, my cousin and I performed a Kanye West song and we received a crazy reception. It kind of just grew from there and I would start to write little raps and stuff going forward.
How long have you been doing music?
I’ve been doing music for a while but I would say I’ve been doing it seriously for about 5 years.
You mentioned Kanye West, are there any other artists that inspire your music?
When I moved to the UK the people that were buzzing were Chip, Kano and Tinchy Stryder so they were a massive influence on me and then later on when Afrobeats started popping off people like WizKid and Burna Boy were inspirations. There are also many others, for example I am a massive Pusha T fan so I think you go through phases where there’s like one main inspiration at a time.
Is there a main message you try to send through your music?
Mainly positive vibes, I try to educate people about pursuing a trouble-free life and don’t do road. Really just to live your life accordingly and if not doing that kind of music it’s just some good vibes girl songs.
What’s your creative process for creating music?
It really depends on the project. Certain projects are ones where the producer sends me the beat and I go to the studio and put the verse down and record it like that. With Others it is me and the producer going back and forth trying to figure out the sound and loads of little things to try to create something unique as I want to bring out sounds people have never ever heard. In my last project Patience I wanted it to have a grime influence but a bit Afro and I specifically wanted elements from East Africa like Eritrea and Ethiopia. It took a while to find what all these things together would sound like.
Are there any artists that have left a lasting impression on you?
Yeah, the one person I can say is DJ Ironik from back in the day he was so humble. Obviously, he has done well as he has songs with big names like Elton John and Chip so I thought he would have an ego but he was so down to earth. Another person I would say ROKU145 he’s an Afrobeat singer from Manny, he is so precise with how he wants his sound to sound so there will be loads of changes. I have loads but I can only think of those two at the moment
If you could pick your favourite song out of all your projects what would it be and why?
At this moment it’s my new single Push because it’s the most recent version of me. It has rap elements, amapiano vibes and singing as well. If it was to pick another one I would say G-Cheque.
Have you done any or many performances in the past?
Yeah, I’ve done a lot of performances, I have performed up and down the country and I’ve got one in a few days in Madrid.
Have you got any pre-performance rituals?
I say a little prayer and I try to stay sober until after my performance as I’ve learnt from the past.
Can you share with us any embarrassing moments that have happened on the stage?
The most recent one was when I was performing at a festival in Bolton and had just finished performing earlier in Manchester and there were so many drinks being handed out at both venues. So I was a bit waved so when it was time for me to go on stage I ran onto the stage and missed the step and fell so that was embarrassing but I had to make a joke and brush it off, so now I try to stay sober for performances.
Are there any upcoming projects you like us to know about?
I don’t have any upcoming projects at the moment but I have some events that people can come to. I’ll be performing at the Beyond The Music festival in Manchester on the 12th of October and on the 1st of November I’ll be performing at a BBC 1Xtra Showcase Event.
Written by Alya Adekola