"I've always listened to Emimen, but I wouldn't say he's someone who I aspire to be like. I like his style, but I'm not trying to imitate anybody. 'Cause I'm a white girl and I'm rappin', it's like, 'Oh OK, she's like Eminem,' or, 'She's like Mike Skinner.' It's annoying, 'cause once someone compares you to someone, they kind of get into their head that it's gonna be like that when really it ain't."

Putting to rest the presumption that she's nothing more than a biter, she continues, "I know that I'm different. Without trying to sound big-headed, I know that what I'm doing is a breath of fresh air. I started off doing this on my own with no support from anyone on the scene. This was way back, like four years ago. When I started, I couldn't get on pirate radio or anything like that. I found it hard to get my name about, so I started putting things out on the Internet, which I found easier to do 'cause [when] I put one-minute clips of me on [the Web], they'd circulate and my name got about. Eventually people like Mike Skinner heard about me and wanted to collaborate. He asked me to do the remix of 'Fit But You Know It.' Then I think people started to realize that I was doin' it seriously. I'm not following in the footsteps of any male."

Lady Sovereign is certainly a unique voice in the grime scene, and among female emcees.

"My style is cheeky. It's upfront, it's funny and that's just the way I am. It's just my personality on a track. I differ from most girls [who are] quite aggressive and quite deep. If I wanna talk about a deep subject I will, but I do it in a humorous sort of way 'cause it just grabs people's attention a lot more."

After several UK singles, two appearances on the celebrated Run the Road comp, and the Bitchin' EP (a four-track, Internet-only giveaway), Lady Sov debuts stateside with Vertically Challenged, an eight-track EP with DVD. A compilation of past singles plus three remixes, including one courtesy of Beastie Boy Adrock ("A Little Bit of Shh!"), this effort is meant to whet U.S. appetites for this spring's Island/Def Jam full-length, Public Warning. The self-proclaimed "white midget" explains the reasoning behind this atypical hip-hop release.

"To get people's attention. 'Cause it's an American thing, I want to show people where I started and build it up, rather than just go straight in with my newer material."

Sov also hopes to avoid a repeat of the initial backlash she received in the UK.

"I don't want [Americans] to think I'm a novelty act 'cause I'm a white female and I'm tiny. I want people to know that I'm serious - well, not serious - but I just want people to have a laugh with me and enjoy it, because it's a feel-good album. It's fun."

Vertically Challenged's main tracks are firmly planted in the grime style with deep bass and drums, icy accents, and peculiar samples, but Sov offers only hints of subversion and alternates between rapid-fire delivery ("Cha Ching," "A Little Bit of Shh!") and a laid-back flow ("Fiddle With the Volume," "Random") that mixes her native accent with Jamaican patois and a Dirty South flavor. Backed by a range of palatable U.S. hip-hop beats, the remixes sound more likely to garner radio play and win over U.S. audiences.

"I always give people a choice," Sov explains. "With my singles, there's one dance remix, one hip-hop remix, one alternative remix ... it's 'cause I'm into all types of music. I'm not a grime artist. I'm an artist. I'll do any type of beat. If someone started bangin' spoons against a wall, I would do a tune out of it with the beat. No one can really put me in a box anywhere, and I don't wanna be in a box. People don't know where to place me and I love it."

Lady Sov Lingo
Bunking - "Skipping school, like playing hooky."
Cheeky -"I'm being playful."
Safe - "Thank you, or 'safe' as in they're a safe person, like you're a cool person."
Skeen - "Just means seen, like OK."
Tichy - "Short. 'Tichy ting' just means I'm short."

BACK TO ISSUE FEATURES