Episode 54
Father-Daughter Duo: Nicky Blackmarket and Millz on Life, Music, and Legacy
- Nicky on IG: https://www.instagram.com/nickyblackmarket/
- Millz on IG: https://www.instagram.com/millz.dj/
Nicky Black Market, a pioneering figure in the drum and bass scene, shares his journey from a music-loving child to a legendary DJ and record shop owner. He recounts his upbringing, influenced by his mother's background in jazz and the vibrant music culture surrounding him. Nicky's passion for music was evident from an early age, leading him to explore various genres, including electro-funk and hip-hop, which ultimately paved the way for his entrance into the jungle and drum and bass scenes. The discussion delves into the importance of Black Market Records, his iconic shop that served as a hub for aspiring DJs and music lovers. Nicky emphasizes the shop's role in shaping the scene, providing a space for like-minded individuals to connect and discover new music. His insights on navigating the evolving music landscape, adapting to changes in technology, and the significance of community in the music industry resonate throughout the conversation.
Millz, Nicky's daughter and part of the new generation of DJs, reflects on growing up in a household steeped in music. She shares his experiences of attending raves with his father, where he developed his own love for drum and bass. Mills describes the transition from being a casual observer to actively participating in the scene, highlighting the challenge of finding his unique style while also learning from his father's legacy. The episode touches on the generational shift in DJing, with Millz bringing a fresh perspective on speed mixing and audience engagement. His approach, influenced by modern trends, contrasts with Nicky's foundational experiences, showcasing how the drum and bass scene continues to evolve.
The conversation also explores the importance of resilience and adaptability in maintaining relevance in the music industry. Nicky discusses the challenges he faced when transitioning from vinyl to digital platforms, emphasizing the need to embrace change rather than resist it. Mills adds that the contemporary audience demands a fast-paced experience, leading him to experiment with quicker transitions in his sets. Both father and son express their passion for music and the joy it brings, underscoring how their shared love for the genre continues to foster a deep connection between them. As they navigate their individual paths in the industry, they embody the spirit of innovation while honoring their roots, making for a compelling discussion on the past, present, and future of drum and bass.
Mentioned in this episode:
Reissued classics from Be With Records
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Transcript
So welcome back to One to dj everyone.
Host:We're sat here with drum and bass legend Nicky Black Market and I don't know how best to describe Mills.
Host:You kind of like the.
Host:What's the word?
Host:Like the new crop.
Host:Is that right?
Host:The new blood of drum and bass.
Host:Is that fair?
Mills:Yeah, yeah.
Mills:The new gen or.
Host:That's it, yeah.
Mills:New generation, really.
Host:Yeah.
Host:So what I'm excited to talk about today is both of your journeys.
Host:I mean, I'm sure we could do two or three hours with each of you individually if, you know, if we had 35 hours in a day or whatever.
Host:But I think what would be good to start with, Nikki, is if you could give.
Host:Give us a bit of your sort of backstory of where you came up with music and DJ in and then drum and bass because of where you were in the scene and what you've contributed to it.
Host:If you.
Nicky Black Market:Right, so in a galaxy far, far away.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:So, you know, I've always been into music.
Nicky Black Market:My mum used to be a jazz dancer.
Nicky Black Market:She knew a lot of the jazz cats, a lot of the jazz people, jazz artists.
Nicky Black Market:And so I've been in and around music all my life, you know, I've always been into music.
Nicky Black Market:So when I started playing music, obviously this, it wasn't, wasn't really a job as we know it.
Nicky Black Market:Do you know what I mean?
Mills:It's like it's more of a hobby at the start, wasn't it for you?
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, of course, a hobby.
Nicky Black Market:And obviously it was, it wasn't it like as we know it is now, you know.
Nicky Black Market:And so the whole drama base thing, you could say, really unknowingly, unknowingly, I was going in that direction without even knowing it.
Nicky Black Market:So semi consciously and spiritually or whatever you would like to call it, I was going that way from the off, you know.
Nicky Black Market:So, you know, growing up, it was electro funk and early hip hop and breaks.
Nicky Black Market:And so it was going that way for the hip hop, for the jungle thing, Jaro based thing, before we even knew it.
Nicky Black Market: e shop, took the shop over in: Nicky Black Market: I come in: Nicky Black Market:From even, you know, like before that, like I said, but already going on that path of bite beats or, you know, speeding records up, putting Kenny dope bonus beats on 45, which was a 33, put it on 45 minus 8 and just messing about, doing, just, just doing madness, you know, and speeding up house records, acid ass record, speeding them right up.
Nicky Black Market:And, and like minded people that would come in the shop.
Nicky Black Market:Oh yeah, I like that, I like what you're doing.
Nicky Black Market:Like that.
Nicky Black Market:And then you'd have, you know, you'd have the traditional, you'd have the traditional house DJs of the time going, what are you doing?
Nicky Black Market:You're ruining it, you're out.
Nicky Black Market:What are you doing?
Nicky Black Market:Stop doing that.
Nicky Black Market:But, but, you know, like I say, we're already doing that.
Nicky Black Market:That was, that jungle thing was already going, but unknowingly didn't even know.
Nicky Black Market:But we're already going on our path before even knows.
Nicky Black Market:So it's like when I have someone, a youngster that wants advice, oh, what can I do to get into the scene?
Nicky Black Market:And you know, and I say to them, the first thing I say is, you might not make it in this scene.
Nicky Black Market:No disrespects to you, but you might not make it in this scene.
Nicky Black Market:But you might become a pioneer of a next scene, if that makes sense.
Nicky Black Market:Which is like just another branch off the tree.
Nicky Black Market:So, you know, with, with jungle, drama bass, it's like, you know, the dubstep thing come off of that, the grime step, the grime thing come off of that.
Nicky Black Market:So it's, it, you, you never know.
Nicky Black Market:Do you know what I mean?
Nicky Black Market:It's like I was unknowingly going in that direction before the jungle thing come, if that makes sense.
Host:Yeah, yeah.
Host:How important for the scene was the, the shot black market records for anyone who doesn't know, I'm assuming everyone does.
Nicky Black Market:It was, I'm not being like that because it's fine, but it was imperative.
Nicky Black Market:It was imperative.
Nicky Black Market:It was the old Internet, it was the flagship, it was the meeting point when everyone had to go out and meet people and whatever you, you know, go and buy records.
Nicky Black Market:You had to be there at the right time, in the right place at the right time when the tunes come in because they're gone.
Nicky Black Market:So, so it was the meeting point and, you know, extremely important.
Nicky Black Market:It became so important and I learned how to buy and sell records in a big way.
Host:Could you expand on that, please?
Host:Like, what elements of, of buying do you mean in terms of selecting what to buy or.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, yeah, selecting, selecting what to buy.
Nicky Black Market:What's going to be big?
Nicky Black Market:What's the next big thing your ear has to be to the ground.
Nicky Black Market:Like when a tune would come in and you'd think, right, this is going to be a big off tune.
Nicky Black Market:This is going to be massive.
Nicky Black Market:So I'd say to, you know, and this was like, even before distributors, you know, distributors have taken over.
Nicky Black Market:So before the distributors come, the labels would bring the tune to me in the shop, right before we had distributors, they bring them in the shop and they'd say, ah, I've got 300, I've got a service, this shop and that one and that one and that one.
Nicky Black Market:I say, no, no, no, no, no, let me have them all, please.
Nicky Black Market:Oh, no, no, no, I've got to, I've got to give it to where?
Nicky Black Market:No, no, no, no, no, no.
Nicky Black Market:I tell you what, I'd say give us a week and we give you all the money.
Nicky Black Market:If I still say, I can't, I can't, I'll tell you what then, here you go, here you are, I'll give it to you now, I'll give it to you now.
Nicky Black Market:So if I was that confident on the tune, then we'd pay them straight away.
Nicky Black Market:The tune's gone within a week, maybe 3, 4, 500 copies.
Nicky Black Market:Gone, gone.
Host:So it really was kind of the Mecca, the hub.
Mills:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:As I said, I'm not being a big head, but I think you say that.
Host:So from there then, while you're running the shop, that's got to be pretty time consuming, right?
Host:And then you, you kind of DJing progresses for you, saying sort of like, I don't know, say 95, 96 or something.
Host:How, how much time are you spending on each?
Host:Like, how busy are you?
Nicky Black Market:It was just full on.
Nicky Black Market:But at the shop, DJing, sometimes I wouldn't go to bed, I'd be out all night, literally have a shower and then go back into the shop.
Nicky Black Market:Weekends I didn't hardly sleep and it was like, I didn't think of it as a chore or thing.
Nicky Black Market:It's like when I went into the shop, it wasn't, it wasn't like now, you know, think about it now you're gonna, you're gonna go into business with someone and you do a four year, five year plan and, you know, there weren't none of that back then.
Nicky Black Market:It was like, let's just see where.
Nicky Black Market:Oh, this is fun.
Nicky Black Market:Let's see where it takes us, you know, and the journey ain't stopped.
Nicky Black Market:The journey ain't stopped yet.
Nicky Black Market:So it's, it's a blessing that.
Nicky Black Market:Still doing this thing.
Nicky Black Market:Obviously I haven't got the shop anymore, but still playing all over the place and it's just such a blessing and just such a great thing to see our music progress and go to different places and different levels and it's, you know, Playing it on Radio 1 daytime and just, you know, it's incredible.
Host:How is it.
Host:Is it all positives?
Host:You know, when you're in something that's like a sort of subculture, like drum and bass and then that gets accepted by the mainstream in that way, Is there any negatives around that about kind of worrying about it being diluted or is all just like, people get it?
Nicky Black Market:There's.
Nicky Black Market:Do you know what the thing about our music is?
Nicky Black Market:Because it still and always has been and always will be an underground scene, regardless.
Nicky Black Market:It's still underground.
Nicky Black Market:People still respect it on the underground.
Nicky Black Market:There's people that have made it, you know, have blown up and made it in the mainstream, but they're still big on the underground.
Nicky Black Market:And that's how our scene has survived and surpassed all of times.
Host:Yeah, cool.
Host:So Mills, do you prefer Mills or Millie?
Host:Sorry.
Mills:Either.
Mills:Either.
Host:Let's go with Mills because I think.
Host:Yeah.
Host:So, Mills, it'd be interesting to like, kind of hear from your perspective, your sort of earliest memories of your dad of DJing and that being part of your life.
Mills:Yeah.
Mills:So, I mean, when I was younger, obviously I just grew up around the music all the time.
Mills:Like, jungle was everywhere.
Mills:Like, you know, my dad would have his music room upstairs in the loft and like, we'd go.
Mills:Me and my sister would go up there and like, he'd always be playing his records and like every single day.
Nicky Black Market:And you coming into the shop.
Nicky Black Market:You coming into the shop.
Mills:Yeah, exactly.
Nicky Black Market:And like, what you said.
Nicky Black Market:Tell them about the story about.
Nicky Black Market:About you.
Nicky Black Market:Oh, you didn't think much of it or whatever when you were a little kid, when you're at primary school and go on.
Mills:Yeah.
Mills:So obviously when I was younger, like, I didn't really think that my dad was like a big dj, you know, I just knew that, like, he went out and like, he played music and I just didn't really know, like, the.
Mills:The kind of scale that he was doing it on.
Mills:But like, when I was at school, like, loads of my friends would always say, oh, I see your dad, like on a poster, like a flyer at the lights, like on the.
Mills:The traffic lights.
Mills:And.
Mills:And I'd just be like, oh, yeah, yeah, like, he's always on those.
Mills:Blah, blah.
Mills:And.
Mills:And obviously their parents would love him.
Mills:They'd go out to raves and stuff.
Mills:And yeah, it was just.
Mills:It was just a running joke that we'd always see him, like, his name on the flyers at the traffic lights.
Mills:But, like, I didn't really know like, the scale of what he.
Mills:What he did you know.
Mills:And then he took me out to festivals when I was younger.
Mills:I've always been, you know, around the music and literally every single day the postman would bring dub plates, like records to our door.
Mills:Do you remember, dad?
Mills:Every single day you were getting them in the face.
Mills:Yeah, yeah.
Mills:And then obviously going into Dad's shop back in the day, we just pretend that we were like behind the.
Mills:The kiosk, the desk, like, giving out music and stuff.
Mills:And people would always say to dad, oh, what have you got behind your.
Mills:Like, what have you got behind the.
Mills:The desk?
Mills:And he'd say, oh, just.
Mills:Just an orange, like some mints, you know, like.
Nicky Black Market:And they wanted.
Nicky Black Market:Sh.
Host:Was there a lot of people that were after that, like the, the sort of, you know, what's the real stuff you got here?
Host:Was.
Host:Did that happen a lot?
Nicky Black Market:Oh, without a doubt.
Nicky Black Market:Of course.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:What have you got underneath?
Nicky Black Market:What have you got underneath?
Nicky Black Market:What have you got underneath?
Nicky Black Market:I've got.
Nicky Black Market:Got a Ribena.
Nicky Black Market:Got an apple.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:So it's.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, yeah.
Nicky Black Market:I mean, everyone.
Nicky Black Market:Because, you know, people wanted to get to know us.
Nicky Black Market:They wanted to.
Nicky Black Market:And once they become regulars and we started sorting them out.
Nicky Black Market:Do you know what I mean?
Nicky Black Market:And then that's what it was about.
Host:Yeah.
Host:When were you born, mills?
Host:What year?
Mills:2000.
Mills:Millennium baby.
Mills:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Whereabouts are you from?
Host:I'm from Huddersfield, but I don't.
Host:I sound more like I live in Derby, so.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, that's why I'm listening.
Nicky Black Market:I'm hearing.
Nicky Black Market:I'm thinking.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, not.
Nicky Black Market:Not quite my.
Nicky Black Market:My old.
Nicky Black Market:My old business partner in the shop, Dave Pichoni, that also used to run.
Nicky Black Market:He used to run a Zuli Records.
Nicky Black Market:Do you remember Azuli Records?
Host:No.
Nicky Black Market:He was from Huddersfield, believe it or not.
Host:Yes.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Host:Yeah.
Host:I.
Host:I used to sound more like I'm from there, but now it's just like a generic.
Nicky Black Market:So I'm hearing.
Nicky Black Market:I'm hearing the Derby is.
Nicky Black Market:I'm hearing Knots Derby.
Nicky Black Market:I'm hearing that East Midland kind of thing.
Host:That sort of thing.
Host:Yeah, yeah, it's.
Host:It's a bit non descript.
Host:I've lost any identity that.
Nicky Black Market:I did have some, Some.
Nicky Black Market:Some like Brian Clough business.
Host:Yeah, yeah.
Nicky Black Market:He's from Northeast and his accents.
Nicky Black Market:Dialects changing and.
Host:Yeah, that's it.
Host:So I watched the Hyper D documentary, which is absolutely fantastic and it was really nice being in the cinema and hearing everyone kind of like spitting the bars along to it and stuff and finishing them, because I.
Host:I'm not.
Host:I'm not kind of in the scene or anything.
Host:It's like drum and bass jungle.
Host:I've always been aware of it, but I'm not, like, in it.
Host:But in that you kind of.
Host:Really, what's really interesting is just the, you know, you're going to Toronto and here, there and everywhere, all around the world and stuff.
Host:How was that?
Host:When is, Sorry, is Mills your eldest?
Host:Yeah, yeah.
Host:So how was that impact when she was born?
Host:Were you still, like, going out, going out DJing as much, or did you kind of pull it back?
Host:Because I think what you get now is there's a different perception around parenting and stuff.
Host:And it's, it's easier, say, as a, as a father, it's easier to kind of like, ring fence time and be like, oh, I've got to go and do child care.
Host:I've got to do things like this.
Host:Particularly since lockdown, were you able to be around a lot at home or were you just, like, out traveling all the time?
Nicky Black Market:I, I, the thing is, it was, I, I did go abroad.
Nicky Black Market:I went abroad a fair bit, but not as much as other DJs domestically.
Nicky Black Market:Mainly here, so they call me Nicky.
Nicky Black Market:Nine jobs, so mainly here.
Nicky Black Market:Do you know what I mean?
Mills:So, I mean, used to go on away on Christmas and stuff, didn't you?
Mills:Used to go Switzerland and Germany.
Nicky Black Market:Germany and yeah, yeah, that'd be on, on Christmas Day or whatever, but then I'd be back, so part and parcel of what it was.
Host:Yeah.
Host:I mean, I've got mates who work in rail that have the same thing.
Nicky Black Market:Of course.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Host:You know, in that it's like one Christmas day off every eight or something.
Nicky Black Market:The funny thing is what you just said about railway.
Nicky Black Market:I like the old trains.
Nicky Black Market:I like old trains and, and I love old trains.
Nicky Black Market:He's obsessed.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:And there was somebody got me a day on the banana train.
Nicky Black Market:Do you know the banana train?
Host:Is that the tilt in one?
Nicky Black Market:No, no, it's, it's.
Nicky Black Market:They test all the track and the overheads.
Nicky Black Market:So it's the yellow train.
Nicky Black Market:The yellow train.
Nicky Black Market:And they test all the thing.
Nicky Black Market:And this guy David, the first time I met him was the hairy dog in Derby.
Host:Oh, yeah.
Nicky Black Market:You know, the hairy dog.
Nicky Black Market:So I've done a gig there.
Nicky Black Market:And he's.
Nicky Black Market:And he was like, oh, yeah, I heard you like trains.
Nicky Black Market:I heard you like trains.
Nicky Black Market:I was like, yeah, yeah.
Nicky Black Market:And he's like, listen, I work, I work on the test train, the banana trainer.
Nicky Black Market:I'll get you on there.
Nicky Black Market:I was like, really?
Nicky Black Market:I was like, yeah, wicked.
Nicky Black Market:So, yeah, I spent a day on there and you know, like, when they're testing the track.
Nicky Black Market:They have to go over the track at different speeds and then they're testing the overheads, the electrics overhead.
Nicky Black Market:Really interesting.
Nicky Black Market:Really?
Nicky Black Market:Really.
Nicky Black Market:So every time I see somebody that's a train spire, I say, yeah, I've been on the banana train.
Host:If you like.
Host:If you like trains.
Host:Derby's the.
Host:For you.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Host:Loads of rail stuff up here.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Host:Have you been up to York to the.
Host:To the museum there?
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Yep, yep.
Host:I'm taking my little boy in a couple of weeks.
Host:I'm hoping he looks it.
Nicky Black Market:Oh, sure.
Nicky Black Market:You love it.
Mills:That was our, like, family day out.
Mills:Always.
Mills:Either trains, Star wars, football, either three.
Mills:We had to do anything that dad wanted to do.
Host:So it's nice that you guys have got this kind of the obvious common ground and then you can tell with the other stuff, like, does your other daughter, like, the same interest, Nikki, or is she quite different?
Nicky Black Market:I've got.
Nicky Black Market:I've got five kids all together.
Host:Right, okay.
Host:I should have asked that.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:I've got five kids.
Nicky Black Market:They all love.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Ina Brighton's famous five.
Nicky Black Market:They all love.
Nicky Black Market:They all love the music.
Nicky Black Market:They all love the music.
Nicky Black Market:And my boys started to mess about.
Nicky Black Market:Dexter started to mess around on the deck.
Nicky Black Market:So you never know.
Nicky Black Market:You never know.
Host:Yeah, yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Which is great.
Nicky Black Market:It's great.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:It's great to see that they're all into the music.
Nicky Black Market:So.
Host:Yeah, yeah.
Host:Like, I like it when.
Host:When mine just, like, even if he just messes with the pitch and has a little giggle, you know, you just like, just feel like it's a bit of a connection.
Nicky Black Market:Yes, indeed.
Host:I hope you don't mind.
Host:This is kind of going a bit here, there and everywhere.
Host:It's a bit of a random.
Host:So.
Nicky Black Market:Good.
Nicky Black Market:That's good.
Mills:Yeah.
Host:So, Mills, can you remember the first?
Host:I don't know if anyone ever thinks their dad's cool.
Host:You can kind of confirm or deny that.
Host:Do you remember a moment when you kind of realized, hang on, my dad might actually be cool?
Mills:I just always thought, like, first of all, the way that he dresses, like, not just to do with music, but, like, the way that he dresses isn't the same as other dads.
Mills:Like, he just lives in Lacoste, Hugo Boss, Adidas.
Mills:So, like, for one, obviously the clothes.
Mills:I always thought, like, yeah, like, we can share clothes kind of thing.
Mills:And just.
Mills:I don't know.
Mills:I mean, probably one festival that we went to with him when I was younger, I was about 10 years old, I think it was one love festival.
Mills:One love.
Nicky Black Market:One love with the Ragged wins with the record.
Mills:Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Mills:That.
Mills:That was.
Mills:That was a moment where I thought, wow, like, everyone.
Mills:I see everyone going crazy to his music.
Mills:Everyone's dancing.
Mills:It was just a mad moment just.
Mills:Just to realize, you know, obviously I was a bit older then to.
Mills:To see what was going on.
Mills:And then, like, from that point, I just wanted to do what he did.
Mills:Like, you know, my mom and dad would always ask me, oh, what did you.
Mills:What do you want to do when you're older?
Mills:And I just wanted a fun job, and I just thought Dad's job was amazing, like, making people dance.
Mills:And obviously there are some parts of it, like the traveling and stuff, which are quite tiring, but, you know, the music just.
Mills:Just keeps you alive, you know, it's the best part about it.
Mills:But.
Mills:But, yeah, probably that.
Mills:That one festival was my favorite.
Mills:Favorite moment for when I realized, you know, he's cool.
Host:Yeah.
Host:So, Nikki, how.
Host:How did you feel when you realized that Mills wanted to be a dj?
Nicky Black Market:Well, it was, you know, like I said, always in listening to the music and.
Nicky Black Market:And, you know, the, you know, so.
Nicky Black Market:So Millie just started just before lockdown, kind of getting serious with it.
Nicky Black Market:And then there was one time, was we doing a stream or what was we doing?
Mills:Or I think we were just playing around in the music room.
Nicky Black Market:And then I thought, yeah, now I think it's the right time.
Mills:But you said that to me a few times, and I just said, I don't.
Mills:I'm not ready yet.
Mills:Like, yeah, I kind of wanted to be confident in myself first.
Mills:To.
Mills:To know that I thought I was, like, confident to play out.
Mills:I didn't really want to go out without feeling confident enough in myself, you know, even though my dad had said, yeah, yeah, it sounds good, it sounds good, like, you should go do something.
Mills:We waited for the best time, I.
Host:Think, like Luke Skywalker in the forest with the blindfold.
Nicky Black Market:The funny thing is, it's like.
Nicky Black Market:And I felt really scared for her.
Nicky Black Market:So her opening, her real big opening.
Mills:Set was at New World Festival.
Nicky Black Market:New World Festival in Essex.
Nicky Black Market:Massive fuck off 10.
Nicky Black Market:Massive fuck off tent.
Nicky Black Market:Massive tent.
Nicky Black Market:The epidemic for Epidemic.
Nicky Black Market:Grant's thing.
Nicky Black Market:Grant Epidemic at this arena.
Nicky Black Market:And he gave Millie the opportunity.
Nicky Black Market:I thought, that's just great.
Nicky Black Market:Just great.
Nicky Black Market:And the monitor was really bad.
Nicky Black Market:And then Millie says, is it normally like this?
Nicky Black Market:And I said.
Nicky Black Market:And I was like, no, no, it's not.
Nicky Black Market:But she held it down and she really did, like, mask it off when there's a problem.
Nicky Black Market:A real DJ is one who can mask it off.
Nicky Black Market:If there's problems with the equipment, you don't just, you know, oh, they have to get the engineer, make a big thing of it.
Nicky Black Market:You just get on with it.
Nicky Black Market:Get on with it.
Nicky Black Market:Mask it off.
Nicky Black Market:Let the people out there enjoy themselves.
Nicky Black Market:Because that's what we are.
Nicky Black Market:We're everyone else's enjoyment.
Nicky Black Market:Entertainment and escapism.
Nicky Black Market:That's what we are.
Nicky Black Market:And they went potty.
Nicky Black Market:They went potty.
Nicky Black Market:And then I just felt so kind of, you know, and it was great to see.
Nicky Black Market:They're going bonkers.
Nicky Black Market:They're going absolutely bonkers in there.
Nicky Black Market:It was brilliant.
Mills:And the nice thing is in that gig they did.
Mills:So Grant tried out a few different things.
Mills:He had me and my dad and then Innovator and Belly Man.
Mills:So Bellyman's son is Innovator, he's around my age.
Mills:He tried out a few new sets that day.
Mills:And then also a little guy called Ibot, he was about 13 at the time, I think.
Mills:And they all went really well.
Mills:Yeah, yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Gotta pick him up.
Nicky Black Market:Got a big grump there.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Mills:Trialing out some new things.
Mills:Yeah.
Host:That's great though, isn't it?
Nicky Black Market:Kind of brilliant.
Host:Yeah.
Host:Blood in.
Host:Blood in the new talent and stuff.
Host:That was a really good bit of advice there about kind of.
Host:Yeah.
Host:How you deal with problems as a dj.
Host:Because that's something I've not really discussed with anyone on here yet.
Nicky Black Market:But, yeah, I, I'd say at the end of the day, it's all about masking off the problem.
Nicky Black Market:And the thing is, look, I'm coming from back in the day when, you know, the decks were.
Nicky Black Market:And the monitor was screaming at you back in, back in the, you know, back in the, the early 90s, the monitors didn't have any clarity.
Nicky Black Market:It was just, you know, and maybe that's, you know, it's occupational hazard because I wear hearing aids now and the hearing aids, I've got a bionic.
Nicky Black Market:They are incredible.
Nicky Black Market:I play with them in.
Nicky Black Market:So they're so high tech that they compress the sound when I'm DJing.
Host:Yeah.
Mills:And they've got Bluetooth and they got Bluetooth.
Host:Nice.
Nicky Black Market:So, you know, it's.
Nicky Black Market:It's come a long way, you know, but like I say, the monitors back in the day, like screaming at you.
Nicky Black Market:The decks, you've got to be careful.
Nicky Black Market:They were jumping and putting stuff underneath.
Nicky Black Market:You were doing all this as you were going along in your set, you know, but you weren't, but you weren't doing all this.
Nicky Black Market:Stop the music.
Nicky Black Market:Oh, we've got, you know, it's not for the pundits to see.
Nicky Black Market:All of that is for them to enjoy.
Nicky Black Market:You give them enjoyment as we are their escapism and let them enjoy it.
Host:Yeah, we are the pipe pipers.
Host:You know, it must be really nice bills, like taking up something like DJing, having had, I don't know, like 15 or 18 years of like, osmosis from like one of the biggest names in the industry.
Host:Like, the amount that you must have learned about music without kind of realizing over the time before you even started.
Nicky Black Market:She don't need any really.
Mills:It's.
Nicky Black Market:It's time.
Nicky Black Market:Time was her yts.
Nicky Black Market:Do you know what I mean?
Nicky Black Market:Time was a YTS time.
Nicky Black Market:Yes.
Mills:Yeah, definitely.
Host:So is there any one key thing that you'd say would, like, differentiate both of your styles from each other?
Host:Like, what's the biggest difference between you two as DJs?
Nicky Black Market:I don't know really, because Millie plays old stuff as well and new stuff and same with me.
Nicky Black Market:And I think it's just personal preference of if we like a certain tune or not.
Nicky Black Market:You know what I mean?
Host:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Do you.
Host:Do you dig in the same way or do you both go to different places for your tunes?
Nicky Black Market:Both.
Nicky Black Market:Really?
Nicky Black Market:I would say both.
Nicky Black Market:She's got her own people and her own, you know, that people go to her and.
Nicky Black Market:And so do I.
Nicky Black Market:And then it's like I'll say to them, oh, can I pass this one to Millie?
Nicky Black Market:You know, and then she'll do the same with me, you know, so it's.
Host:Is.
Host:Is there anything that.
Host:That she's giving you a different perspective on?
Host:Start with DJing and stuff.
Mills:Trying to be fast.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, I mean, this.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, of course there's.
Nicky Black Market:There's always room.
Nicky Black Market:No matter who you are and how old you are, there's always room to learn.
Nicky Black Market:And of course, with Millie is.
Nicky Black Market:It's another different angle.
Nicky Black Market:If Millie never came about and DJing, I might not be the same person as I am right now, like playing music.
Nicky Black Market:So.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Always learning process.
Nicky Black Market:Always.
Mills:Yeah.
Host:So when you say about being fast, Millie, what do you mean?
Mills:I meant mixing, as in, like just, I think now say, like, for example, like 20 years ago, like, people would play the tune right to the end, you know, but nowadays, like in their set, they'll play like 16 bars or 32 bars and then switch it to a new track or.
Mills:Or mix it in.
Mills:So like, that's something that I like to do, like just to keep it more fast paced so that the crowd nowadays, I feel like the younger people, they get bored Quickly, do you know what I mean?
Mills:They get bored of hearing the same thing for a long time.
Mills:So.
Mills:So yeah, I mean I, I did I t at uni as well.
Mills:So like I'm always kind of showing my dad like new stuff, new techie bits and whatever.
Host:That's really interesting though about like, because I was having a chat with someone yesterday on a totally unrelated topic around how younger people do seem to get bored a lot quicker now.
Host:And, and you know, with social being our contents or throwaway and stuff like that, it's.
Nicky Black Market:Remember we are living in a different era now.
Nicky Black Market:So regardless, like it or not, you got to get with a program.
Nicky Black Market:Doesn't matter.
Nicky Black Market:You have to get with the program.
Nicky Black Market:Stop moaning about it and just get with a program.
Nicky Black Market:You know, everybody's different.
Nicky Black Market:We just got to get with it.
Nicky Black Market:Just go with a flow.
Mills:Yeah.
Host:Do you think that like kind of with Millie and DJing together and stuff, is it, is it kind of giving you more of an awareness of that and like, because, you know, because if you're someone that's going out and you're not kind of like sort of chatting to young people and stuff, you might kind of lose that perspective.
Mills:He always does.
Mills:Yeah, he's really good with that.
Nicky Black Market:You have to, it's important.
Nicky Black Market:You have to because, you know, things changing so rapidly.
Nicky Black Market:The music's changing.
Nicky Black Market:Everything moves, everything moves quickly.
Mills:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:And now it moves even quicker today.
Nicky Black Market:So you gotta be on the, on the button.
Host:Yeah, yeah.
Host:Do you do more where you're going out to DJ sort of classic sets or is it a lot more sort of new stuff?
Nicky Black Market:Whatever, whatever.
Nicky Black Market:Depending on what crowd it is.
Nicky Black Market:It isn't that right, Millie?
Mills:Yeah, definitely.
Nicky Black Market:Doesn't matter who you know, it could be an older crowd.
Nicky Black Market:It could be an older crowd that still likes new stuff.
Nicky Black Market:Could be an older crowd that they're all back in 90.
Nicky Black Market:They want 95.
Nicky Black Market:It's a 95 kind of.
Nicky Black Market:So there's all different scenarios, which is great.
Nicky Black Market:And I, I feel that I'm so, I'm feel so blessed that I've got that time of eras behind me.
Mills:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:And I could share with Millie.
Host:Yeah.
Mills:The good thing about you is that you've always gone with the times.
Mills:Like that is your motto.
Mills:Stay with the times.
Mills:Like he's literally gone through every single like kind of Doctor who of the.
Nicky Black Market:Music scene.
Mills:And that that's why you're still relevant.
Mills:That's why you're still relevant.
Mills:You know, you're still playing all these young jump up things.
Nicky Black Market:I think all of Us from years ago, back in the day and still relevant today.
Nicky Black Market:We're all kind of like that Doctor who's of.
Nicky Black Market:Of the jungle.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Do you know what I mean?
Nicky Black Market:And it's.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, it's important.
Nicky Black Market:It is important.
Host:Yeah.
Host:Like being accepting of change.
Host:Because change is just inevitable, isn't it?
Host:In everything.
Nicky Black Market:It's got to be.
Nicky Black Market:Look, I mean, it's like when the whole leaving vinyl, I thought I was having a nervous breakdown.
Nicky Black Market:It was alien to me to go on to CDs.
Nicky Black Market:It was absolutely alien to go on to CDJs.
Nicky Black Market:At the beginning I was like, how the am I going to get used to this?
Nicky Black Market:And I'm thinking, no, no, no.
Nicky Black Market:We're humans, we develop with change.
Nicky Black Market:That's what we do.
Mills:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Our brains are up there.
Nicky Black Market:We just got to learn.
Nicky Black Market:Accept.
Nicky Black Market:That's the word.
Nicky Black Market:Accept change.
Nicky Black Market:To accept change.
Nicky Black Market:Once we can accept it, we can flow through.
Nicky Black Market:So at the beginning.
Nicky Black Market:So one point that really sticks in my head was I turned up at this dance.
Nicky Black Market:Where was it?
Nicky Black Market:In Maidstone.
Nicky Black Market:Turned up there, turned up with my records.
Nicky Black Market:And I looked, I was like, where's your decks?
Nicky Black Market:So as a resident guy on before me, I said, where's your decks?
Nicky Black Market:He goes, where's your CDs?
Nicky Black Market:I'm like, what?
Mills:Oh no.
Nicky Black Market:I'm like, what?
Nicky Black Market:And this was.
Nicky Black Market:This was.
Nicky Black Market:It wasn't industry standard yet.
Nicky Black Market:The.
Nicky Black Market:The CD or the CD joke.
Nicky Black Market:So as I was like, this is mad.
Nicky Black Market:So I went to the manager, look, what's going on here?
Nicky Black Market:Oh, you didn't have it on your tech rider?
Nicky Black Market:I said, yes, I did.
Nicky Black Market:So she didn't open up the attachment.
Nicky Black Market:It was a new manager s at the club.
Nicky Black Market:She didn't open up the attachment, which had my rider on there, turntable, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
Nicky Black Market:So didn't have the decks there and I was gonna go walking off.
Nicky Black Market:I nearly caused the riot.
Nicky Black Market:Everyone's, where are you going?
Nicky Black Market:Where are you going?
Nicky Black Market:You can't go, you gotta play.
Nicky Black Market:Where you going?
Nicky Black Market:You know, Nearly.
Nicky Black Market:Nearly caused the riot.
Nicky Black Market:So they had to go and get decks from down the road off somebody's mate or something there to go and get the decks in and to wait another 20 minutes or whatever.
Nicky Black Market:But otherwise I would have caused the riot because I wouldn't have been able to play.
Nicky Black Market:But then that was a real wake up call.
Nicky Black Market:Like, right, this is what's going on.
Mills:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:And I had to get used to it because, look, remember the turntables.
Nicky Black Market:If you can see the turntables here.
Mills:Techniques to my left, techniques.
Mills:1200 is what I prepared earlier.
Nicky Black Market:It's hands on, you know, but you can emulate them with the CDJs.
Nicky Black Market:You still got the spinning wheel that you can.
Nicky Black Market:You can still move around.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, you can emulate, which I've learned to emulate, that there's a vinyl.
Nicky Black Market:Vinyl option on the cdj and you can emulate that by twiddling around the deck.
Nicky Black Market:But at the beginning it was like, wow, yeah, this is.
Nicky Black Market:This is real change.
Host:Yeah.
Mills:I think it's good that you had that young influence as well.
Mills:Like from Clive Profile.
Nicky Black Market:He was my sidekick in the shop.
Nicky Black Market:He.
Mills:Yeah, he's.
Nicky Black Market:He was.
Nicky Black Market:He was wicked.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Mills:And he got you on from, you know, turntables to CDJs.
Mills:He helped you.
Nicky Black Market:He helped immensely.
Mills:Yeah, exactly.
Nicky Black Market:But it's just, you know, to think, you know, that where we.
Nicky Black Market:We had the records for so long and then it.
Nicky Black Market:That's it.
Nicky Black Market:Although, you know, every now and again I'll do a vinyl set now, but it.
Nicky Black Market:It's not industry standard anymore.
Host:It must have been mad con, like for you, considering you had a record shop and what that record shop was, what it symbolizes.
Nicky Black Market:Very hard.
Nicky Black Market:Very hard.
Nicky Black Market:But I thought, right, it's either get with this or just be like a dinosaur and that's it.
Nicky Black Market:Curtains.
Nicky Black Market:It's over.
Mills:Yeah, yeah.
Nicky Black Market:It wasn't any room for, oh, it's okay, I'll still play vinyl.
Nicky Black Market:Because the decks weren't being maintained anymore.
Nicky Black Market:The turntables that were in clubs were just used as ornaments to put your bloody CD wallet on.
Host:Yeah.
Host:Did.
Host:Did you ever go to Serato?
Nicky Black Market:No.
Nicky Black Market:I was thinking of that, but it wasn't quite industry standard, so just went with the.
Nicky Black Market:The whole CD and then the USB thing.
Host:Yeah.
Host:Because Serato was a weird one because they used to have the external box that you'd plug in, so it meant you could go anywhere.
Host:But then after that it became.
Host:When it became inbuilt into mixes and stuff.
Host:It's like, if you've not got the right Serato license, you go somewhere, you out of luck.
Mills:Exactly.
Nicky Black Market:And this scared the hell out of me.
Nicky Black Market:That scared the hell out of me.
Nicky Black Market:When I.
Nicky Black Market:I mean, I've got to say, Ryder, Groove Rider, he is a don.
Nicky Black Market:He'll just go around the back of the deck, you know, for me, where I might be doing five gigs in the night to keep doing that.
Nicky Black Market:And then you might get unstuck somewhere.
Nicky Black Market:I was like, no, I can't do.
Nicky Black Market:I can't do that.
Mills:Or your laptop runs out of charge or something.
Mills:Because they do it on the laptop now, don't they?
Mills:Yeah.
Mills:Could not imagine that.
Host:No.
Host:It's terrifying.
Host:Like, I remember I was playing a party once and the guy on before me had, I don't know, final scratch or serato or something, and he couldn't get it working.
Host:Maybe there was an issue, one of the needles or something, and I'd gone with vinyl, so I just felt quite smug that.
Host:Yeah, all right, this is heavy and cumbersome, but at least it works.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, yeah, at least it works, you know?
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, it's.
Nicky Black Market:It's.
Nicky Black Market:It's, you know, you know, it's been tried and tested, you know it works.
Host:Yeah.
Mills:Wasn't there a time, dad, where you were playing a set and then before you, the guy couldn't play because, like, something to a record box went down?
Mills:So then you were like, oh, it's fine, I've got my records, or it's fine, I can.
Mills:I can play without the waveforms or something.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, Something happened.
Nicky Black Market:I can't remember.
Nicky Black Market:There was like some glitch or something.
Nicky Black Market:And the CDs, you could still play them, but they weren't nothing.
Nicky Black Market:You had to play them, play them live, you know, had to play them live.
Nicky Black Market:And it's like a real dj.
Nicky Black Market:A real DJ should be able to do that anyway, right?
Nicky Black Market:A real DJ should be able to do that anyway.
Nicky Black Market:But it was like, ah, I can't play.
Nicky Black Market:Can.
Nicky Black Market:I can't.
Nicky Black Market:I can't play.
Nicky Black Market:I was.
Nicky Black Market:Why not?
Nicky Black Market:Because it never had, like some Q and they'd have the Q points and it had the thing on there.
Nicky Black Market:I'm like, wow.
Nicky Black Market:It was a.
Nicky Black Market:It crashed or something happened.
Nicky Black Market:There was some glitch in whatever it was and it all went down and then just had to.
Nicky Black Market:To play it live.
Nicky Black Market:Just run it in live and that.
Host:That's.
Nicky Black Market:That's what it is and should be.
Mills:Yeah, yeah.
Host:It's kind of.
Host:It.
Host:It's gone on to being something else now, dj and hasn't.
Host:It's like controllerism.
Host:So you look at, like, say, like a James Hype or someone like that, the way he plays a controller.
Host:It's more like a performance instrument than a set of decks, but it's like.
Host:It's almost like its own separate art, really.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Mills:Yeah.
Host:So I think something that's interesting, Mills, is you seem to be, like, really sort of on it with, like, Instagram and stuff like that, building your audience, communicate, like, and everything you do.
Host:It looks like you're having fun.
Host:How difficult is it?
Host:Because none of us are having fun 247 are we do.
Host:Correct me if I'm wrong.
Host:How hard is it to maintain something like that?
Host:I'm rubbish at social media, so I.
Mills:Just love, like, I just love putting stuff out there.
Mills:Like, I don't know, I just think it's quite fun, like videoing things.
Mills:I've always been like quite a vloggy person, like vlogging my life.
Mills:Like, oh hey, like this is what we're doing.
Mills:Do you know?
Mills:I mean, I've always been like that since.
Nicky Black Market:You find that fun anyway.
Mills:Yeah, I love that fun.
Mills:Exactly.
Nicky Black Market:So putting it together so familie.
Nicky Black Market:It is fun.
Mills:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:She finds it fun doing the whole thing.
Mills:She finds it fun but trying to keep up with it.
Mills:Obviously there are a lot of things going on, like a lot of gigs, a lot of content, all this kind of stuff.
Mills:For me, I like planning things.
Mills:So I've got like a bank of stuff that I've got in my drafts on Instagram or whatever and then just kind of like set a day like at 6:00 or Tuesday or something.
Mills:I'll post it then or whenever I like doing.
Mills:So right now I'm posting, trying to.
Mills:I'm trying to post a tick tock every day because apparently it's something to do with the algorithm.
Mills:Dad.
Mills:I can hear that by the way.
Nicky Black Market:So mean to do that.
Host:So always dig in.
Mills:Yeah.
Mills:Was I saying yes.
Mills:Good to plan stuff with the algorithms now as well.
Mills:It's hard to work out like what you should do when.
Mills:Because they're always changing and there's no exact method that, that you can crack for these algorithms.
Mills:Like they're, they're really random.
Mills:But yeah, it's good to just be constant with posting and, and showing what you're up to and everything.
Mills:I just, Even if it's not on your actual page on the story is good.
Mills:Yeah, yeah.
Mills:I just, I think it's fun.
Mills:So.
Host:Yeah, yeah, it's.
Host:That's a nice position to be in I think.
Host:I think for a lot of people it's.
Host:Maybe that's like a lot of.
Host:That could be an age thing though, you know, because it's.
Host:If it's something that was in your life kind of quite early.
Host:And also I think when you're younger you can.
Host:When you're doing things like this, you just might learn how to be a lot more resourceful.
Host:Like the things people can create with a phone or with an iPad are, or that sort of thing is, is just phenomenal.
Host:Yeah, it's true.
Host:Have you got any favorite stories of your dad's DJing Mills.
Host:Anything that, like, really you kind of hold close.
Mills:So we.
Mills:When was it?
Mills:2018, the first Cavus that we did.
Nicky Black Market:Was it 18?
Mills:I think it might have been, yeah.
Mills:So dad always played at Unity in the sun in Cavos for Billy Bunter and fat controllers, like, gig out there.
Mills:And he would always go, and I'd be like, oh, I want to come with you.
Mills:So one year I just thought, you know what?
Mills:I'm just gonna go.
Mills:Then I went out there and I think we had separate plane tickets, so he went like, a couple hours after me, and I went, like, in the morning.
Mills:So he got stuck on a flight later on and didn't come till late.
Mills:And I met, like, all of his friends.
Mills:Like, obviously I knew everyone already.
Mills:They kind of just welcomed me as like this, you know, it's like a big family out there.
Mills:And then he came in the evening and I'd already, like, made myself, like, welcome.
Mills:He'd played there, obviously, like, a few times before.
Mills:And then, like, since then.
Mills:So I go out with him every year.
Mills: That was: Mills:That was the first year that I went.
Mills:So I was 18 years old, went there for the first year, and then I thought it was so much fun.
Mills:I went the next year again and he would do, like, pool parties, boat parties, playing on the beach, and, yeah, it was a lot of fun.
Mills:So I just thought I'd go again the next year and.
Mills:Because obviously they.
Mills:They knew me and they knew that I was DJing, so they thought, see if she wants to do a set.
Mills:So I think dad left his USB or something because he didn't know he was going to be doing a gig that night.
Mills:And they just said, oh, do you want to play?
Mills:And then I just.
Mills:I played a set.
Mills:And then, like, since then, they.
Mills:They really, like, you know, the way that I mix, like, bringing the old into the new.
Mills:So I've been going every year with him since.
Mills:But.
Mills:But as we were saying.
Mills:Sorry to get back to the whole long story, but as I was saying, the Cavos, Unity in the sun.
Mills:For me, it's just such a nice memory that we always have because we go every year we play together.
Mills:Obviously we do our own sets as well, but for me, it's just.
Mills:It's nice.
Mills:It's like a holiday and work at the same time, but it's not really work because obviously we love what we do.
Host:Yeah.
Mills:But, yeah, that.
Mills:That's probably my favorite kind of memory.
Host:Amazing.
Host:So just on the social media point that we were talking about before, Nikki Is it quite handy for you that Mills does so much social?
Host:Because like a lot of its collaborative stuff, you've kind of got someone doing a lot of social.
Host:That means you don't have to do as much.
Nicky Black Market:Well, I mean, the thing is I, I learn off of her.
Nicky Black Market:I learn what she's doing, do you know what I mean?
Nicky Black Market:So.
Nicky Black Market:Which is great.
Nicky Black Market:She knows what she's doing.
Nicky Black Market:I'm learning.
Nicky Black Market:I'm learning as well.
Nicky Black Market:Do you know what I mean?
Nicky Black Market:So, yeah, it's great that she does all that.
Nicky Black Market:It is brilliant.
Nicky Black Market:It's brilliant.
Host:Yeah.
Host:Have you got a particular memory of DJing together that's.
Host:That's kind of stands out for me.
Nicky Black Market:I think when we done Glastonbury together.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, that was bonkers.
Nicky Black Market:That was mad.
Nicky Black Market:I was just thinking like lip pin out.
Nicky Black Market:This is Matt.
Nicky Black Market:And they came mad.
Nicky Black Market:They came mad.
Nicky Black Market:And what year was that?
Mills:Was it 20, 22 or 21?
Mills:Might have been 22.
Nicky Black Market:I can't remember.
Mills:I can't remember one of the two.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Four years or.
Nicky Black Market:I can't remember when they opened it up again and like was.
Nicky Black Market:It was mad.
Nicky Black Market:It's like, wow, this is, this is incredible.
Nicky Black Market:Come to my eye, you know what I mean?
Nicky Black Market:Wicked.
Nicky Black Market:Wicked.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, it was brilliant that.
Mills:And then we did our tour in Canada as well.
Mills:Canada was amazing.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, that was good.
Mills:Cheeky Mondays in Amsterdam.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, yeah, we've done it.
Nicky Black Market:Cheeky Mondays.
Nicky Black Market:It's the longest.
Nicky Black Market:One of the longest running drummer based jungle events in Europe.
Mills:And it's on a Monday.
Nicky Black Market:It's like 17 years and been going 17 years and it's on a Monday.
Nicky Black Market:They've had everybody pass through there.
Nicky Black Market:So.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, that was.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, that is incredible.
Host:When you were kind of bringing Milia into the scene sort of around raves and things like that.
Host:Did, did you ever have any concerns around sort of drugs and exposure and anything like that?
Nicky Black Market:Just wise.
Nicky Black Market:They're up to what it does and do you know what I mean?
Nicky Black Market:Just.
Nicky Black Market:Just tell her everything.
Nicky Black Market:What, what it's about.
Mills:Well, I don't really remember that.
Mills:I just remember going to raves and everyone was so happy.
Mills:But like I, I was like, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Mills:Like I was just happy with them, you know.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Host:Because I mean it's.
Host:Yeah, it, it can be concerning enough like just thinking about your kids experiencing anything for the first time, but kind of getting in like going to raves and things like that, that's.
Host:That's quite a big deal, you know, it's quite different.
Mills:Well, we were always together, weren't we?
Mills:You'd always take me behind the deck.
Mills:Cool, whatever.
Nicky Black Market:But just, you know, just to wise her up.
Nicky Black Market:What they do and what it does to you and.
Nicky Black Market:And it's.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, to me it's never really, never really bothered or I didn't.
Mills:I don't really drink either.
Mills:I just.
Mills:I like going and enjoying the music really.
Mills:Just, just love the music.
Mills:I'm not one of those kind of people that need something to have a good time.
Host:Is there a difference in the sort of.
Host:Type of.
Host:Type of drugs and the type of effects of.
Host:Of audiences at RA crowds at raves and stuff like that now?
Host:Cuz even like pill.
Host:Pills will be different now to what they were.
Host:Right.
Nicky Black Market:The thing is, no matter what anybody says, there's drugs absolutely everywhere.
Nicky Black Market:There's drugs everywhere.
Nicky Black Market:So it's.
Nicky Black Market:You could be.
Nicky Black Market:It could be on the street corner, it could be.
Nicky Black Market:So it could be anywhere.
Nicky Black Market:Anywhere and everywhere.
Nicky Black Market:I'm finding nowadays that a lot of people, a lot of people are going for the music.
Mills:Yeah.
Host:Because a lot more of sort of your generation mills.
Host:There's a lot more sort of cleaner living, isn't there?
Mills:Yeah, a lot of people care about obviously their bodies and like they don't want to be putting in their bodies.
Nicky Black Market:I'd say even, I'd say even the older generation now are like done that, been there, worn a T shirt.
Nicky Black Market:I'm in it for the music.
Mills:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:A lot of people.
Host:Yeah.
Host:Yeah.
Host:I'm mindful of time at the moment.
Host:Let me just check my notes and see if there's anything.
Host:I hope this has been all right for you guys, by the way.
Mills:Yeah, it's been good.
Mills:Really good.
Mills:You've gone into all kind of avenues and.
Host:Yeah, I think it's, it's all interesting stuff to me that.
Host:Because things about, you know, I think about my relationship with my kids and stuff like that and.
Nicky Black Market:How old are your kids?
Host:4 and 10.
Host:So good times.
Host:My 4 year old Alfie could talk to you about trains.
Host:When you, when you're mixing drew and bass and you.
Host:And you're going in from sort of older to newer stuff.
Host:We've gone through the years of this like loudness wars and everything being super compressed and all the mental sort of sound design and stuff like that.
Host: e got something say from like: Nicky Black Market:You catch that vibe and how you progress from that.
Nicky Black Market:So not always.
Nicky Black Market:I wouldn't say.
Nicky Black Market:Oh, it's got to be, because then you're looking like.
Nicky Black Market:You're looking very.
Nicky Black Market:You could say, if you're extreme like that.
Nicky Black Market:Very computerized.
Mills:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:You know, so it's about catching a vibe.
Host:Yeah, yeah.
Host:I think this is the thing.
Host:Sometimes when people.
Host:Because you get so much support from the tech now, because you've got all your bpm, your key detection and all this sort of thing, you can kind of mix by numbers, but then that's when you're going to lose out on that sort of catching the vibe and stuff, isn't it?
Mills:No.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, it's not about that.
Nicky Black Market:By numbers.
Host:Yeah.
Host:Do you find many other DJs sort of your age trying to do it like that, Mills?
Mills:Yeah.
Mills:Because obviously you need to look up at the crowd.
Mills:You need to see like, who what, like what kind of crowd it is, like the age difference, all of that, to gauge the kind of audience and know what to play.
Mills:But a lot of people don't really do that.
Mills:They'll just like, have like a whole set lined up.
Mills:Like, I don't.
Mills:Don't get me wrong, obviously I do like planning, like, certain doubles and like, tunes, like signature blends that I like.
Mills:But, you know, there's some people that will have a whole set and they'll just go, 1, 2, 3, 4, and play every single tune that's there.
Mills:But it might not be the right set for that crowd, you know, so you just have to see what it's like when you're there, what kind of audience, what they want and stuff.
Mills:And if.
Mills:If you can get there a little bit earlier as well, to see what the person before you is playing.
Mills:It's good to.
Mills:To know the kind of vibe and if you want to switch it up, you know.
Host:Yeah, there's.
Host:There's a lot of talk to people about, you know, doing your homework on who's before you and who's after you and stuff, and just kind of making sure that you're doing the right thing to fit in between the two and, like, take them on the right journey for the next person and stuff.
Host:Yeah, it's really interesting.
Host:Are there any sort of particular unsung heroes that you can mention?
Host:The drum and basing sort of old or new?
Nicky Black Market:To me.
Nicky Black Market:There's too many.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, there's loads.
Nicky Black Market:There's loads of people that have probably left the music.
Nicky Black Market:There's people that have.
Nicky Black Market:That are still in it.
Nicky Black Market:And there's.
Nicky Black Market:There's rather than just name, you know, name one or two people.
Nicky Black Market:There's just the scene is the scene.
Nicky Black Market:It's like a whole buck of people that.
Nicky Black Market:It just reminds me when.
Nicky Black Market:When it all started kind of thing where it was just like a.
Nicky Black Market:And people coming when I first was in the shop and people gathered together in the shop, you know, but obviously you don't see them now.
Nicky Black Market:It's all on this.
Host:Yeah.
Host:When's the Nikki Black Market documentary going to be made?
Host:Then?
Host:We've got the Stevie Hyperd one.
Nicky Black Market:Oh, doing a.
Nicky Black Market:Doing a book as we.
Nicky Black Market:As we speak.
Host:Oh, amazing.
Nicky Black Market:Doing a book.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:It's Brian Bell Fortune.
Nicky Black Market:It's going to be going through Bunters.
Host:Infrastructure Music Mondays, isn't it?
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Brian Bell Fortune also wrote All Big Up.
Mills:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Remember that book?
Nicky Black Market:Have a look at that.
Nicky Black Market:All Cruise Big up, which is one of the really early books about the jungle movement and the jungle scene.
Host:Yeah, awesome.
Nicky Black Market:He's also.
Nicky Black Market:He was also one of the original guys in.
Nicky Black Market:Used to be involved with One in the Jungle on Radio 1 in the mid-90s.
Nicky Black Market:Do you remember One in the Jungle?
Host:No.
Host:So just.
Host:Just to give you a bit.
Host:I should have said this at the start, really.
Host:So my context with drum and bass, it was because my.
Host:My sister was a bit of a raver and it was more just kind of hearing things blasting through her.
Host:What.
Host:So she had certain, like Dave Angel Groove Rider lsd.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:You see this, you know.
Nicky Black Market:And that is my award and reward to convert people like yourself.
Nicky Black Market:That would have been my award, really.
Nicky Black Market:Converting people into the music.
Host:Yeah, because it's.
Host:It was just so funky like.
Host:And just little bits of like hip hop that were in there and stuff like that.
Host:I remember like Stu Allan using a Dutch like old school rap track and stuff like that.
Host:And yeah, it just kind of got me so funky.
Host:But yeah, I kind of fell off with it when it got harder.
Host: Sort of around: Nicky Black Market:When did you move from Huddersfield?
Host: I moved from Huddersfield in: Host:I came down here for uni.
Nicky Black Market:Okay, so you got.
Nicky Black Market:I don't know if you know.
Nicky Black Market:Do you remember L double.
Host:No.
Nicky Black Market:These up from Huddersfield.
Nicky Black Market:He's from Huddersfield.
Nicky Black Market:I mean, he was one of the.
Nicky Black Market:It used to be in a group called Unique Free back in the day.
Host:I think I know the name.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, you probably know the music when you'd hear.
Host:I mean, I wasn't in any scene.
Host:I was just.
Host:I just sit in the shed at my mate's house smoking weed.
Host:Never went anywhere.
Host:You Know, you know, seemed to serve a purpose at the time.
Host:But yeah, I wasn't.
Host:Wasn't sort of out raving or anything.
Host: as on in Derby, probably like: Host:But by that time it just gotten so heavy.
Host:Whereas just.
Host:I just preferred all the more funky stuff.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, I mean, Derby, Derby, you had Simon Baseline, Smith and the technique lot.
Nicky Black Market:I mean, they used to run.
Nicky Black Market:They used.
Nicky Black Market: in probably around that time,: Nicky Black Market:I can't remember the club, it was in the center.
Nicky Black Market:But they used to run the drummer bass night.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Host:Gatehouse.
Nicky Black Market:Gatehouse.
Nicky Black Market:Gatehouse.
Nicky Black Market:That was it.
Nicky Black Market:Tremendous, tremendous.
Nicky Black Market:And you know, Simon's.
Nicky Black Market:Simon Baseline's been in it from do as well.
Host:So yeah, I need to get him on.
Host:I want to chat to him about another project potentially as well around, sort of.
Host:I want to do something around the nightlife in Derby.
Host:And I think he was like one of the soul boys.
Nicky Black Market:He was original soul boy.
Host:Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Original.
Nicky Black Market:Original.
Nicky Black Market:Pride Park.
Host:Yeah, that's it.
Nicky Black Market:Pride Park.
Host:Oh, Nikki, have you heard of Kreich Tramway Museum?
Nicky Black Market:Yes.
Host:Have you ever been?
Nicky Black Market:No.
Nicky Black Market:Where is that?
Host:It's about.
Host:It's about half an hour from Derby.
Nicky Black Market:Right.
Host:Just up there.
Mills:Train museum.
Nicky Black Market:Okay.
Host:It's trams, but it's like.
Host:It's an old sort of Victorian style tramway.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, Yep, yep.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Host:But up near there there's something.
Host:There's a place called Butterly as well, just the other side of the A38 and they've got like.
Nicky Black Market:Can you send me links?
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, can you send me a link to that?
Host:Yeah, I'll send you them because, yeah, they're both pretty inexpensive things to do and.
Host:Yeah, if you're into that sort of thing, it's brilliant.
Nicky Black Market:They're both pretty good history.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, Very interesting.
Host:Yeah.
Host:Just.
Host:Yeah, so it's the place for it up around here.
Host:Air in York and Croydon.
Host:I think Croydon's a bit of a rail place, strangely in it.
Nicky Black Market:Croydon as well.
Nicky Black Market:They got.
Nicky Black Market:They've got the trans back, so.
Nicky Black Market:And they used to be.
Nicky Black Market:There used to be trolley buses around there as well.
Nicky Black Market:London Transport used to run trolley buses with the overheads.
Host:Yeah, it's mad in it.
Host:Sorry, I'm totally going off on one here.
Host:So what's coming up for you guys?
Host:So we'll be going.
Host:We'll be going live with this in about three weeks.
Host:So what are the projects, aside from the book have you got coming up?
Mills:We've got a tour, haven't we?
Mills:Tour in.
Mills:In Holland together.
Nicky Black Market:Oh, yeah, Tour going on.
Host:Nice.
Nicky Black Market:That's end of this month.
Nicky Black Market:Sorry, End of Feb.
Nicky Black Market:Sorry.
Nicky Black Market:Holland.
Mills:Unity again.
Nicky Black Market:There's unity in the sun again in Corfu.
Mills:Yeah.
Nicky Black Market:Beginning of the summer to think.
Host:Yeah.
Host:And you've got your radio show as well.
Host:All right, Mills?
Mills:Yeah, we both got our Cool FM show, I think.
Nicky Black Market:Your shows.
Mills:Yours is the second Sunday of the month, is it?
Nicky Black Market:That's the end.
Nicky Black Market:End.
Nicky Black Market:The last.
Mills:The last.
Mills:So fourth Sunday of the month.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Mills:Eight till ten, is it?
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Mills:And then mine is the third Friday of the month from five till seven.
Mills:Drive time.
Host:Nice.
Nicky Black Market:And then, obviously, there's the label.
Nicky Black Market:Oh, yeah, we run cartoons as well, so.
Nicky Black Market:Cartoons.
Mills:A new release every month.
Host:And you've got the.
Host:Is the Ravitots.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, we do Raver Tots as well.
Mills:Yes.
Nicky Black Market:That's all over the place.
Nicky Black Market:That's absolutely.
Nicky Black Market:That is.
Nicky Black Market:That.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, exploded.
Nicky Black Market:So that's a big thing.
Nicky Black Market:Literally all over the country.
Nicky Black Market:Literally, yeah.
Host:It's great, though, isn't it?
Host:Because it's like old people, older people don't want to be old, so it's like, you know, stay young and.
Nicky Black Market:And bringing the families together.
Nicky Black Market:Bring the families together.
Nicky Black Market:Little kids, and they can rave with their.
Nicky Black Market:Their mums and dads, their aunties, their uncles, their grannies, their granddads.
Nicky Black Market:They could rave with what the older family.
Nicky Black Market:There's so much for the kids to do.
Nicky Black Market:They'll never get bored.
Nicky Black Market:There's loads of stuff, so it's wonderful.
Mills:You should take your kids.
Host:Yeah, Yeah.
Host:I think the only one that's around here, like, I don't know how often they do them.
Host:One of the guys who used to do DIY sound System, I think, runs them back in the day.
Host:But, yeah, I need to get over to them.
Mills:Definitely.
Host:And you're out in the west country, aren't you, Nikki?
Nicky Black Market:I mean, I'm in Gloucestershire.
Nicky Black Market:Yeah.
Host:So how's that with all the, like, sort of traveling around and stuff?
Nicky Black Market:Doesn't matter.
Nicky Black Market:I'm traveling all the time, so it doesn't matter.
Host:Amazing.
Host:So have you got any particular keys to longevity that we've not discussed?
Mills:Tea?
Nicky Black Market:Just keep enjoying.
Nicky Black Market:You have to keep enjoying what you're doing.
Nicky Black Market:You have to enjoy it.
Nicky Black Market:I'm still living the dream.
Nicky Black Market:I'm still living the dream.
Host:Amazing.
Host:Any other top tips from you, Mills?
Mills:Same here, really.
Mills:Just.
Mills:Just to love what you're doing.
Mills:Because, I mean, if you didn't love what you were doing, then it would just be a bit long.
Nicky Black Market:What are you doing, then?
Nicky Black Market:Yeah, if you're not enjoying life as it is.
Nicky Black Market:What are you doing with your life?
Nicky Black Market:You have to enjoy what you're doing.
Mills:Definitely.
Host:Amazing.
Host:Thanks ever so much for your time today, guys.
Host:Yeah.
Host:Good luck with everything.
Mills:Yeah.
Mills:Thanks so much for having us.
Mills:You too.
