Arts > Theatre

Harry Baker

Norwich Cathedral

24/05/17

 

Five star shows at Edinburgh. Worldwide tours. A published book of poetry. World Poetry Slam champion. A podcast, and fans everywhere. Young Harry Baker has achieved a great deal over the past few years, somehow managing to get a degree in Maths and German at the same time as developing an incredible skills in wordplay and performance. These days he plays gigs, does rap battles and TED talks, school workshops and literary festivals – you can’t keep a good poet (with fans including Scroobius Pip and Kate Tempest) down. I spoke to him ahead of this third visit to Norwich Cathedral within three years.

 

You’re a poet, Harry. What would you say a poet does in 2017?

They write poems! I’ve been lucky enough to meet and perform alongside poets all over the world and this really is the uniting thread. For me it’s a mixture of writing and performing, as well as delivering workshops on schools and collaboration with others. It can cross over in to theatre, comedy and music but at its core it’s always been about a love of language and trying to express myself in the best way possible.

 

You first saw some poetry being performed at Edinburgh Festival. You’ve since performed two shows there yourself which have been awarded five stars. What did you do to get your foot on the ladder and make your dreams a reality?

I started off going to open mic and getting to know people who were doing what I wanted to be doing. I’ve never been comfortable with or particularly good at ‘networking’ but I found it helpful to see people further along the path than I was to see what was possible. The first time I went up to Edinburgh I was performing to six people in the audience some days so it can feel like a bit of a grind, but I’ve always loved the opportunity to get on stage so even those ones stand out as formative experiences.

 

Your two shows for Edinburgh had themes – do you generally think of a theme and write to it, or is it the other way round?

I definitely write the poems first and then think how they might fit together. Then I might write one or two more pieces at the end to tie it together, but in general the theme tends to be whatever is going on in my life around the time when I am writing.

 

At school you parodied Jay-Z in competitions – have you always loved words and played around with them?

I used to love reading children poetry and silly rhymes, and it was listening to a lot of hip hop and rap as a teenager that re-ignited that love of lyricism that eventually led to me writing properly.

 

If you love words so much and are so talented in using them, how come you chose to do maths at uni? Is there a connection between maths and poetry for you?

Poetry was always something fun I did on the side and I liked maths too so it wasn’t a difficult choice to study at uni. As I’ve gone on I’ve found definite links between the two such as the search for truth sand the satisfaction that comes form solving an equation or coming up with a decent line, but part of the joy is they stimulate different parts of my brain I think.

 

 

You were the youngest ever World Poetry Slam Champion in 2012. How did it feel to win that – did it spur you on or put a lot of pressure on you to do better and better?

It felt good! At the time I was still studying so it was the first time I seriously considered pursuing it as a career. At the same time most people had never heard of the competition so it was more of a personal milestone than suddenly being given loads of gigs, but it definitely spurred me on to want to do more.

 

Scroobius Pip, Ed Sheeran, Scott Mills and Kate Tempest are all fans of your work, which must mean a lot to you. Who do you admire in the poetry and rap worlds?

Kate has been a hero for a long time, as much for the work she produces as the way she holds herself. My favourite at the moment is Hollie McNish – again, I love her poems but also the way she approaches it I find very inspiring. In terms of rap, Kendrick Lamar is my all time fave as he knits his technical ability and attention to detail with interesting content.

 

Are there any subjects that you will never be able to write about as they are just too personal or emotional for you?

There’s nothing I can’t write about, but there are definitely things I’ve written about that I never plan on performing. For me, writing has become a way of processing what’s going on on the world around me but I think it’s important to protect yourself when it comes to what you share. I love being able to be vulnerable on stage with others but I also know what is healthy for me to share, and which pieces were enough to write without performing.

 

 

You have worked with your mate Chris who is a jazz musician for the last 10 years. How did you meet and come to put a show together that allows you both to shine?

We met at school. It started off as any excuse to jump on stage together and entertain our friends and we’ve been mutual fans of each other’s work for a long time so we never really went more than six months without doing something together. In the last couple of years it’s really come together in a way that highlights the best of both of us, so it works as more of a multiplication or our individual skill sets rather than addition.

 

You’re also bringing comic songwriter Gecko with you this time – how did you meet?

We met at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival last year. As soon as we saw him, me and Chris turned to each other with a look that showed we were thinking the same thing. We got on really well up there but also think our shows compliment each others well so after touring the UK in spring it’s nice to have Norwich in the diary to reunite the dream team.

 

You’ve just started a podcast, The Harry and Chris Podcast. How’s that going?

It’s one of my favourite things I’m involved in. At the moment we’re three episodes in and going strong. As seems to be the trend in my life it started off as a bit of fun and is beginning to take on a life of its own.

 

You now do school workshops, literature festivals and play all over the world. What do you think it is about one of your shows, or your world in general, that excites and moves people so much?

What excites me when I see performers is feeling like I know them just by watching them from the crowd. I hope that this comes across because I think my shows convey the pure joy I have for language and my outlook on the world, but also combine humour with more serious parts. I’m incredibly grateful to have the platform that I do to share my work and each gig seems to lead on to others!

 

Can you share with us your favourite line you’ve ever written?

It constantly changes. The most tongue in cheek one I perform is from my version of Ed Sheeran’s A Team all about dessert, where after a string of pudding-based puns about a break up I say “meringue - but you never rang back” and every time I can’t believe I get away with it.

 

 

You’ve had extraordinary rap battles with people like Soweto Kinch amongst others which get quite personal at times, like the one with Big J – where you killed him with the line “the closest you get to fruit is coconut in korma”. Do you generally have lines already set up in your head as well as having the skill to think incredibly quickly on the spot?

Yes, definitely. I used to plan so much in advance because I was terrified of getting caught out – I think I’ve got more comfortable on the spot but my philosophy is there’s no such thing as too much preparation in these things.

 

Who’s been the most difficult rapper to battle, and why?

The more I get involved, the more I get to know other battlers and find out how lovely they are in real life which makes it harder to pretend to take it seriously! These days I just try and have fun with it and let the language and jokes take centre stage. I think battling Soweto Kinch was particularly tricky at the time because he was a genuine hero of mine so it was an honour to meet him, let alone have to go head to head in a battle.

 

Have you found the poetry community to be a welcoming and supportive one?

Absolutely! I wouldn’t have kept on going if I hadn’t found such a supportive community when I started - there’re always like-minded people who are keen to share their expertise, or recommendations for new people to check out, or places to perform, and even now I love going to open mic’s to see that camaraderie between relative newcomers and seasoned vets all in the same room.

 

This will be the third time you’ll have played at Norwich Cathedral in as many years – we love you in our fine city! What are your plans for the next year?

I love coming back! Coming up this year me and Chris are previewing our Edinburgh show at the Cathedral and then taking it on a tour in the autumn. I’m also working on my second collection of solo poems that I’m hoping to bring out next year, while keeping up a monthly night, Joyride, that I run with Chris in London, and things like the podcast. There’re also big plans in terms of my personal life but not sure I can go into too much detail yet!

 

Harry Baker will perform with Chris Read and Gecko at Norwich Cathedral on 16th June, tickets available from cathedral.org.uk.