In this episode of 2 Beers With The Band, I sit down with West London rapper, poet, author, and overall creative polymath Douki for an unfiltered, deep-dive conversation. While we dive into his multi-faceted career, I’m sipping on an IPA while Douki cracks open a non-alcoholic Guinness 0.0—offering a candid review of its lighter texture and watered-down stout profile as he gets ready for a late-night wind-down and an early morning gym session. Right from the start, we establish that authentic hip-hop isn’t about chasing commercial trends; it’s about staying true to your roots, processing real-life struggle, and building a genuine connection through raw lyricism. We take a trip back through his upbringing in Brentford, West London, exploring how growing up in a multicultural household with Algerian, Spanish, and Moroccan roots shaped his unique worldview and bilingual perspective. Douki opens up about his early musical beginnings at age 12 inside Shepherd's Bush's Juice FM radio station, turning doubt into fuel, and making his very first beats on a PlayStation 2 using Music 2000. He breaks down how literary influences like Tupac Shakur’s The Rose That Grew from the Concrete, Ol' Dirty Bastard, and Slim Shady taught him the power of words over simple sound. We also pull back the curtain on the creative mind behind his diverse catalog, discussing how he uses Reaper, FL Studio, and Virtual DJ to sample retro classics like the 1982 animated film The Flight of Dragons for his track "The Tower". Douki gives us an exclusive look into his upcoming projects, including Wiseguys with James Torino, Yesterday's Dream of Tomorrow, and his ambitious hip-hop stage musical screenplay, Metal Boy—a dark, Pinocchio-inspired narrative about mortality and what it truly means to be human. We wrap up the session with a deeply honest discussion on navigating ADHD, why he refuses to chase fake social media clout, overcoming writer’s block, and why he’d ultimately choose running a traditional English pub over chasing mainstream fame.
