Urban Vault caught up with Netherlands based producer Sneadr & emcee Dookie to ask them some questions about their recent four-track BATTLE ROYALE EP, & more…

Sneadr & Dookie is the latest team to surface from the collective source Het VerZet, also home to its members BlabberMouf and Ellmatic. They bring a fresh interpretation of the Boombap sound, combining original bangers produced by Sneadr with smooth flows and clever punches by Dookie. In their mission to conquer Hip Hop heads all over the world, they bring us the video ‘Battle Royal – A Mini Documentary’ to promote their ‘Battle Royal’ EP. Second, in line is the release ‘Panic 4 None’ which is expected to drop in November.

What are your names?

Dookie: Dookie, Dooks of Hazard, Dook Nukem, Call of Dookie.
Sneadr: Sneadr, Sneadr Music.

Where are you from?

Dookie: Originally from the Philippines, but lived in The Netherlands most of my life. 64 is da spot.
Sneadr: Heerlen 64, The Netherlands.

How did you guys team up as the duo Sneadr & Dookie?

Dookie: We used to be neighbors back in the day. I knew Sneadr as a B-Boy and I was already rapping back then. Fast forward to a bit over a year ago Sneadr had been making beats, I’ve even jumped on a couple of his productions. I had been searching for a certain sound that I thought would bring out my style better, while sneadr was also producing and experimenting with different styles and Hip Hop subgenres. Somewhere along the way, he slipped me a couple of beats in which I felt it corresponded with my vision. And so it began, we started busting out some tracks and so here we are. This story played out in a period of around a decade, so I might have left out some details.

Beeing the latest team to surface from Het VerZet posse, also home to its members BlabberMouf and Ellmatic, tell us more about the collective and the idea behind it?

Dookie: Het VerZet is a Heerlen / Parkcity based collective of rappers and producers. 6 rappers, 2 producers and a DJ. Established around 2007 we had some successes with our videos and our album ‘Greatest (s)Hits’ which got released in 2012. We did shows all over Europe and gained some notoriety in the underground Hip Hop scene. The collective still exists, most members are working on solo projects.

What‘s the Hip Hop scene like in the Netherlands?

Dookie: It’s a very dominant subculture as I feel it is in a lot of western countries. The popular Hip Hop subgenres (more club-oriented sounds) dominate the charts. The ‘Underground Scene’ is way thinner but I find that some acts are more interesting than most mainstream acts as most of the time I find them dime a dozen.

How long have you been making music?

Dookie: DAMN, I wanna quote one of the greats. “Too old to rap, too young to wack” – Sean Price.
Sneadr: Around 10 years.

Tell us more about your latest release respectively your upcoming release in November.

Dookie: Sneadr and I wanted to make a series of releases depicting the stories, vibes, and attitudes of the environment we grew up in and how you deal with situations that these environments present. ‘Battle Royale’ EP is the first of a two-part series. Next in line is ‘Panic 4 None’ EP. The names of the EP’s refer to our past. As the first project was more focussed on me as the emcee, the next release will focus more on Sneadr as the producer. Beginning of next year we plan to drop our album.

What inspires you when you make your music?

Dookie: Inspiration is all over the place so that would be hard to pinpoint for me but I’m definitely triggered by dirty and grimy beats. What drives me to write is clever bars and punches. I find this aspect one of the most appealing things whether hearing others do it or doing it myself. Literally crack myself up when I write something I find insane.

Sneadr: Dookie said it right, inspiration can come from anywhere. For me personally its all about getting started. Don’t overthink making music, when you find a dope sample or drum loop inspiration finds you automatically. Besides that, I get inspiration from producers like Damu The Fudgemunk, Alchemist, Havoc, Daringer, Nick wizz, Lewis Parker and of course kings like DJ Premier and Pete Rock. I am not the one who listens to old albums over and over, but I am always searching for new music. This is also a big factor that keeps me inspired.

What do you think of the music industry in 2019?

Dookie: I find it exciting and challenging to navigate through. As I’ve seen the switch in witch artist were just hoping to get a record deal to how it is now where a label is becoming pretty much secondary to your first success. I think most labels won’t even sign you if you don’t already have a significant following and/or streams.

Sneadr: I think Hip Hop has become so big there is room for everybody. Next to that I always had a very broad taste of music. There is not a bad genre, just bad music. Further, I think It’s nice to see a lot of my favorite producers team up with dope new rappers.

What’s your favorite track at the moment?

Dookie: $ha Hef – Wishing well
Sneadr: Eto X Flee Lord – Mob Ties

What do you do when your not making music?

Dookie: Thinking that I should be making music.
Sneadr: I practically live in the studio in my free time.

Which do you prefer, Facebook or Twitter or Instagram?

Tinder.

In a few words sum up your thoughts about Urban Vault and what we’re trying to do?

Dookie: I think the fact that you guys try to cover culture and not just focus on what’s getting the views. I find this very important as good music is not only dictated by how many people have checked it out. Most of the artists I find the dopest or most creative don’t get the million views or plays. I like it like that, cause I’m a low-key hipster. So big up!

Thank you for your time and may you carry on making dope, fresh music….

Sneadr & Dookie – Battle Royale EP via iTunes/Spotify

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