The last time Hot Press hooked up with Michael Stafford – better known as Maverick Sabre – was a rather rushed occasion in July of last year in a suite at London’s ultra-hip EDITION Hotel. The shaven-headed, Hackney-born/ Wexford-raised rapper was on the verge of releasing the follow-up to his well-received 2012 debut, Lonely Are The Brave, and preparing to play an intimate industry showcase in the venue downstairs.
Unfortunately, problems with the in-house system meant that our interview had to be cut short after just ten minutes so he could do another soundcheck. We agreed to continue the conversation over the phone the following week. Before that happened, however, it was suddenly announced that his album’s release was being postponed indefinitely.
Fast-forward 15 months and, with the rocky, poppy, soulful and gospel-soaked Innerstanding finally set to see the light of day, its 25-year-old creator is on the line from the offices of his UK record company.
“What happened with the album?” he muses, speaking in a curious East-End-New Ross hybrid. “One, it wasn’t the right time. Two, there was a handful of tunes that weren’t ready. So timing-wise, I felt like the album wasn’t ready to come out, and production-wise I felt like there was a couple of touches that needed to be done with it.”
He delayed the album with the blessing of Virgin EMI. “There was no problem, it was a mutual agreement,” he explains. “It wasn’t just on my end, it was both of us. It wasn’t the right thing to put out, being really honest. It was between the both of us, it wasn’t just a decision from them.”
As things turned out, it was probably all for the best. “Innerstanding is realising that to change everything you want to change in the world, you first need to make sure you’ve got a solid foundation yourself. I think I have that from my first album. So Innerstanding is looking within yourself.”
He saw a lot of life changes in the interim period. “I went through a relationship breakdown – kind of fell out at the end of that,” he recalls. “There was a manager I had at the time, for four years since my first record, who within certain circumstances ended up not being my manager anymore.
“A lot of big changes happened in my life since the first record. I took myself away; I took myself travelling. I went to India, Jamaica, I went to America to do some writing out there, I went back to Ireland to do some work there. I changed my perspective a lot, and came out the end of it still growing, not 100% grown, but definitely matured.”
No matter where he travelled to, music was always a priority. “Music and me are all day every day,” he insists, “I never step away from music. When I was travelling, all I had was music. I never step away from music. A lot was going on, a lot had changed, and there was just a lot that I needed to find out. I suppose there were a lot of different moments in the last two, three years that really opened my mind to a lot of things. I’m glad I did it, the experiences I’ve had in the last few years have been priceless, and I wouldn’t have had them if I hadn’t taken that journey.”
While Lonely Are The Brave introduced Maverick Sabre to the world as a gifted hip-hop, rap and soul talent with serious potential, the broader Innerstanding makes good on that promise and seems set to solidify his international reputation. Unlike his standalone debut, the new album sees him working with others – most notably Gorgon City, Idris Elba and young New York rapper Joey Bada$$.
“I met Joey Bada$$ for the first time in London when he was only 17,” he recalls. “We’d actually met online, he’d tweeted lyrics to ‘I Need’ maybe a year previously, we’d been talking, and I’d been a fan of his early mixtape. We kept a relationship online chatting and I said, ‘Next time you’re in London we should meet up’.
“A remix came up for a song of his called ‘My Yout’, which he originally had a Caribbean singer called Collie Buddz on. They asked to do a UK version so they could approach the radio over here. I jumped on it and that’s where everything started. He came over here to do a Converse gig and that’s where we met for the first time. We connected and we’ve been like brothers ever since.
“Every time I go to New York I meet up with him and his family and friends. It’s the same anytime he comes here, we go to the studio and hang out, it’s more than a music thing, you know? It’s a brotherly connection now. He’s one of the people I feel very close to that I’ve met along the way.”
He still feels just as connected to acclaimed British rapper Plan B, who originally encouraged him to leave Ireland and go for it in London.
“Oh yeah, of course, always,” he affirms. “He’s working on his new record right now, but he’s always been there to give me words of wisdom.”
Wisdom of the more homegrown variety was found in Ireland. Although born in Hackney, Maverick Sabre grew up and came of age in New Ross (which actually has a strong local rap and hip-hop scene). He still returns to Wexford regularly.
“When things got busy with the first record, I wasn’t able to get back home much. I used this time to try and get back when I could. Especially even more recently I’ve been going back quite a lot. My mother and father are still there, so it’s good to get a little bit of homely warmth when you need it.”
Not that there’ll be much time for that in the coming months. “The plan is to get this album out and hit the road as soon as possible. There are a lot of territories we haven’t really touched on too much. We’ve done bits and pieces in Europe. I’ve personally done bits and pieces myself in America, but I need to sit down and plan out some consistent shows.
“We need to do Australia, hopefully, there was talks of touring with the Hilltop Hoods, who are a big Australian hip-hop group, and so I’ll go to Australia and New Zealand and tour a bit in April. I’m going to hopefully get out to the States and you know, with the States you have to spend a good block period of time going out there. So yeah, get this record out and tour, tour, tour. Get myself on the road in whatever capacity that may be.”
How does touring and performing live compare to recording in the studio?
“There are two very different energies,” he explains. “Performing live for me is where I connect with people the most. For me as an artist performing live is the truly important part of the puzzle. That’s where, if people don’t understand me or people don’t really get what I’m about, all I’d say is come and see me live, come and stand at one of my shows. If I can’t convince you by the end of that, you’re not meant to be a fan and I’m not meant to be making music for you. For me, that’s where I’ve always connected with people.
“Doing a live performance is where you really feel it, but obviously music needs to be created and I enjoy recording,” he continues. “Studio time and studio sessions are like the writing of the diary, I suppose, that’s the initial expression. After that, you’re connecting with people and making sure they understand you and your message.”