Mr. Thing

Born in the Sevenoaks district of Kent, England, DJ/producer Mr. Thing's obsession with breaks, mainly from deep funk and reggae, fueled his passion for turntablism even when he first started to DJ around age 14. His career took a step forward when he helped found beat-juggling ensemble the Scratch Perverts in 1996. The UK-based collective won several international team championships afterwards, and Mr. Thing earned his own crowning title as the UK winner in the DMC Scratch Championship in 2000 (he came third in the DMC world competition), though he soon exited the Scratch Perverts by the end of the year. For a turntablist, taking on a solo career can be a risky move, but the Kent DJ continued to build on his reputation from his beat-juggling days with a number of projects as well as producing beats. Uniting him with veteran producer DJ Premier, BBE Music enlisted Mr. Thing to compile the third installment of their The Kings of Hip-Hop series, issued in 2005. By that time, he had obtained a residency at the world-famous London Fabric nightclub and had built a strong, collaborative relationship with up-and-coming, London MC Yungun. The two released the Grown Man Business LP on Silent Soundz in 2006. Recording for BBE, Mr. Thing once again used his trained ear for samples and breaks to compile the 2008 mix album and double-CD, Strange Breaks.