Since dropping debut single ‘Hey Hey’, Tau Benah has won a lot of fans in the Sabotage office with his silky flow and laid back social commentary.  Other than the fact he’s from North West London and part of Creative Elevation- a collective promoting art in every form- we didn’t know much about the man.  To try and amend this, we asked him to name a memorable song from every year of his life so far.   Mirroring the styles at play in ‘Hey Hey’, he came back with a winning combination of hip-hop, 90s soul and just a bit of rawk.  Enjoy…

 

1992 Beastie Boys – So Wat’cha Want?

Beastie Boys are just so raw. This song sounds great, even today.

1993 Jamiroquai – Too Young To Die

Timeless, this could come out today and still be a hit. He just floats over this.

 

1994 Prince – The Most Beautiful Girl In The World

The music video for this used to confuse me so much when I was younger! Prince is in his own league and I’ll always remember this song.

 

1995 Mobb Deep - Shook Ones Pt.2

One of the hardest songs ever. The beat just knocks.

 

1996 Maxwell - Ascension (Don’t Ever Wonder)

Just listen!!! People don’t write love songs like this anymore.

“You gave me this beating baby

This rhythm inside

You made me feel good and feel nice and feel lovely

Gave me paradise”

 

1997 Erykah Badu – On & On

Gotta love Erykah Badu. This song is just one of those effortlessly good songs. A regular listen for me.

 

1998 Kid Rock – Bawitdaba

I remember around the time that this came out, watching the video on TV. I wasn’t sure exactly who or what I was listening to but I loved it. Still bang this out once in a while to annoy the neighbours.

 

1999 Lauryn Hill – Everything Is Everything

The way she sings so soulfully then flows with her raps!

 

2000 Eminem – Stan

Can listen to this every single day and never get tired of it.

 

2001 Incubus – Wish You Were Here

“And in this moment I am happy.”

 

2002 N*E*R*D – Provider

N*E*R*D slayed this. Had me and my friends riding around town thinking we were bad.

 

2003 Avenged Svenfold– Unholy Confessions

This song always sticks out to me for some reason when I think back to this time.

 

2004 The Streets – Blinded By The Lights

Ground breaking project and well-written song. Can listen to this on repeat for hours.

 

2005 Kanye West – Addiction

Liked this song when it came it. It just sounded nice; little did I know the absolute truth within Yeezy’s rhymes till I was older.

 

2006 Plan B – Charmaine

Plan B killed this! The whole project is just great.

2007 Amy Winehouse – Valerie

Such a jam! Every summer you gotta spin this when the sun is out.

 

2008 Tan Dun - Four Secret Roads Of Marco Polo

Beautiful piece of music. Just outstanding.

 

2009 Joe Budden - Exxxes

This is one of those songs that means different things to different people. Lyricism and storytelling from Joe Budden is always on point.

 

2010 Erykah Badu – Out My Mind Just In Time

Again from Erykah, just flawless.

 

2011 Adele – Hiding My Heart

Adele gets you in tune with feelings you didn’t even know you had. Great song.

 

2012 Robert Glasper – Gonna Be Alright (FTB)

Such a tune from Robert Glasper. He always does it right.

 

2013 Arctic Monkeys – One For The Road

Arctic Monkeys made a triumphant return with this!

 

2014 Sinkane – Hold tight

Sinkane just knows how to float over his tracks. Had this on repeat for a while

 

2015 Tau Benah – Hey Hey

My first release! Shameless plug

 

Check out Tau’s website ,  Soundcloud and Twitter