Words by Eloise Mayer
1Xtra’s Nick Bright speaks to us about his rise up the ranks of radio and why Air Max Ones remain his favourite creps.
EM: Can you tell us a little bit about your journey into the world of radio broadcasting and what inspired you to pursue a career in it?
NB: It’s a bit of a mad story. I grew up in South London around Crystal Palace and my parents moved us to Portsmouth when I was 16, and it was really weird and a bit of a culture shock because I grew up in a really multicultural area. Grime was starting to pop when I was growing up in the early days of the Dizzee Rascal’s Boy in da Corner album dropping. Then I moved to a place where they hadn’t even heard of Dizzie Rascal or anything like that. Like most 15, 16, 17 year olds, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do with my life. So, I went and studied music at college and got involved with a community radio station called Express FM. I decided with my best friend that we were gonna do a grime show. Nobody listened to the show and nobody liked the music we were playing, I just fell in love with radio when I did that.
What were your next steps?
I decided that I was gonna apply for uni in London. My degree was actually a radio production degree at the University of Westminster which meant I got to move back to London and I decided I was just gonna try and get a job in radio straight away even whilst I was at uni. I was applying for jobs specifically at 1Xtra because it was the music that I liked. At the time, I didn’t really want to work at Radio 1 and definitely not Radio 2. I eventually managed to get a job at 1Xtra behind the scenes working on other people’s shows so I was working with Mr Jams, Semtex, Ronnie Harrell, Robbo Ranx, Bailey, DJ Cameo, and all the guys I grew up listening to.
So how did you end up presenting?
To make the transition from production into presenting there were a few people that really helped me do that. Mr. Jam is definitely one of them. It was his show I was working on when it all happened for me. I was one of the broadcast assistants, so like not the producer but there making tea and printing texts, but he used to talk to me loads on air because I was still at uni. I was the DJ in my student union so he would ask what’s been the big tune this week and then just for a laugh, because I became a bit of an on-air personality for the show, he would say, “Right, Nick’s gonna do this next mix”, and I would just get up do it. Rebecca Frank who was an editor at the time and now runs Kiss FM told me she really liked how it sounded and to put a demo in, so I recorded a demo one night on my own in the studio. They liked it, it escalated up, and then they were offering me a show.
What advice would you give to somebody who was aspiring to be a radio presenter/DJ or is looking to make a mark in the industry ?
Firstly: you need to be doing it. Don’t worry if you’ve got zero experience. I always encourage anybody and everybody to get involved with radio because it’s an industry that I love. You can literally record stuff into your phone. If you want to make a podcast with your friends or whatever, just do it. There’s no shame in doing it for fun. The other thing I guess is that you have to develop a bit of a thick skin if you want to work in media. It’s very difficult to make progress across the board. A lot of people think that if you work at the BBC then you’re making Gary Lineker money. I wish I was Gary. But just because you hear a no sometimes doesn’t mean no forever: it just means not right now.
Are there any shows that had a really significant impact on you personally or professionally?
My first show on 1Xtra was a big moment for me. Because of the Icelandic volcanic ash cloud back in 2010, I was trapped in Thailand for a week longer than I was meant to be there. It meant that I had to debut my show a week later so I was panicking of course, because when you’re new and been offered this amazing opportunity, you wanna get it right. I thought they were going to take the show away from me! Suffice to say, they didn’t.
I’ve noticed the stack of shoes behind you. Being a radio presenter, I suppose not being filmed means you don’t have to worry about fashion too much, but would you say it plays a big role in your career or day-to-day personal life?
Shoes, trainers, sneakers: that’s what I’ve always had a bit of a weird obsession over. I think genuinely because of my working class background, like most kids, I always wanted Nike trainers but when I was growing up my parents didn’t see the value in buying me stuff like that. They gave me and my brothers other things we wanted, it’s just they didn’t buy us trainers when I started earning my own money I became transfixed and obsessed with trainers. Air Max Ones are my favourite silhouette. It’s honestly quite embarrassing how many pairs of trainers I’ve got. It’s not even a flex. If I could, I’d do a documentary about why people are so obsessed with sneakers and sneaker culture. It would definitely be something that I’d be interested in doing and having on the agenda. Radio 4, if you’re reading this, give me a shout!