Some of the world’s greatest music has come from Greater Manchester.
Indie. Electronic. Hip-hop. Whichever genre you explore, you’re sure to find Mancunian fingerprints in there somewhere.
Even in a category as niche as early mobile music.
Case in point: The Kersal Massive.
This infamous trio of MCs recorded a rap video in a Salford shed back in 2006 and cemented their place in history as some of the first ever viral video stars.
Sure, their music was great for a very different – and unintentional – reason. But it was still great nonetheless.
Even today, the very mention of Kersal can prompt an impression of: “Get on the bus with me daysavahhh, smoke da reefa in the cornahhh”.
In the mid-noughties, The Kersal Massive were as big as their name suggested – with their freestyle being bluetoothed between more mobiles than Akon’s “Smack That”.
The group – which consisted of Clio-driving leader C-Mac, helium-voiced bus enthusiast Lil’ Kev, and hypeman Ginger Joe (essentially Kersal Massive’s very own Flava Flav) – only ever shot one music video.
But whilst most media from the blurry-looking, scruffy-sounding world of mobile videos – which was largely populated by happy slapping and donk music – has died out, Kersal’s track lives on.
With fingers in the air and frowns on their faces, the wannabe rappers managed to squeeze lyrics about drugs, money, cars, women, public transport and a hatred for Levenshulme into their 45-second freestyle.
Kevin Powder – a presenter known for his zany schtick – actually ventured up to meet the gang on their own stomping ground several months after the video appeared, asking Kersal to perform a second rendition of the song that became synonymous with the Sony Ericsson.
The gang – by this point a little older with broken voices – generously obliged, reciting the lyrics word-for-word.
Powder is then flagged out of the estate, the video ends, and poof, Salford’s young Gs disappeared.
The popularity of their video, though, was a sign of things to come.
Little did they know it, but Kersal were the first faces of the original viral content boom – which suddenly began turning obscure figures in Britain into overnight celebrities via the magic of the internet.
One of the most successful examples was market trader Muhammad Shahid Nazir (AKA One Pound Fish Man), who earned a recording contract after being captured on camera singing about the price of seafood at Upton Park.
Still, despite the increasingly congested arena of viral stars, The Kersal Massive continued to resurface on social media from time to time. And, whenever they did, people would always ask the question: Whatever happened to those guys?
It’s been thirteen years since the gang were seen on camera together, and all signs seem to suggest their lives have taken very different paths.
The Tab claimed they’d tracked down frontman C-Mac in 2016, who didn’t appear to look back on his five minutes of fame with too much nostalgia.
He apparently told the website: “The video still does the rounds now and then, but that’s about it. I don’t get noticed about it anymore so it’s done and gone for me.
“I am not in touch with the other two lads anymore.”
C-Mac’s sidekick Kev made his own headlines in 2017. But not for the right reasons.
GMP
Local police posted an image, whom the Reddit community believed to be Lil’ Kev, online in the summer of that year, appealing for information on his whereabouts after he was suspected of gun offences.
The enigmatic Ginger Joe, fittingly, has yet to resurface.
But we like to think he’s still out there somewhere. Over in the corner. Being the main man he always was…
A rising Manc musician is supporting a global popstar on tour in America
Danny Jones
Up-and-coming Greater Manchester musician Elliot James Reay, from just down the road in Bury, has just joined fellow rising solo artist and already established US superstar Benson Boone on his upcoming American tour.
Yes, a lad from Bury is opening for the bloke who belts out that ‘Beautiful Things’ tune that’s been stuck near the top of the charts for what feels like the last year.
Fittingly joining Boone for the US leg of his American Heart tour supporting his sophomore album of the same name, 23-year-old Elliot James Reay has already played a trio of shows warming up the crowds ahead of the headliner and is quickly gaining new fans across the pond.
Especially since his music harkens back to some of their most famous music icons of all time.
The youngster is still having to pinch himself at the mere notion of being on the road with such a big name so early in his career, posting on social media this week, “How do I explain this one to my friends back in Bury?
“A dream come true to be opening for Benson Boone in St Paul last night, I’m eternally grateful for the opportunity to sing to you all and thank you for all the love you gave me!”
Roy Orbison-obsessed Raey – who also takes plenty of look and feel from the likes of Elvis and Billy Fury, among other old school, soulful American singers – has gone from releasing covers on YouTube to dropping his first-ever EP back in June and now playing full Stateside stadiums.
What a whirlwind journey it’s been for the local lad already.
The Manc songwriter and guitarist featured as one of our artists of the month last December, and we’re glad to see he’s only gone from strength to strength.
It’s fair to say that he’s matured a lot in the time since then, let alone the last 12 months or so, and booking a slot as a support act for as big as Benson Boone is right now is nothing short of huge.
We said late last year, and we’ll say it again: we see a bright future ahead for this talented young Macunian, and we wish him all the best for the dozen or so remaining US tour dates.
If you haven’t listened to his stuff before, you can get a little taste with his latest single HERE.
Or, if you want to take our advice, why not watch a great music video filmed around some very familiar city centre sites down below?
He’s certainly got his own style, even if it his heavily inspired by some of the greats.
Last night marked K-pop group ENHYPEN’s first-ever visit to Manchester, the UK and Europe as a whole, so it was no surprise the crowd was ready to get ‘Loose’ as they took to AO Arena.
The lights dimmed, the fans screamed, and it had finally dawned on Manchester that it was officially ‘En-O’Clock.‘
It’s a bouncy bassline, synth-stinted number also known as ‘Brought The Heat Back’ that kicks the show off, and on a day when our city was surprisingly warm, this three-minute performance was very fitting.
ENHYPEN performing ‘Loose’ for 21,000 fans at AO Arena in Manchester (Credit: BELIFT LAB)
‘Future Perfect (Pass the MIC)’ had the crowd quite literally jumping for joy, ‘Given-Taken’ saw a similar response, while a personal highlight was ‘Bite Me’.
With lyrics like “Come here and get some” and “Just come over and bite me”, this song follows a perfect pure-pop formula that works every time; it’s hard to ignore.
‘Your Eyes Only’, which makes reference to the previous hit “You can bite me / You can play me”. Did we like this song? “Ya, ya, ya, ya, ya” we did.
Disco belter ‘Sweet Venom’ had the crowd captivated for just under three minutes with its “Swe-hee-hee-t” earworm lyrics in every chorus.
K-pop boyband ENHYPEN played ‘Tamed-Dashed’ during their ‘Walk The Line’ tour at AO Arena in Manchester (Credit: BELIFT LAB)
An extended electronic synth introduction plays out as the staggered-vocal single, ‘XO (Only If You Say Yes)’ begins, and it’s easy to see why this is a fan favourite.
Whether it’s the fact that it has an easy-to-follow but incredibly addictive chorus or due to it featuring on the soundtrack for the Netflix rom-com and To All The Boys I Loved Before spin-off, XO, Kitty.
Following this was the 2010s-reminiscent ‘Bad Desire (With or Without You)’, which felt like a callback to ex-boyband star Justin Timberlake and his return with magnum opus ‘Mirrors’.
This song warranted such a roar of cheers and applause that the band decided to give it a second play later in the set, although this time they opted for the English version, which was equally appreciated.
All seven members of ENHYPEN interacting with fans during their Manchester show (Credit: BELIFT LAB)
During interactions with fans between songs, ENHYPEN discuss what they recognise Manchester for, stating, “This city is really famous for its football”.
Instead of declaring their support for the reds or blues, the band opted for a smart and conscious, “We’ll leave it there” – well played, boys.
‘Paranormal’ signalled that this night of incredible dance-packaged music was coming to an end, but ENHYPEN’s version of an encore is much different to any other musical act.
These seven singing sensations decided to play not just one or two songs before saying goodbye to the Manchester crowd, they opted for five plus – phenomenal.
The Manc Audio -
22nd December 2020 
