THE SERIES: BUSHY

Introducing The Series from Ben Sherman, a curated collection of inspirational individuals, including James Chuter, Bushy, Tom Ravenscroft, and Nicholas Sinclair. 

DJ Bushy—known by some as the Nicest Working Man in Showbiz. Infectious, quirky dance floor tracks with a Concorde Club Heritage make Bushy a legend of the club scene. He’s taken the time to sit down with Ben Sherman to discuss his career, his past, his present and future—while dressed in classic Ben Sherman menswear.

You’re multi-talented but which came first—modeling, music, skateboarding—and how did you get into it?

To be honest, it was probably music—but it was never something I thought I would do. My sisters are both amazing singers, and I guess I watched and learned from everything they did.

How creative and talented they were really inspired me. Then I found skating from dancing. At that point, dancing was my passion—and unfortunately I wouldn’t take up skateboarding 'till later on.

After college, I ended up modeling. I got casted for one campaign, and that led to another, and it’s just been a crazy journey ever since.

I actually found my way back to music by accident! I was in the studio with some friends and ended up freestyling on a track and in this group and performing all over London. The group separated into three separate collectives, and I’ve been working on creating my own sound ever since.

Tell us a little about your path to becoming who and what you are today? Am I right in understanding you were homeless for a little time? How did you turn your situation around and overcome these challenges? How have those and other experiences pushed you to where you are at right now?

Yes, I was homeless for a period of time—and I guess, at the time, it was hard. But I have taken so many positives from it; I feel like you never rise to anything until you hit rock bottom. I had to let everything go—whether it was fear, people, anything. All that mattered at that time was staying alive. It gave a new focus and passion to everything I did, and I learned that in order to overcome it, I had to let it all go. Everything I had ever learned. If I was gonna get out, I had to become a completely different person.

I’m sure it’s an extremely personal situation, but is there anything you would say to someone finding themselves in a similar situation?

The most important thing is to understand it’s not forever and to get organized. The most important thing you can do when you have nowhere to sleep is be organized. You’re in the best possible position in the world—you have no responsibility or reason to go home—so do as much with your day as you can, and work towards making them times a thing of the past.

How does it feel to be living and working in London at the moment? Do you feel like with the commercial success of Skepta and Stormzy, British hip hop is finally having its voice heard on the world stage?

It feels amazing to be living and working in London at the moment, but I can’t help but feel it’s an important time to push myself elsewhere. If we’re to help each other expand further, I think it’s important to see and experience new places. We can’t just leave it all up to Skepta, Stormzy, etc.

What are your fondest music firsts or memories?

Going to see my sisters performing at their gigs or at family weddings.

I think one of the first albums I bought was Will Smith—think it was called "Millennium" or something like that.

If we took a look through your "Recently Listened To" on Spotify/Apple Music, who would we find?

A lot of the time, I’m writing new stuff, so I won’t listen to music.

But everything—current, old. To be honest, lately, I’ve been listening to the old Weeknd, like "House of Balloons" and stuff like that. I think it really depends on how I’m feeling at the time.

What does Ben Sherman mean to you?

I think Ben Sherman is a huge British brand, and it’s been around for a very long time. The '60s were an amazing era for style, and more so for music: I’m a big fan of jazz, and Miles Davis had such an influence on jazz, as well as the brand itself.

What’s your favorite Ben Sherman piece of clothing and why?

I’ve always loved the checked shirt—used to have something similar when I was younger. It used to go with everything as well, so it tended to be something I wore a lot!

How do you decide what to wear in the morning?

I decide what to wear in the morning by literally trying to find color schemes that work. If I’m honest, a lot of times I dream about an outfit before I put it together, or I’ll see something and be like, “That would go perfectly." I’m inspired by everything around me.

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